Vespera II vs Seestar S50: Quick Summary
- The Vaonis Vespera II and ZWO Seestar S50 are both 50 mm aperture, 250 mm focal length smart telescopes.
- The Vaonis Vespera II has an 8.3 megapixel camera, in contrast to the 2 megapixels of the Seestar.
- The Vespera II also has a wider field of view and features a mosaic mode that allows the capture of even bigger images, which only the Vaonis smart telescopes have.
- However, it is about twice as heavy as the Seestar S50, and about three times more expensive.
- The Seestar S50 is smaller and lighter than the Vaonis Vespera II, and much cheaper.
- On the downside, the lower resolution and narrower field of view mean that it is not as good at deep sky imaging as the Vespera II.
Why choose the Vaonis Vespera II over the Seestar S50?
The Vaonis Vespera II is a compact, premium smart telescope from French manufacturer Vaonis that was released in 2024.
The main reasons to consider it over the ZWO Seestar S50 are:
- It has a higher resolution camera with 8.3 megapixels, compared to 2 megapixels for the Seestar.
- It has a wider field of view.
- All Vaonis models have a Mosaic Mode which enables the stitching of multiple images to capture much wider fields of view and larger astronomical objects.
- It has seamless ease of use – the Vaonis app and user experience is excellent.
Why choose the ZWO Seestar S50 over the Vespera 2?
The Seestar S50 is a compact, budget smart telescope from Chinese manufacturer ZWO that was released in 2023.
The three reasons we’d consider it over the Vaonis Vespera II are:
- It is substantially cheaper. At retail price, you could buy three Seestar S50s for one Vespera II.
- It is smaller and lighter. 2.5 kg to the 5 kg of the Vespera II.
- It comes with a tripod, which the Vespera II does not.
Whilst the Seestar is ZWO’s first smart telescope, they’ve been producing some of the best astrophotography gear in recent years and are not newcomers to the field.
Telescope Specifications
The Vaonis Vespera II has 50 mm (2 inch) aperture, 250 mm focal length, f/5 focal ratio, and 2.5° x 1.4° field of view.
The ZWO Seestar S50 has 50 mm (2 inch) aperture, 250 mm focal length, f/5 focal ratio, and 1.29º x 0.73º field of view.
Camera Specifications
The Vaonis Vespera II has a 8.3 MP resolution camera of 3840 x 2160 size using a Sony IMX585 sensor and a pixel size of 2.9 µm.
The ZWO Seestar S50 has a 2 MP resolution camera of 1920 x 1080 size using a Sony IMX462 sensor and a pixel size of 2.9 µm.
Size and Weight
The Vaonis Vespera II weighs 5 kg (11 lb) and has dimensions of 48 x 20 x 9 ((H x W x L in cm).
The ZWO Seestar S50 weighs 2.5 kg (5.5 lb) and has dimensions of 14 x 13 x 26 ((H x W x L in cm).
Price and Value for Money
The Vaonis Vespera II costs $1,590, and the ZWO Seestar S50 costs $499.
Note, these may vary so check the links to compare retailers if thinking about buying.
Specifications
| Vaonis Vespera II | ZWO Seestar S50 | |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 2024 | 2023 |
| Aperture | 50mm (2 inch) | 50mm (2 inch) |
| Focal Length | 250mm | 250mm |
| Focal Ratio | f/5 | f/5 |
| Limiting Magnitude | 11.19 | 11.19 |
| OTA type | Refractor | Refractor |
| Eyepiece | No | No |
| Field of View | 2.5° x 1.4° | 1.29º x 0.73º |
| Resolution | 8.3MP | 2MP |
| Sensor Size | 3840 x 2160 | 1920 x 1080 |
| Sensor | Sony IMX585 | Sony IMX462 |
| Pixel Size | 2.9 µm | 2.9 µm |
| Image Formats | TIFF, FITS | MP4/AVI/TIFF |
| Mosaic Mode | Yes | No |
| Size (H x W x L) cm | 48 x 20 x 9 | 14 x 13 x 26 |
| Weight | 5kg (11 lb) | 2.5kg (5.5 lb) |
| Mount | Included | Included |
| Tripod | Not included | Included |
| Battery Life | 4 hrs | 6 hrs |
| Internal Storage | 25GB | 64GB |
| Dew Control | None | Built-in |
| Retail Price* | $1,590 | $499 |
Seestar S50 vs Vespera II: Verdict
The appeal of the Seestar S50 is that it is one of the cheapest and most portable smart telescopes.
It is right for you if you want an inexpensive option as a first smart telescope and is more than capable of good solar and lunar imaging, but the deep sky capabilities are limited compared to the Vespera II.
The appeal of the Vespera II is in offering the premium smart telescope experience in a small and portable package.
It is a better astrophotography telescope than the Seestar S50, but also costs about three times as much.
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Great Budget Option
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Advanced Premium Pick
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$499.00
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$1,690.00
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Related content and more information
- Best Smart Telescopes Comparison
- Vaonis Vespera II review
- ZWO Seestar S50 review
- Vaonis website: Vespera 2
- Seestar official website
- ZWO Seestar S50 product page
Other Vaonis Vespera 2 comparisons:
- Celestron Origin vs Vaonis Vespera II
- Dwarf II vs Vaonis Vespera II
- Vaonis Hestia vs Vespera II
- Vaonis Vespera vs Vespera II
- Vaonis Vespera II vs Vespera Pro
- Vaonis Vespera II vs ZWO Seestar S50
- Vaonis Vespera II vs Unistellar Odyssey
- Vaonis Vespera II vs Unistellar Odyssey Pro
- Vaonis Vespera II vs Unistellar eVscope II
Other Seestar S50 comparisons:
the vespera does have built in dew control . only issue is you have to purchase the hydrometer separately for it work..
Ah thanks Carl. That’s interesting. Looks like it would add around $120 to the overall cost.