Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ beginner telescope review

As far as beginner telescopes go, the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ — from our extensive tests — is the gold standard in instruments. Fully equipped with a range of accessories of good quality, with the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ, you get much more than what you pay for, especially given the main attraction: an award-winning and patented StarSense sky recognition technology that allows observers to tour the night sky with ease, and with the assistance of their smartphone.

Once you have downloaded the free SkySafari app, navigating to targets is seamless, and quite handily, this refractor is supplied with a phone dock for a hands-free experience. A major highlight of the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ is the quality of the optics, especially given the price point: chromatic aberration, or color-fringing around brighter, high-magnitude objects, wasn’t catastrophic, and I found that I could enjoy some exquisite detailing on a selection of targets, especially within the solar system. Could this be one of the best telescopes?

While this model is increasingly difficult to get in the US, it is still available in the UK and Europe. The Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 80AZ is still available in the US and is pretty similar in specs, with a larger aperture.

Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ telescope review

Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ: Design

• Portable design, ideal for traveling, and for all the family
• Some features felt of a flimsy quality
• Largely smooth operation, but lacks fine-tuning

On arrival, the telescope came very well-packaged, and at a weight of approximately 7.4 lbs (3.35 kg), I had high hopes that the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ’s lightweight build would be a winning design not just for beginners, but for the whole family. Admittedly, I was slightly concerned that the whole set-up would topple over during my observations, especially as winds were strong in the open spaces I had selected for my test site.

For the price-point, the overall build of this refractor is fair — some features (such as the star diagonal) are perhaps not of the very best quality being made of plastic. However, for a little less than $269, it’s what I have come to expect of telescopes that pride themselves in being the “entire package” without breaking the bank. Additionally, being considered an “entry-level” telescope, set up took less than 10 minutes without the enclosed manual, and this was discovered by timing a family member who had only ever used a telescope once or twice in their lifetime. The Celestron StarSense LT 70AZ certainly ticks the box in being easy to build.

Once built, I took the opportunity to move the telescope from the kitchen to the garden. Refraining from affixing the dewshield to the objective lens, I peered into the optical system: the glass is fully and multi-coated to a beautiful standard, and I noted the internal structure to be of excellent quality. The telescope’s focal length is 700mm, offering a focal length of f/10 — the Celestron StarSense LT 70AZ is a “slow” telescope, making it best for observing the ‘nearby’ solar system and the moon, as well as brighter deep-sky targets such as double stars.

The Kellner eyepieces are of a fair build, but I recommend investing in some higher quality accessories to get the full benefit of this instrument, keeping in mind to be respectful of the highest useful magnification, which is 165x, and the lowest being 10x. You can find some of our favorite eyepieces in our best eyepieces for telescopes guide.

The altitude-azimuth fork mount is basic and features a slow-motion control for slewing along the altitude axis, along with tightening screws to lock the tube into position. I did notice a slight drooping once I’d aligned the tube to my daytime reference point, no matter how much I tightened the setup. Looking through the eyepiece, my target hadn’t moved too far from the center of the field of view, so I was optimistic that my observations would go unhindered. I appreciated the basic design of the rack and pinion focuser, which made bringing daytime objects into focus a breeze. However, I was conscious of the lack of ability to fine-tune.

Downloading the StarSense app onto my iPhone 15, IOS version 18.4.1 was simple, and I encountered no problems. You’ll need an Android 7.1.2 and higher, or iPhone 6 to install this free software. In addition, my smartphone fitted snuggly in the phone dock with no slipping as I moved the setup and the tube around.

Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ: Performance

• Good, small views of the planets
• Optical system can pick up the brighter deep-sky targets
• Alignment through the app offered decent accuracy for a beginner telescope

I decided to go through the alignment process shortly before my observations to see how long it took — I was delighted to see that this two-step process took less than a few minutes, is incredibly accurate and easy to implement. You can read a bit more about how it works by reading Celestron’s dedicated page on the StarSense Explorer Technology.

Powering up the StarSense app, I was pleased to see that the software was recommending one of the targets that I’d added to my wishlist a few nights prior: king of the solar system, Jupiter, which was dazzling in the west at a magnitude of -2.0. Clicking on the planet in the app so that I was given navigational guidance, it was just a simple case of nudging the tube in the direction of the on-screen arrows until Jupiter was in my field of view — at least according to the app (which offers a green signal to let you know you’re on target).

Locking the tube in place by tightening the screws, I peered through the eyepiece to see that, while the gas giant wasn’t slapbang at the center of my field of view, it was only out by a few degrees as I brought my target into focus. The 10mm offered pleasing views of a bright ball of light, with small pinpoints — three of the four largest of Jupiter’s moons, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto — visible with good clarity and contrast. Chromatic aberration was at a minimum, which was pleasing to see given the price point of this refractor, but I needed dark blue and yellow filters to enhance Jupiter’s atmospheric belts and zones.

Mars also made for a good target through the optical system of the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ. Shining at a magnitude of +1.0 in Cancer, and not too far away from a moon in waning gibbous phase at 77% illumination in Leo, the contrast and clarity of the planet was of decent quality — and is sure to delight astronomers, who are just getting started in skywatching. It’s important to note that through the field of view of this refractor, and with the accessories supplied, targets will have a small angular size.

Slewing to the moon, and with the StarSense app continuing to demonstrate its reliability, I have to say that the rugged lunar surface, with its smattering of impact craters and mare, was a highlight during my observations. A moon filter (not supplied) added to the sight, with impressive clarity and only a slight hint of purple fringing around the moon’s limb. Crater Tycho was a standout feature, along with Stevinus, and the lunar seas Mare Vaporum (Sea of Vapours), Mare Crisium (Sea of Crises) and Mare Tranquillitatis (Sea of Tranquility).

But what of the deep-sky objects? The Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ provided pleasing views of some of the brightest targets, as recommended by the StarSense app. In Taurus, the Pleiades was glowing in the west at magnitude +1.3 and was a model target given its contrast and clarity in my field of view, as was the Beehive Cluster in Cancer, glowing at a dimmer magnitude of +3.1.

I discovered galaxies were a touch too faint through the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ. However, it was possible to just pick out Messier 81 (+6.9 magnitude) and Messier 82 (+8.4 magnitude) in Ursa Major, as well as several galaxies within the constellation of Leo. Globular clusters Messier 13 and Messier 3 could be seen using the supplied eyepieces, appearing as fuzzy blobs of light.

Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ: Functionality

• Easy, free download of the StarSense app
• App does recommend targets that are too faint for the optical system, so be cautious!
• Impressive app accuracy and great target recommendations

What makes the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ so special is the ability to be able to make use of your smartphone for simple, fuss-free tours of the night sky. The StarSense app behaves like your personal astronomer, recommending targets to view from one night to the next. I would, however, err on the side of caution when making your selection, as with this setup and accessories, you’ll be hard-pressed to see some of the night-sky wonders that are recommended. I recommend diversifying your arsenal of filters and eyepieces to truly get the best out of this refractor, again, being respectful of the highest and lowest useful magnifications.

That’s not to say that you should limit yourself, and once you are comfortable with how the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ works, I wholeheartedly agree with following up on the app’s suggestions — something it does very well by offering up a choice of “Tonight’s Best” and a whole slew of some of the more challenging, fainter objects to get stuck into.

It’s worth noting that the StarSense app will take up around 520 MB of your phone’s storage space, so I advise keeping this in mind, as well as downloading it over a WiFi connection to save on your data allowance. The app can, very cleverly, use your smartphone’s camera, gyroscope and accelerometer to accurately pinpoint your location, and recommend a selection of targets in your vicinity in real-time. It was a pleasure to watch the app at work, despite it being broad daylight, as I watched it continually recalibrate for the most accurate, most up-to-date guidance.

With my iPhone securely docked and waiting for the skies to become darker, I took on board some of the StarSense app’s recommendations that would keep me occupied over the course of a few nights. There’s plenty on offer and all within reach of the refractor’s optical system.

Should you buy the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ?

The smallest of the Celestron StarSense Explorer family, the LT 70AZ is undoubtably a great telescope for the beginner, particularly children and casual skywatchers. Being lightweight, the set-up is ideal for observers on the go and seems to be resistant to gusts of wind that are often more prevalent during the cooler months. What’s more, it’s very easy to setup and use, even if you’ve had very limited use of a telescope previously.

The planets are certainly its strength during observations but given its ability to show a variety of targets — from those within the solar system, to the farthest reaches of space — along with the generous selection of accessories, I feel you can't go wrong with the price tag. The Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ is certainly a bargain in this regard.

I do feel that you can get more from the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ’s optical system, so recommend accessorizing with eyepieces and filters for the very best views.

If the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 70AZ isn't for you

With a larger aperture than 70mm, the Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 114AZ and Celestron StarSense Explorer DX 130AZ Newtonian reflectors within the StarSense Explorer line of telescopes are just as simple to use and build, but will open the universe even further to those looking for an instrument that surpasses the limitations of a smaller aperture. There is also the Dobsonian range — Celestron StarSense Explorer 114AZ, Celestron StarSense Explorer 130AZ, Celestron StarSense Explorer 150AZ, Celestron StarSense Explorer 8-inch and Celestron StarSense Explorer 12-inch.