This page explains what AstroSpecs compares, how products are ranked, where the data comes from and how the site is funded. It is published in accordance with the transparency rules applicable to online comparison services under Directive 2005/29/EC, as amended by Directive (EU) 2019/2161 (the “Omnibus” Directive), which require online comparison tools to give clear information about how they rank products.
The essentials
- AstroSpecs compares consumer smart telescopes sold in Europe: 15 models listed to date.
- The comparison tool’s default ranking is by ascending indicative price.
- No manufacturer or retailer pays to appear on AstroSpecs, or to be ranked more highly on it.
- AstroSpecs earns a commission on some purchases, with no effect on the ranking.
1. Who publishes AstroSpecs
AstroSpecs is an independent site devoted to smart telescopes. It does not belong to any manufacturer of astronomical equipment, it is neither owned nor controlled by any of the brands compared, and it is not part of any group that owns an astronomy online shop.
None of the brands compared has any say over the site’s content, over the data published or over the order in which products appear.
2. What AstroSpecs compares
By smart telescope we mean a motorised observing instrument that combines three features: automatic pointing at the sky, a built-in imaging sensor, and control from a smartphone or tablet, with no optical eyepiece needed in order to observe.
Models that are listed are those meeting this definition, intended for the general public, and sold new to consumers in Europe.
Models that are not listed: traditional telescopes without a built-in sensor, motorised mounts sold on their own, astrophotography cameras sold on their own, conventional binoculars, as well as professional instruments or instruments sold on quotation only.
Some entries cover models that are no longer sold new. They are kept for reference, because these models are still traded second-hand, and they are flagged as such.
3. How comprehensive the comparison tool is
We aim to list all models falling within the scope defined above, and not merely a selection. To the editorial team’s knowledge, no consumer smart telescope currently sold in Europe is deliberately absent from the comparison tool.
This comprehensiveness nevertheless has limits that you should be aware of:
- it applies to products, not to retail offers: we compare neither the prices of all retailers nor their real-time availability;
- a model that has only just been announced may not be added until its final technical specifications have been published;
- the price shown is an indicative price, not a price monitored continuously at retailers.
4. How products are ranked
4.1 Comparison tool and automatic listings
Default ranking criterion: the indicative price, from cheapest to most expensive.
Definition of the indicative price: this is the manufacturer’s recommended retail price, inclusive of all taxes, expressed in euros, excluding one-off promotions, excluding delivery charges and excluding optional accessories. It is not a price monitored at a retailer: the price actually charged may be lower or higher.
Where two models have the same price, the relative order of those models is not significant.
The filters offered (brand, use) narrow the list displayed but do not change the ranking criterion: the models retained by the filter remain sorted by ascending indicative price.
This ranking is entirely automatic. It involves no manual weighting, no brand bonus and no commercial criterion.
4.2 Configurator
The configurator does not rank products in absolute terms: for each model it calculates a score for how well it matches your answers, then displays the models in descending order of score.
Your answers (budget, intended use, level of experience, need for portability) are matched against the characteristics of each entry: indicative price, uses covered, recommended level, aperture, sensor resolution and weight. Each criterion met adds points to the model’s score.
No points are awarded on the basis of the brand, how new the product is or any commercial partnership. Given identical answers, the configurator always produces the same ranking.
4.3 Selection pages and head-to-head comparisons
Pages such as “best smart telescope”, “under 500”, “for beginners”, as well as the “X vs Y” comparisons, are a matter of editorial selection and not of automatic ranking.
The criteria used for these selections are, in this order: how well the model matches the specific theme of the page, the consistency between its verified characteristics and its indicative price, and its actual commercial availability. The reasoning is set out in the text of each page, so that you are able to challenge it.
None of these selections is sold, negotiated or submitted to a manufacturer before publication.
5. Where the data comes from
The technical specifications published come from manufacturers’ official documentation: product sheets, user manuals, specifications published at the time of announcement. Indicative prices are taken from manufacturers’ official websites.
What we do not do: AstroSpecs does not physically test the instruments and does not measure their performance. The specifications published are therefore declared data, supplied by the manufacturers. Where a manufacturer states a figure that is ambiguous or not comparable with those of its competitors, we say so in the entry.
Update frequency: the entire catalogue undergoes a full review at least twice a year, as well as whenever a model is launched, revised or withdrawn from sale. The most recent full review of the data dates from August 2026.
Prices change faster than this page: always check the price displayed by the retailer before making any purchase.
6. How AstroSpecs is funded
Some links are partner links: a purchase made after clicking may earn AstroSpecs a commission, at no extra cost to you. This has no effect on the ranking.
No company pays to be listed here or to be ranked higher.
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7. No paid listings
No manufacturer, distributor, retailer or agency can buy:
- a place in the comparison tool or in the configurator;
- a better position in a ranking;
- a mention in a selection page or a head-to-head comparison;
- the alteration or removal of information unfavourable to it.
AstroSpecs publishes no advertorials, no sponsored articles and no paid reviews.
8. Reporting an error
The data published may contain errors or become out of date. Readers and manufacturers alike may report any inaccurate data: after verification against the official source, the correction is applied across all language versions of the site.
A report concerning a factual item of data is handled independently of who submitted it: we neither correct nor maintain information according to the commercial interests of whoever challenges it.
Last updated: 15 August 2026.