This 70mm refractor has been great fun to use. First, the negative. I give it 4 stars because, as stated in other reviews, the finder scope and the included tripod leave a lot to be desired. I replaced the tripod immediately with a much larger, sturdier tripod with a quick-release. The spotting scope needs to be adjusted constantly; I find it difficult to focus and honestly not much use around any amount of light pollution.Now, the positive: I don't have much trouble finding bright stars by dead reckoning and then hopping from there. I've found the Moon, Jupiter and Saturn with no trouble at all, and what we see there is fantastic! Jupiter's moons and Saturn's rings are beautifully distinct. Mizar A & B and Alcor are easily distinguishable, along with stars down to 10th or 11th magnitude.I also love bird-watching, and the upright image diagonal gives great views of the local avians with a pretty decent near-focus (5.8m) for that purpose.The scope is very light (1.5kg) but seems quite well put together, and assembling it for use is easy and quick. In fact, we realized that it's light and compact enough to fit into a camping backpack, which hopefully means we'll get a LOT of mileage out of it in exotic places.The eyepieces, as someone else mentioned, are standard 1.25" size also used by the much larger scopes I've had my eye on, meaning I'm not afraid to invest in high-quality upgrades.They say the best scope is the one you use most. This scope puts up absolutely no barriers to taking it out to starwatch as much as possible. I was a little hesitant to buy it, but now I really wish I'd bought it a much sooner. Great value for a great price.

What I was looking for...=========================*Scope that was a convenient size.*Scope that had good magnification.*Scope with close focus 1-1.5 ft.*Scope that wasn't too expensive...

I love the Mini Scope,,,,I am using it to see my target when I am practicing my shooting. I like the ultra lite design and the quality of the Mini Scope. This would make a wonderful gift for anyone who bird watches or just enjoy nature. The price was fair and I have been very happy with the service.

Recently purchased their Grip Scope and love it. Thus had to also get the mini scope. Upon unpacking, it was immediately taken from me by my wife who has now claimed it as her own. She loves it. During her breaks at work she goes to the dog park and she says she'll have a great time watching owners, dogs, and birds. Since it's so small, she loves that it'll fit in her small handbag. She accidently dropped it and it literally just bounced with no harm to the unit or glass.

Was very impressed with this purchase. For the price it is an amazing buy

I thought scope would.be bigger. In photo, looks like a bigger scope

I am using the scope at my boat job so I can spot bald eagles flying over the river and nesting in the trees. It feels sturdy and it is perfect for what I am trying to do with it. I would consider giving this as a gift especially to another crew member or a bird watcher.

This is my first with any scope in my 84 years. The price is certainly fair and for the money it is fantastic. The feel is great and for a small scope I thought it would be more like a toy. It certainly is not. After reading the customer reviews I decided I would like one for various reasons, watching birds and a lot of other things. Last of all it is really worth the price. With more products like this your small company should go places.Gil in Peoria, AZ