DWARF II Smart Telescope REVIEW: Best $500 Telescope and Spotting Scope?

DWARFLAB graciously provided me with their DWARF II Smart Telescope for a REVIEW. The DWARF II Smart Telescope caters to the interests of aspiring astrophotographers, as well as bird watchers and animal photographers. In this review video, I directed the DWARF II Smart Telescope towards the Sun to assess its ability to detect sunspots using solar filters. Additionally, I explored its astrophotography features and attempted to capture the Andromeda Galaxy from my urban rooftop. I also indulged in some bird photography and videography. In conclusion, I hold a highly favorable view of the DWARF II Smart Telescope - it's an ingeniously designed and reasonably priced smart telescope!
Clear skies,
Wido.
You can read my full review here:
astroforumspace.com/dwarf-ii-...
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0:00 intro
2:25 DWARF II specs
4:10 Birding with DWARF II Telescope
6:50 Solar imaging with DWARF II Telescope
9:30 Astrophotography with DWARF II Telescope
11:58 Final verdict and DWARF II 5% discount

[@pepponeskie]

It will be very interesting on how this Dwarf 2 match up against Seestar S50.

[@marklazarus1085]

Excellent review. Your enthusiasm is infectious :)

[@gregorymckenna6609]

Great review and thanks for emphasizing not to look at the sun with the filter. As for the telescope, I always get asked for telescope suggestions for a beginner kid. I think this is a much better option than the telescopes that appear at Christmas then end up in the closet.

[@AstroForumSpace]

Thanks and yes, exactly! I'm considering to donate this one to my 16 y.o. nephew 😀

[@user-cm4cn3te7h]

This looks a great little telescope, great review

[@edward_dantonio]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

[@rickspeedygonzales]

Cool little scope, might be a good "affordable" way to get people interested into Astrophotography without spending the big bucks when you start out.... great video too

[@newby783]

Thanks for the great review Wido. Decided to pick one up using your discount code 😊.

[@AstroForumSpace]

Cool, thanks! They're working on a new app update, I'm testing the beta version right now. It'll make astrophotography easier for users.

[@apexx8192]

love the content wido, great video once again

[@AstroForumSpace]

Tx!

[@sjakka84]

Thanks for the review and the coupon wido ! Gaat een prachttoestel worden voor op vakantie :)

[@Unity_and_Peace]

Amazing to see these getting cheaper

[@NeriAyala-oq8db]

Thank you great video

[@woody5109]

You live in a beautiful area, in a beautiful country, thanks for sharing sir.

[@AstroForumSpace]

Thanks for watching!

[@meibergstrmandersen9181]

Cool Video Wido - hey .. your city is not 2.5 million light years away, unless you're an alien 🙂 On a serious note - it is great to see your enthusiasm for astrophotography. 👍

[@AstroForumSpace]

😀

[@dlwiii3]

The fact that the tracking the birds did not work well when the whole flock flew is exactly why the birds fly in flocks!

[@bertsteenbergen6729]

Hi Wido, It's possible to mount the Dwarf II in equatorial mode (I like your idea of using the wide focal lens as a guide telescope, which is not (yet?) the case). Great review and thanks. Greetings from...Zeist

[@AstroForumSpace]

True. I'll discuss it with dwarflab. There's currently no PA procedure or guiding option. You could do a visual PA, but the app is still limited to max. 15s exposures. It's very much an alt-az lucky imaging kind of telescope 😀. Which is easier to use for beginners ofc. Cheers.

[@WSLMRADIO1]

Can you stream from this unit to either your phone or laptop?

[@bamikroket]

Really nice review and it seriously make me think about getting one.
Would be really nice if you could answer a question :)
-Does it work on the usb cable? (So I can use a powerbank when the battery is empty)

[@AstroForumSpace]

Thanks! I did a quick test and I can take photos and videos while the USB-C cable is plugged in. I also saw a charging icon so it probably works to externally charge the DWARF II via USB-C while using the DWARFLAB APP. Check with Dwarflab to make sure.

[@bamikroket]

@@AstroForumSpace Thanks for the quick answer!

[@busload_uk]

I can confirm also; I use an Anker USB-C power bank and it can charge the Dwarf II either when powered off or during use, otherwise the regular battery will be good for a couple of hours’ use.

[@lorraineburkey54]

I have a Dwarf II Deluxe for sale. It comes DWARF 2 Telescope Dwarf ii EQ sight Polar Guide and a DWARF ii Bahtinov Mask and Diffraction Spikes Mask 1.25" also. i am going to buy a different smart scope.

[@nnwk7966]

at what distance max can you expect to get clear and nice pitcures of animals in day time?

[@scottm599]

Thank you. Would it be reasonable for a next generation device to include a laser pointer oriented in the same direction as the camera to serve as an aid for people who wish to do visual astronomy (for example with binoculars) in addition to Astro photography?

[@AstroForumSpace]

Astronomers hate lasers :-). What you can do is use an app like stellarium. It shows you a real-time view of the night sky. With gps turned on, you can move your phone around andxit will show you exactly where objects are.

[@Part_121]

Aviators also hate lasers. 🙂

[@bazpearce9993]

If you unscrew the lens off a 2x Barlow, making it a 1.5x. Will it focus when screwed into a filter Wido? These smart scopes look interesting. But as a planetary imager i would want more power for better details. So, for now i will be sticking with my 5" mak and 224MC.

[@AstroForumSpace]

This telescope is not suited for planetary imaging Baz. You'll need a good MAK or SCT for that. However, you can do some widefield observations of the planets, like demonstrated in the video. You'll see venus as a bright morning star or Jupiter as a bright star in the night and you can make out the gallilean moons. But no surface details. Maybe nice to catch a conjunction of the Moon and one of the planets with the DWARF II. Clear skies!

[@fabioyt77]

great video! i have just get a dwarf2 :-) can i know model of your Hama tripod? thanks!!

[@AstroForumSpace]

Hama star 61. Not the best with wind but it has a built-in leveler. Have fun!

[@dannymartinez3600]

Did the camera actually capture the sun’s Corona or is that just creating exiting?

[@ninjasmoke100]

This is a great little telescope! However, it does need software and if you use an Apple iOS device, then I would wait until they give you the quality software that they allow the android to use.😖

[@CncFrezar]

Hi, What is the resolution of the mp4 video

[@AstroForumSpace]

1920x1080

[@seansmith1398]

Any recommendations on a better tripod for a quality price?

[@AstroForumSpace]

The dwarf II has a regular camera connection, so any camera tripod will do. I'd recommend a tripod with a bubble leveler.

[@drew19761]

Great video thanks,I took mine out recently but it kept disconnecting any idea

[@AstroForumSpace]

The WiFi of the Dwarf II is, unfortunately, not the best...you need to stay in close proximity. Did you update the app to the latest version (v2)? That might help.

[@drew19761]

@AstroForumSpace yes it's up to date on new version,I was sat next to the dwarf wanting to image the sun but was just disconnecting, also when I did get the sun up it would pause think that was down to disconnecting

[@WSLMRADIO1]

Looking to stream the April eclipse

[@Spaxer]

Video quality is a bit underwhelming but this is a neat place to start for an okay price

[@arthurwiegman5512]

This look like a camera of the Spirit and Oppertunity Mars rover.

[@JimenoFerri]

Tiene autoenfoque?

[@AstroForumSpace]

Si

[@dggcreations]

Now if they would come up with something like this for planetary observation, they'd have me. But out of focus deep space or daytime pictures like I see in the examples just dont interest me. 8Mp is by todays standards not great. Needs to be at least 16Mp to be clear well defined images. Every image I see from this thing just isnt very impressive.

[@Battlegroup5]

Does this need cell service to operate?

[@AstroForumSpace]

No, the wifi signal doesn't need an internet connection.