Reddit mentions of AW 20-60x60mm Zoom Angled Spotting Scope Monocular Telescope Angled Eyepiece Waterproof with Tripod & Soft Case

Hello :-)

What is your budget?

Most cheap and small telescopes are utter garbage, sorry. "Small" and "Pocket" suggest a small aperture and flimsy mount. For astronomy, that's a deadly combo :-)

• Binoculars. As /u/sflamel wrote :-) Even cheaper $30 binoculars such as the Cometron 7x50 are OK, but you get what you pay for. Still, a better choice than anything in the sub-$100 range.
  
  
• Verdict: Yes!
  
  
• $20: Astromedia Cardboard newtonian, plumber's telescope kit or Galilean kit (US). These work, are educational and fun to build. Overall they make more sense than a small telescope. IF the person likes to build stuff.
  
  
• Verdict: Yes?
  
  
  
• 50mm refractor. These cost under $50, but mount and accessories simply suck. Sorry. They might look like your normal telescope, and beginners will think: "This is great!" but they are not. Some start at 27 dollars. Even the ones from Brands like Celestron or Meade (e.g. 50az, 60az, 60eq) share some of the issues (stability, accessories).
  
  
• Verdict: Please No.
  
  
• $40-$60: Firstscope 76/300, Meade Lightbridge Mini 82 and similar.
  
  
• Travelscope.
  
  
• Those are cute small telescopes, but they do not show a lot. I used mine a couple of nights, but moved on. They have flawed optics making them less ideal for planets, and for wide-field, binoculars are much easier to use.
  
  
  
• Verdict: Firstscope/Mini: Maybe yes. Travelscope: Maybe No.
  
  
• 70eq, 70az and similar telescopes: Mount often not ideal. They work, but 70mm aperture is pretty limited by today's "standard".
  
  
• Verdict: Inspire or LT 70az maybe, but you can usually get a better telescope for a similar price-tag.
  
  
• $70-$100: Orion Skyscanner 100; Often $75 as "2nd" (used/refurbished) via Telescope.com. For that, it's a nice table-top telescope that already is more useful than the 3" table-tops. Still, it's not ideal.
  
  
• Verdict: Maybe. Beats most, far from perfect.
  
  
• $130 Dazzle 4.5. This is where it starts to get a bit better. 4.5" aperture already shows quite a bit compared to the other entry-level telescopes. It's not ideal for planets, but still outperforms all the cheap 3" telescopes.
  
  
• Verdict: Yes. Better choice in this price-range!
  
  
• Ignore all the 127eq and 114eq in this price-range. They either have flawed optics (bird-jones 114/1000, 127/1000; Spherical mirror: Astromaster 130) or a weak mount (All of them).
  
  
• Verdict: Burn. ... Especially these and the smaller refractors can often be found for $10-$20 on the classifieds, because no one wants them anymore.
  
  
• $180-200: Lightbridge Mini 130, Zhumell z130, AWB Oneksy (Europe: Heritage 130p). These are among the best entry-level telescopes despite some quirks. Other telescopes in a similar price-range are the Meade Inifnity 102mm (short, not ideal for planets, but decent otherwise), 90eq (decent but small aperture shows less), Orion xt4.5 (a bit more expensive, focal-ratio has some benefits compared to the 130mm table-tops, but it's price is close to a great 6" dobsonian). These might look like toys to some, but they are much less than an overpriced, bad, weak little refractor with 5 star rating on Amazon.
  
  
• Verdict: Wow!
  
  
• $300, $400: Skywatcher 6" or 8" dobsonian, Zhumell z8. Big. More expensive. Show so much more. z8 has so many accessories it's one of the best deals out there.
  
  
• Celestron Nexstar 130 or 127 SLT: Computerized, but GoTo will NOT make everything easier for beginners. Relatively compact. 8" will show a lot more though.
  
  
• Verdict: DO NOT get these. You will have tired employees all the time. They will stay up all night looking through their great telescope and come to work sleepy every other day!
  
  Difference a large aperture makes
  
  Size, Portability
  
   
  
  If you where thinking of something like a small $10-$20 handheld monocular or a $20-$50 spotting-scope: These work well for day-time and the moon. They are pretty bad for astronomy though. Anything with zoom in this price-range is. And over 10x magnification is difficult to hold free-handed, during the night, when you try to focus on a small detail. It's tolerable during the day, but not for nebulae and such.
  
  &nbp;
  
  TL;DR: "Turn left at Orion" or "Nightwatch" plus binoculars -> Best entry level set for beginners. Or at least the telescope in the $120-$200 range.
  
  
  Clear skies!