Vespera Pro vs Seestar S50: 30 Second Summary
- The Vaonis Vespera Pro and ZWO Seestar S50 are both 50 mm aperture, 250 mm focal length smart telescopes.
- The Vaonis Vespera Pro is a better model. Most notably it has a 12.5 megapixel camera – the highest of any smart telescope – whereas the Seestar S50 has just 2 megapixels.
- The Vespera Pro also has a wider field of view and a mosaic mode that allows the capture of even bigger images.
- However, it is a lot more expensive, and about twice as heavy, as the Seestar S50.
- The Seestar S50 is much cheaper than the Vaonis Vespera Pro, and smaller and lighter.
- However, the lower resolution and narrower field of view mean that it is not as good at astrophotography imaging as the Vespera Pro, in particular for deep sky objects.
Why choose the Vaonis Vespera Pro over the ZWO Seestar S50?
The Vaonis Vespera Pro 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 much higher resolution camera with 12.5 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 a much longer battery life at 11 hours, compared to six hours for the Seestar
- It has seamless ease of use – the Vaonis app and user experience is excellent.
Why choose the ZWO Seestar S50 over the Vaonis Vespera Pro?
The Seestar S50 is a compact, budget smart telescope released in 2023 from Chinese manufacturer ZWO.
There are two reasons we’d consider it over the Vaonis Vespera Pro:
- It is substantially cheaper. At retail price, you could buy six Seestar S50s for one Vespera Pro.
- It is smaller and lighter. 2.5 kg for the Seestar to 5 kg for the Vespera Pro.
Whilst the Seestar is ZWO’s first smart telescope, they’ve been producing some of the best astrophotography telescope, mounts, cameras, and other gear in recent years.
Telescope Specifications
The Vaonis Vespera Pro has 50 mm (2 inch) aperture, 250 mm focal length, f/5 focal ratio, and 1.6° x 1.6° field of view.
The ZWO Seestar S50 has 50 mm (2 inch) aperture, 250 mm focal length, f/5 focal ratio, and 1.29° x 0.73° field of view.
Camera Specifications
The Vaonis Vespera Pro has a 12.5 MP resolution camera of 3536 x 3536 size using a Sony IMX676 sensor and a pixel size of 2 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 Pro 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 Pro costs $2,499, 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 Pro | ZWO Seestar S50 | |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 2023 | 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 | 1.6° x 1.6° | 1.29° x 0.73° |
| Resolution | 12.5MP | 2MP |
| Sensor Size | 3536 x 3536 | 1920 x 1080 |
| Sensor | Sony IMX676 | Sony IMX462 |
| Pixel Size | 2 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 | Included | Included |
| Battery Life | 11 hrs | 6 hrs |
| Internal Storage | 225GB | 64GB |
| Dew Control | Built-in | Built-in |
| Retail Price* | $2,499 | $499 |
ZWO Seestar S50 vs Vespera Pro: 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 weaker compared to the Vespera Pro.
The appeal of the Vespera Pro is in offering premiul smart telescope specifications in a small and portable package.
It is a better astrophotography telescope than the Seestar S50, and is one of hte best overall, but also costs about six times as much.
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Ultra Premium Pick
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Great Budget Option
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$499.00
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Related content and more information
- Best Smart Telescopes Comparison
- Vaonis Vespera Pro review
- ZWO Seestar S50 review
- Vaonis website: Vespera Pro
- Seestar official website
- ZWO Seestar S50 product page
Other comparisons:
