As far as beginner telescopes are concerned, the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope is a fairly popular option among customers. The Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar telescope is part of Bushnell’s Northstar model series. However, as opposed to other scopes in the Northstar series – like the Bushnell Northstar 78-8831 or the Bushnell Northstar 78-8846 – the Bushnell Northstar 78-8890 model has a shorter and more user-friendly tube. At the moment, the Bushnell 78-8890 telescope is one of the most commented models in the series on Amazon, but not all reviews are positive. To help you see if the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar Maksutove telescope is right for you, we have put together a Bushnell Northstar GoTo telescope review.
We want to offer you all the ups and downs to the Bushnell Northstar 90mm Maksutove telescope, based on authentic customer reviews and product specs. The Bushnell Northstar Maksutove telescope 90mm model might not be the best-selling entry-level telescope on the market, but there are quite a few reasons why you should consider checking it out.
Find out how to use Bushnell Northstar telescope, where you can find the Bushnell Northstar Maksutove telescope for sale, what you need to know about the Bushnell Northstar telescope manual and Bushnell Northstar telescope parts in our complete guide.
What is the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope?
To begin with, let’s talk about the basics of the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope. In essence, the 788890 model is a Maksutov-Cassegrain motorized telescope that uses GoTo technology. If you’re not quite sure what ‘GoTo’ refers to, it’s pretty self-explanatory. The feature is used to locate stars in a ‘go to’ fashion, with the help of an incorporated database with reportedly more than 20,000 celestial bodies. Here are some of the main features related to the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope:
- 1250 by 90 millimeter telescope
- 50x and 312.5x magnifications
- Red dot finderscope
- Remote control for RVO (Real Voice Output) and control at the push of a button
The Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope weighs 48 pounds and is 15 inches by 12 inches by 5 inches, making it relatively easy to carry. According to customer reviews, the optics are reliable, but the included eyepieces (25 and 4 mm) aren’t the best on the market. Its alt-az mount is said to contribute to a fast assembly, but customers mentioned that it’s worthless for astrophotography.
We regret that there are more negative customer reviews than positive ones for the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope, with a complete lack of 5 star ratings. Nevertheless, the scope has some advantages, so look into all of them below.
Pros and Cons to Using the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope
PROS:
- Price – if we were to choose one feature that makes the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope a best buy, it would be its price. It’s an incredibly cheap telescope, under $500. However, customers mentioned that scopes from competitors in the same price range were more trustworthy that the Bushnell model.
- Value – all in all, customers claim that the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope is a decent value. It’s not the best, but it’s far from being the worst telescope in its class.
- Beginner – those who are just getting started with astronomy will most likely get completely lost using a hi-tech scope. The Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope is easy to understand and use, after you have it mounted and aligned.
- Motorized – another quality that makes the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope great for beginners is that it’s motorized. Manual telescopes are far more complicated to use, so the GoTo technology with this Northstar really helps beginners out.
- RVO – individuals who learn best by listening will enjoy the Real Voice Output (RVO) technology that the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope comes with. The remote control module explains what the user is seeing in the night sky while observing.
- Stars & Planets – while the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope won’t be satisfactory for astronomers who are interested in deep sky objects, it does a pretty nice job for planets and stars. As one Amazon review described, it’s a ‘great backyard scope’ for those who are just getting started with stargazing.
CONS:
- Poor Quality – in astronomy, you really get what you pay for. In other words, a cheap instrument like the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope won’t offer you ‘Hubble quality’, as customers explained. Unfortunately, it has quite a few cons that customers repeatedly complained about.
- No Documentation – one of the biggest issues about the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope is that there is absolutely no documentation to help beginners out. Not only do users have trouble setting up and aligning the scope, but they also found that the official Bushnell website is of no help whatsoever.
- Useless lens – the 4mm eyepiece is literally useless for astronomers. Customers think that it was included so the company can promote 300 x magnification, but it won’t work with a telescope that has this focal length.
- Faulty GoTo – the GoTo feature of the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope would be wonderful if it actually worked at all times. Customers describe that it is frequently inaccurate.
Where to find the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope?
If you want to buy the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope, the best place to go is Amazon. Nonetheless, we highly recommend that you read all the customer reviews before purchasing this product (or any scope, for that matter). Right now, this Northstar has a 39% discount, meaning that you get around $260 off its initial price. This makes it $399.99 at the moment. It might seem like an awesome deal, but older reviews (from 2007) mentioned that it would be alright in the $200 or $300 price range. A nice perk is that you get free shipping, but this is generally applied to most Amazon telescopes.
If you do decide to get the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope, we recommend that you choose Amazon and not get it used from a reseller.
Extra Info:
Maintenance Advice
In customer reviews and product description, there aren’t many details about maintaining the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope. We encourage customers to use any kind of optical instruments with care at all times.
Accessories
When you order the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope on Amazon, you get the following accessories:
- Tripod
- Mount
- Accessory tray
- 25 mm eyepiece
- 4 mm eyepiece
In addition to these, we highly recommend that you invest in extra eyepieces and filters to make your observing experience pleasant.
Warranty and Guarantee Information
Unfortunately, no public details on warranties or guarantees can be found.
Customer Feedback
As you have already noticed, customer feedback isn’t exactly excellent for the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope. Most customers are actually pretty dissatisfied with their purchase, but almost all agree that it’s fine for a beginner telescope.
Our Recommendation
To sum up, the Bushnell BSH788890 Northstar 90mm Maksutove Telescope is decent for beginner astronomers. It has a fair price for the features it offers and will be fine for those who want to discover the skies from their backyard. However, you might want to look into other telescopes under $500 before making your final buying decision.
It’s a great 1000 yard rifle spotting scope.