On Feb 4, 10:34*am, Sketcher wrote:
A few years ago I could recommend the $15, 50mm aperture Galileoscope
as a usable first telescope for those on a tight budget.
Unfortunately, a recent search revealed that this telescope is now
available for $50! *At the new price I can no longer recommend the
Galileoscope (which I've used to observe lunar craters, Jupiter's
moons, Saturn's ring, Uranus, Neptune and a surprising number of
deepsky objects).

Yet, as others have noted, there are far more options available today
as far as price and quality go than there was when I got my first
'real' telescope (a 60 or 65mm, single-element, plastic objective
refractor in a heavy cardboard tube) in 1967 or '68. *For $100 to $150
one can easily find a better telescope than the one I started with.

Unfortunately, most modern day newbies are likely to be far more
ignorant concerning astronomy and telescopes than I was. *Prior to
getting my first telescope (as a Christmas present) I had read
everything I could find pertaining to amateur astronomy and
telescopes. *I knew about reflectors and refractors. *I knew how to
tell the difference between a planet and a star via naked-eye
observations alone. *I even knew not to expect to see things as they
appeared in photographs. *In other words I knew what I could
realisticly expect from a modest, beginner's telescope. *For a
beginner (at any age) that has sufficient drive and interest to
educate themselves I seriously doubt that there exists a telescope
that could be called 'junk'! *A determined, educated newbie could
manage to use even the most unusable telescope out there -- even if it
means making design modifications first.

When it comes to recommending a first telescope to someone who lacks
any 'real' interest in astronomy (hasn't bothered to try to read all
he/she can about the subject) one ends up pretty close to the old no-
win situation. *No matter what telescope they get, they're not going
to see those bright, colorful, highly-detailed images they are
expecting. *Thus most will quickly place the telescope (even if it
costed a few thousand dollars) into the nearest closet and forget
about the telescope and astronomy.

Perhaps we need to forget about recommending telescopes to newbies.
Instead we could simply suggest that they spend some quality time in
the nearest library and/or find a willing mentor.

I think to key is trying to figure out how much the newbie really
wants to spend and then trying to steer them to the best scope at that
price.

It's too bad the Galileoscope went up in price. The 76mm Funscope
(reflector) looks more powerful and more complete, at the same price.
Refractors do tend to cost more than reflectors even at the low-end,
and it is an achromat.