Best for planets
Unistellar Odyssey
0.93″ per pixel (official sampling): Jupiter spans about 30–50 pixels. Unistellar cites Saturn's Cassini Division as its resolving example.
- 85 mm
- 0.75° × 0.56°
- 4 kg
- $2,599
Best smart telescopes for planets
Planets are tiny: Jupiter spans 30–50 arcseconds, Saturn's rings about 40. What matters is image scale (arcseconds per pixel) and aperture. Most smart telescopes sample 2–4″ per pixel, so Jupiter covers only about 8–20 pixels.
Most aperture for planets
Unistellar eQuinox 2
114 mm and 1.33″/px; Unistellar cites Jupiter's Great Red Spot.
- 114 mm
- 0.76° × 0.57°
- 7 kg
- $2,899
Best all-rounder that also does planets
Celestron Origin Mark II
1.23″/px with 152 mm, but designed for deep sky.
- 152 mm
- 1.32° × 0.75°
- 12.5 kg
- $4,299
Best of the refractors
Vaonis Vespera Pro 2
1.7″/px from the 12.5 MP sensor.
- 50 mm
- 1.60° × 1.60°
- 5 kg
- $2,990
Image scale of every current model
Jupiter at 45″ across spans this many pixels:
| Model | Aperture | Image scale | Jupiter (45″) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unistellar Odyssey | 85 mm | 0.93″/px | 48 px |
| Unistellar Odyssey Pro | 85 mm | 0.93″/px | 48 px |
| Celestron Origin Mark II | 152 mm | 1.23″/px | 37 px |
| Unistellar eQuinox 2 | 114 mm | 1.33″/px | 34 px |
| Unistellar eVscope 2 | 114 mm | 1.33″/px | 34 px |
| Vaonis Vespera Pro 2 | 50 mm | 1.70″/px | 26 px |
| Seestar S50 Pro | 50 mm | 2.30″/px | 20 px |
| Seestar S50 | 50 mm | 2.39″/px | 19 px |
| Vaonis Vespera II | 50 mm | 2.39″/px | 19 px |
| Vaonis Vespera 3 | 50 mm | 2.44″/px | 18 px |
| DWARF 3 | 35 mm | 2.75″/px | 16 px |
| Seestar S30 Pro | 30 mm | 3.74″/px | 12 px |
| Seestar S30 | 30 mm | 3.99″/px | 11 px |
| DWARF mini | 30 mm | 3.99″/px | 11 px |
Honest expectation: no smart telescope here matches a dedicated planetary camera on a long-focal-length telescope. Expect recognisable bands on Jupiter and Saturn's rings, not detailed close-ups. The Seestars and DWARFs are deep-sky instruments.
How we choose
We do not accept free units or payment for placement. Picks come from manufacturer specifications compared like for like: aperture (light), image scale (detail), field of view (what fits), weight, battery and what is included. Discontinued models are excluded. See our method.
More buying guides
Frequently asked questions
What is the best smart telescope for planets?
Our pick is the Unistellar Odyssey: 0.93″ per pixel (official sampling): Jupiter spans about 30–50 pixels. Unistellar cites Saturn's Cassini Division as its resolving example.
What is a smart telescope?
A smart telescope combines a small telescope, a camera sensor, a motorised mount and a computer in one unit. You control it from a phone app: it plate-solves its position, slews to the target, tracks it and stacks short exposures live, so an image builds up on screen in minutes.
Can I look through a smart telescope?
Most have no eyepiece. You view on a phone or tablet. The Unistellar Odyssey Pro and eVscope 2 add a digital eyepiece that shows the same processed image.