The Celestron Advanced VX 8-inch EdgeHD is a small and lightweight telescope system that can be used for observing out in the country. The computerized equatorial mount makes it easy to locate and track all types of objects in the sky.

The celestron advanced vx 8 is a high definition key.

The optical design is EdgeHD.

The Aperture is 201.2 MM (8-in).

The focal length is 2032mm.

The focal ratio is f 10.

The eyepiece focal length is 40mm.

The kit weighed in at 61 lbs. There are three major components for transport.

The German equatorial is a computerized mount.

The EdgeHD system couples to all types of cameras. With a trained eye and a dark country sky, it is possible to see all the objects in the universe. It's a telescope that will last you a long time.

We are looking at this telescope from a different point of view. The main equipment the author has used for the last three years is the Celestron Advanced VX 8 Edge HD. The author is a long time member of the user community.

Celestron Advanced VX 8 Edge HD: Design

Stock image of the Celestron advanced telescope

A view of the Celestron Advanced VX 8-inch Edge HD telescope on mount and tripod (Image credit: Michael Covington)
  • EdgeHD optical design outperforms Schmidt-Cassegrain
  • Lightweight, rugged computerized mount
  • Interoperability — other telescopes, other mounts, standard accessories

Although the EdgeHD optical system is intended for photography, it can be seen with an eyepiece.

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The mount has a German style equatorial mount with a main axis that points at the sky. The ability to use different telescopes on the same mount is given by this. It's easy to carry a camera with a lens in place of the EdgeHD. Both Vixen and Losmandy are accepted in the present version.

The hand controls for the Celestron advanced telescope

 Computerized mount finds celestial objects, taking commands from hand box or via USB from your PC (Image credit: Michael Covington)

The Advanced VX mount head is light and rugged, not easily damaged or thrown out of adjustment. The tripod and mount head can be separated for transportation.

When moving the telescope rapidly, the mount needs up to 3 or 4 Amps of DC power. A portable battery pack is used by us.

Celestron Advanced VX 8 Edge HD: Performance

Author looking through eyepiece on the Celestron advanced telescoped

The best view is usually with an eyepiece around 20mm, not the supplied 40mm (Image credit: Michael Covington)
  • Excellent optics
  • Finds and tracks celestial objects reliably
  • Serious deep-sky photography requires a better mount

All good telescopes in the same size class give the same view. The EdgeHD is closer to the center of the field.

The 40mm eyepiece gives 50 power and is ideal for star clusters. We recommend two more eyepieces, one for the moon and the other for the planets, around 20mm and 10mm. We have been able to use a 5mm eyepiece on close double stars. Don't skimp on quality eyepieces because they bring out the best in this telescope.

Nebula image composited next to the telescope setup

Advanced VX mount (older version shown, with aftermarket saddle) can carry camera and telephoto lens for dramatic deep-sky images (Image credit: Michael Covington)

After proper setup, the mount finds objects that are accepted and can be seen from a 20-mm eyepiece. You can choose objects on the controller, a PC, or a sky map package. Astrophotographers will want to do PEC training for better tracking.

I wanted a heftier mount with more precise gears and less backlash after using the Advanced VX for long exposures. It's only a problem when the telescope is large. It can carry a small telescope.

Celestron Advanced VX 8 Edge HD: Functionality

An astrocamera attached to the Celestron advanced telescope

An astrocamera (not included) or DSLR attaches in place of the eyepiece for photography through the telescope (Image credit: Michael Covington)
  • Computer-aided setup process
  • Great views of all types of celestial objects
  • Needs more eyepieces (approx 20mm and 10mm)

The setup is more than just the process of centering a couple of stars that the telescope automatically points to. The mount's computer tells you the errors if you aim it at Polaris. You do have to identify bright stars in this process. You will get incorrect results if the computer tells you to center Enif and Alpheratz. It's the main difference between equatorial mounts and those that are beginner friendly.

An image of Jupiter taken with the Celestron advanced telescope

A digitally processed image of Jupiter with 8-inch EdgeHD and astrocamera (previous figure). Image processing brings out much more than the eye can see (Image credit: Michael Covington)

The telescope can be used to view all types of stars. You can attach a camera to your phone to take pictures of the moon and planets. One of the most satisfying things we've done is to take thousands of video frames of Jupiter, Saturn, or Mars and stack them to make them look better than the human eye can see.

You'll need one or two higher-power eyepieces immediately if you want to expand this system.

A deep sky object taken with the Celestron advanced telescope

Add a guidescope, autoguider and a suitable camera and you can take deep-sky images like this through the telescope, but a better mount than the Advanced VX makes them much easier (Image credit: Michael Covington)

Should I buy the Celestron Advanced VX 8 Edge HD telescope?

This is an appealing product if you are a serious amateur astronomer who wants to understand the sky and the telescope. In its size range, the telescope is as good as you can hope for. There is plenty of room for growth with standard accessories and even a heftier mount because the mount works well for everything except long-exposure deep-sky photography.

If this product isn’t for you

If you're interested in long-exposure astrophotography, you should skip the Advanced VX and get the same telescope on a Losmandy GM8 mount.

If you're new to astronomy and don't know how to recognize stars, this may be a bit much, but you can get similar views with a fork-arm mount telescope.