Telescope Comparison
Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian vs Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P
The price gap is real. The question is whether the extra capability is worth it at your stage.
First light
Explore Scientific · 406mm · £1,799
The maximum-aperture visual reflector
- 406mm Newtonian on a floor-standing Dobsonian alt-az rocker box
- Good for: full visual programme — planets, Moon, globular clusters, galaxies, nebulae
- No alignment required — set up and observe in under 10 minutes
- No motorised tracking — targets drift at high magnification as Earth rotates
- 72kg total — designed for a fixed garden or regular dark-sky site, not casual transport
Sky-Watcher · 355mm · £1,099
The maximum-aperture visual reflector
- 355mm Newtonian on a floor-standing Dobsonian alt-az rocker box
- Good for: full visual programme — planets, Moon, globular clusters, galaxies, nebulae
- No alignment required — set up and observe in under 10 minutes
- No motorised tracking — targets drift at high magnification as Earth rotates
- 58kg total — designed for a fixed garden or regular dark-sky site, not casual transport
The full picture
The numbers that separate these two scopes — and what they mean at the eyepiece.
Aperture
Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian gathers 1.3× more light. On bright targets — Moon, Saturn, Jupiter — you won't notice. On fainter targets — dim galaxies, faint globular clusters — the gap is real.
Focal length
Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian's longer focal length reaches higher magnification with the same eyepiece — better reach for planetary detail. Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P's shorter focal length gives a wider true field — better for large open clusters and extended nebulae.
Focal ratio
Same focal ratio — the same eyepiece gives equivalent magnification and true field in both scopes.
Mount type
Same mount type — setup experience and ergonomics will be similar. Differences lie in build quality and included accessories.
Weight (OTA)
Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P's optical tube is 9.0kg lighter. Relevant if you plan to use it on multiple mounts or carry the tube to dark-sky sites separately.
Optical design
Same optical design — differences between these scopes come from aperture, mount, and focal ratio.
At the eyepiece
| Target | Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian | Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P |
|---|---|---|
| Planets | ||
| Moon | Excellent 406mm resolves sub-arcsecond lunar detail — tiny craterlets, rilles, and dome structures visible at 300x+ | Excellent 355mm aperture delivers overwhelming lunar detail — rilles, dome fields, and tiny craterlets visible at high magnification in steady seeing |
| Saturn | Excellent Cassini Division is crisp, cloud banding on the disc visible, Encke gap possible in excellent seeing | Excellent Cassini Division, ring structure, and subtle cloud banding on the disc; 1600mm focal length supports high magnification |
| Jupiter | Excellent Multiple belt structures, festoons, GRS detail, and moon shadow transits are richly detailed at 200–400x | Excellent Festoons, barges, and fine belt structure visible; GRS detail and moon shadow transits are striking at 200x+ |
| Mars | Excellent 406mm aperture and 1826mm focal length deliver surface albedo features, polar caps, and limb clouds at opposition | Excellent 355mm aperture and 1600mm focal length exceed the rubric thresholds — surface albedo features, polar caps, and limb phenomena at opposition |
Deep sky | ||
| Orion Nebula (M42) | Excellent Stunning detail in the Trapezium region and nebula structure, though the 1826mm focal length crops the full extent of the nebula wings | Excellent Massive aperture reveals layered nebulosity and faint outer wings; Trapezium E and F stars resolved — though the 1600mm focal length shows the core region more than the full extent |
| Andromeda Galaxy (M31) | Moderate 1826mm focal length shows only the bright core and inner disc — the full 3° extent is well beyond the field of view | Moderate 1600mm focal length crops the outer halo heavily — you see the bright core and inner dust lanes but not the full 3° extent |
| Open clusters | Moderate Narrow field of view at 1826mm means most open clusters overfill the eyepiece; better suited to compact clusters like M11 | Moderate 1600mm focal length means large clusters like the Double Cluster or Pleiades overfill the field; compact clusters like M11 and M37 fare better |
| Globular clusters | Excellent 406mm resolves individual stars right into the cores of most globulars — M13 and M3 are spectacular | Excellent 355mm resolves individual stars well into the core of M13, M5, and M22 — even dimmer globulars like M56 show granularity |
| Faint galaxies | Excellent This is the scope's forte — Abell clusters, interacting galaxy pairs, and faint NGC objects become accessible | Excellent The scope's strongest suit — 355mm pulls spiral arm hints from M51, reveals the dust lane in NGC 891, and makes Virgo Cluster galaxies accessible by the dozen |
| Milky Way / wide field | Not recommended 1826mm focal length produces far too narrow a field for sweeping Milky Way views | Not recommended 1600mm focal length and minimum magnification ~50x make sweeping star fields impractical — use binoculars instead |
Other | ||
| Double stars | Excellent 406mm gives a Dawes limit around 0.29 arcseconds — tight doubles cleanly split, though f/4.5 is less forgiving of seeing than longer focal ratios | Excellent 355mm gives a Dawes limit around 0.33 arcsec; tight doubles like Porrima and Epsilon Boötis split cleanly when collimation and seeing cooperate |
| Astrophotography (planetary) | Good 406mm aperture and 1826mm focal length are excellent optically, but the untracked Dobsonian mount limits capture to short video clips — still usable for lucky imaging with a high-speed camera | Good 355mm aperture and 1600mm focal length suit high-resolution planetary imaging with a high-speed camera, but manual alt-az tracking limits capture run length |
| Planetary nebulae | Excellent The combination of large aperture and high magnification reveals internal structure, colour, and central stars in objects like NGC 7662, NGC 6826, and the Ring Nebula | Not applicable |
The real tradeoff
Both scopes are capable. The question is which one fits the way you actually observe.
Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian
- You're paying £700 more and hauling a heavier truss-tube assembly, but those extra 51mm of aperture genuinely matter at the faint end — Abell galaxy clusters, Palomar globulars, and faint planetary nebulae hand you detail the 14-inch can only hint at.
- You'll spend the first 10–15 minutes of every session assembling trusses, attaching the shroud, and collimating — but you'll also be able to break the scope into pieces that individually weigh less than the Skyliner's monolithic tube sections, which can make car transport more manageable despite the larger mirror.
- At 400x+ on a night of steady seeing, you're resolving festoons on Jupiter and chasing the Encke Gap on Saturn with a scope that rewards patience and skill — but you'll be nudging the base constantly because objects race through the field at high power, and every collimation error at f/4.5 costs you contrast you can't get back.
Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P
- You're getting roughly 75% of the 16-inch's light grasp for 60% of the price — the Virgo Cluster, NGC 4565, resolved globular cores, and structured planetary nebulae are all genuinely within reach, and for most deep-sky targets the difference from 16 inches is subtle rather than dramatic.
- You'll wrestle with a solid-tube design that totals around 58kg and needs a van or large estate car — there are no trusses to disassemble, which means faster setup at the site but a harder logistics problem getting there.
- Your evening rhythm is simpler: lift tube onto rocker, collimate, wait for cooldown, and observe — but you're still manually nudging at high magnification, still fighting coma at the field edge without a Paracorr, and still committed to dark-site trips to justify the aperture.
The dark side
Every scope has a personality. Here’s where each one gets difficult.
Explore Scientific
Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian
Collimation before every session is non-negotiable with the truss-tube design — if you don't enjoy or can't quickly perform collimation at f/4.5, this scope will punish you with soft, flared star images.
The 16-inch primary mirror needs 45–60 minutes to reach thermal equilibrium, and without an active cooling fan you'll spend the first hour of your session looking through tube currents that smear planetary detail.
Total weight is 35–40kg split across multiple components — manageable for one person in stages, but you still need to plan transport carefully and the assembled scope won't fit through a standard doorway without disassembly.
Sky-Watcher
Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P
At 58kg total weight in a solid-tube configuration, this is a two-person or trolley-mandatory telescope — if you don't have ground-floor storage and a van, getting it to a dark site becomes a serious logistical exercise.
Coma at f/4.5 is severe with wide-angle eyepieces, making a coma corrector effectively required — budget an extra £200+ on top of the purchase price before you'll see clean stars across the field.
No tracking or GoTo means that at magnifications above 178x, objects drift through the eyepiece in seconds — extended high-power planetary observation becomes an exercise in constant manual nudging.
Which is right for you?
Two different buyers. Two different right answers.
The maximum-aperture visual reflector
Explore Scientific · Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian
You already own a smaller scope, you've logged hundreds of objects, and now you're chasing the faintest targets — Abell clusters, Hickson compact groups, dim planetary nebulae with internal structure. You're comfortable collimating a fast Newtonian, you have transport sorted for a truss-tube assembly, and you're willing to spend on a coma corrector and premium eyepieces to extract everything this aperture can deliver. You travel to dark sites regularly and the extra £700 over the Skyliner is justified because you know exactly what those additional 51mm of aperture buy you at the faint end. This is not your first telescope and it should not be your only telescope.
The maximum-aperture visual reflector
Sky-Watcher · Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P
You want serious deep-sky capability without paying top-tier prices, and you're realistic about the fact that a 14-inch scope already resolves globular cores, reveals galaxy structure, and shows planetary nebula detail that smaller scopes simply cannot. You have a van or large car and somewhere to store a 58kg rig, and you'd rather save £700 toward eyepieces, a coma corrector, and dark-site trips than chase the incremental gain of two more inches of aperture. If you're an experienced visual observer stepping up from an 8- or 10-inch scope, this is the sweet spot where the jump in capability is dramatic and the cost hasn't yet become punishing.
Our verdict
At £1,099 versus £1,799, the Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian costs 64% more. It delivers 51mm more aperture — a real and visible advantage on faint targets.
If budget is a genuine constraint, the Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P will make you a happy observer. The Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian's optical advantage on faint targets is real and you are unlikely to regret it if you can stretch. If I had to choose without knowing your situation: start with the Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P, use it for a year, then upgrade knowing exactly what you want.
Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian
View Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian →Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P
View Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P →Deep field: Full specifications
Every data point, for those who want to go further.
Full specifications
Fields highlighted in blue or amber indicate the better value for that spec. Data is manufacturer-stated and may vary.
How much can it see?
| Spec | Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian | Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P |
|---|---|---|
Apertureⓘ The most important spec — bigger = more light = better views | 406mm | 355mm |
Focal Length Longer = more magnification potential | 1826mm | 1600mm |
Focal Ratio Lower f-number = wider field of view; higher = more magnification per eyepiece | f/4.5 | f/4.51 |
Optical Design The type of optics — each design has different strengths | Dobsonian | Dobsonian |
Coatings Better coatings = more light transmission through the optics | Parabolic primary mirror, fully coated | Parabolic primary mirror, fully multi-coated |
How do you point it?
| Spec | Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian | Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P |
|---|---|---|
Mount Type The mechanical system that holds and moves the telescope | Dobsonian | Dobsonian |
GoTo Computer-controlled pointing — finds any of thousands of objects automatically | ||
Tracking Motor keeps objects centred as the Earth rotates — essential for astrophotography |
The focuser
| Spec | Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian | Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P |
|---|---|---|
Focuser Size 2" accepts wider eyepieces and gives better low-power views | 2" | 2" |
Focuser Type Rack-and-pinion is standard; Crayford and dual-speed are smoother | Dual-speed Crayford (10:1 reduction) | Dual-speed Crayford (10:1 reduction) |
Size & weight
| Spec | Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian | Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P |
|---|---|---|
OTA Weightⓘ Optical tube only — useful for comparing mount load capacity | 45kg | 36kg |
Total Weightⓘ Full setup including mount — this is what you lug to the car | 72kg | 58kg |
Tube Length | 1826mm | 1600mm |
Tube Material | Steel (truss-tube construction) | Steel |
What's in the box?
| Spec | Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian | Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P |
|---|---|---|
Eyepieces Included eyepieces — more is better, but quality matters more than quantity | 25mm eyepiece | 25mm and 10mm Super eyepieces |
Finder Scope Helps you locate areas of the sky before switching to the main eyepiece | 8x50 right-angle finder | 8x50 right-angle correct-image finder |
Diagonal Tilts the eyepiece 90° for comfortable viewing — useful on refractors |
Blue highlight: Explore Scientific 16" Dobsonian advantage · Amber highlight: Sky-Watcher Skyliner 350P advantage · Greyed cells: equal or subjective.