Hi all,

This is my first post here.

I recently started watching the sky thanks to the IYA initiative and their Galileoscope.

I really enjoy it and I would like to get an upgrade so I was looking at Celestron Skymaster

15x70 or possibly the 20x80. How would they compare with the Galileoscope?

Should I save my money for now and upgrade to a better telescope later on?

I live in Toronto, ON and there is a lot of light pollution.

Thank you in advance! 

Welcome to the forums Renton.  I'm glad you like your Galileoscope, and I'm very glad it helped pique your interest in amateur astronomy.  I've hear some good things about the Galileoscope, but I think you will find a nice pair of binoculars to be a step up.  There is something special about scanning the night sky with both eyes that makes the experience special.  I have a pair of the Celestron 15 X 70 Skymasters and I use them almost everytime I go out to observe.  One thing you do need to keep in mind is that any binoculars larger than about 10 X 50 will need to have some sort of support to prevent a shaky view due to the weight (Unless of course you have forearms that look like Popeye's ).  A camera tripod will work (not great for viewing near zeinith however), but you will need an adapter to fasten the binoculars to the tripod, something like this;

http://www.telescope.com/control/product/~category_id=bino_accessories/~pcategory=binoculars/~product_id=05250

An even better solution is a parallelogram mount like this;

http://www.telescope.com/control/product/~category_id=bino_accessories/~pcategory=binoculars/~product_id=05374

A cheap, homemade stabilizer like this will work well also;

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/howto/diy/Image-Stabilize-Your-Binoculars.html

I hope this helps.  Good luck.

Thank you for the quick and very informative reply Zachsdad!

I already have a  camera tripod that i use with the Galileoscope.

Before I go ahead and buy a pair of binoculars I just want to make really sure they are an upgrade to my telescope. If the difference is not that semnificative I'd rather wait unitl i can afford a bigger telescope.

 Once again thanks for all the info, I really appreciate it :)

 And if I was to get a pair of binoculars which one would you recommend between these two?

More precisely which one would give a better view?

Neither pair of binoculars will give you as much magnification as your Galileoscope does (25X and 50X with the barlow), but both will give you a much wider field of view, which many people find very pleasing.  It will be a bit harder to find objects with the 20 X 80's, because it has a narrower field of view (FOV) than the 15 X 70's, but those objects will be slightly larger and you will be able to see dimmer objects.

As far as my opinion goes; I bought my 15 X 70's because they were the most affordable large binos I could find from a good company and because they have a life-time, no-fault warranty.  If the 20 X 80's would have been in my budget I would have bought them.  Your milage may vary.

 Thanks again for a very informative post.

As you mentioned zachsdad,  the paragon plus is deffinitely a plus for  steadying giant binoculars. I own this setup and love my 15x70 garret gemini fmc lens.. i even get my 25x100 celestrons on the orion paragon plus even though the plus doesn't recommend 10lbs binos// i do suggest buying the 15x70s but if i didn't own the 25x100s i would probably go first with the 20x80s if i wanted to get those dos under a very clear dark night like tonight is suppose to be i would go with the 15x70 celestrons for the money you can't go wrong.. get this if you have a good interest in astronomy binos http://www.telescope.com/control/product/~category_id=bino_accessories/~pcategory=binoculars/~product_id=05374 I got to leave shortly for a nice long drive ,me and my brother are going to the camper in the mts! yeehaww!

I have a pair of the 15x70 Skymasters. I have yet to be disappointed with them. Ever. They always continue to awe me.

 I got a pair myself, I redeemed 1100 airmiles so they were free.

Now only if the weather would cooperate