Binoculars, refractor or reflector: a first telescope for a child

After a good evening on our rooftop, many parents ask which telescope to buy at home. It is a good instinct, but the wrong first telescope often ends up in a cupboard. Here is how the three common choices compare.

Binoculars are where we suggest most families start. A pair of 7x50 or 10x50 binoculars, costing ₹3,500 to ₹6,000, shows the craters along the Moon’s edge, Jupiter’s four bright moons as tiny dots, star clusters such as the Pleiades and many more stars than the eye alone. They need no setting up, a child can use them in seconds, and they are just as useful on holidays and for birds.

A small refractor, which uses lenses, typically 70 mm wide, costs ₹8,000 to ₹15,000. It is light, needs almost no maintenance and shows Saturn’s rings and the phases of Venus clearly. The cheaper ones come on shaky tripods, which is the biggest frustration for children; check that the image stops wobbling within two seconds of a tap.

A reflector, which uses mirrors, gives more light for the money. A 114 mm or 130 mm reflector on a simple mount costs ₹15,000 to ₹25,000 and shows more detail on planets and some brighter nebulae. It is bulkier and needs its mirrors aligned now and then, which older children enjoy learning. Our advice: binoculars for children under ten, a refractor or our build-your-own 76 mm reflector for ages ten to thirteen, and a larger reflector only after a year of real use.