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Comparing two devices

Seestar S30 Pro or Seestar S50 Pro: which to choose in 2026

I have never had either the ZWO Seestar S30 Pro or the ZWO Seestar S50 Pro in my hands. None of my images was made with either one. This page therefore compares nothing but specifications published by the manufacturers, sourced at the foot of the page. It will not tell you what these devices are worth in the field, because I do not know.

not tested ZWO Seestar S30 Pro

0 · aucune donnée de première main

0 towards 165h · hours I have logged with this device, this is not a rating

not tested ZWO Seestar S50 Pro

0 · aucune donnée de première main

0 towards 165h · hours I have logged with this device, this is not a rating

Line by line

What the two datasheets do not say the same way

Every value comes from the entry for that device, where it carries its source. The difference column is worked out here, from those two values. It gives the size of the gap, never its direction: the two columns before it already say that. It stays empty on lines with no number. It stays empty too wherever a percentage would mean nothing.

Rapport d'ouverture : the focal length divided by the diameter, written f/, and the smaller that number, the faster the image forms. Monture azimutale : it moves in altitude and in rotation, but the field turns during the night. Monture équatoriale : one axis set on that of the Earth, so that the field no longer turns.

Specifications of the ZWO Seestar S30 Pro and the ZWO Seestar S50 Pro compared
Specification ZWO Seestar S30 Pro ZWO Seestar S50 Pro Difference
Aperture 30 mm (télé) · 3,4 mm (grand angle) 50 mm (télé) · 3,4 mm (grand angle) 67 %
Focal length 160 mm (télé) · 6 mm (grand angle) 260 mm (télé) · 6 mm (grand angle) 63 %
Focal ratio f/5,3 f/5,2
Sensor Sony IMX585 (télé) · Sony IMX586 (grand angle) OmniVision OS08B10 (télé, 1/1,2 pouce, photosites de 2,9 µm) · Sony IMX586 (grand angle)
Resolution 2 160 × 3 840 px au téléobjectif (8,3 Mpx) 2 160 × 3 840 px au téléobjectif (8,3 Mpx)
Mount Azimutale motorisée, mode équatorial pris en charge Azimutale motorisée, mode équatorial pris en charge
Weight 1,65 kg 2,8 kg (bloc principal) 70 %
Software Seestar (iOS, Android) Seestar (iOS, Android)
Indicative price ≈ 749 € ≈ 999 € (≈ 899 € en offre de lancement jusqu'au 15/09/2026 à 9 h, heure d'été d'Europe centrale) 33 %

Prices recorded in 2026, excluding promotions and accessories. The ZWO Seestar S30 Pro and ZWO Seestar S50 Pro entries each carry their own sources, one per specification.

What the data settles

Four differences, and nothing more

  1. 01

    The price. The cheaper is the ZWO Seestar S30 Pro, at ≈ 749 €. The ZWO Seestar S50 Pro asks ≈ 999 €, which is 33 % more. These are market prices, recorded in 2026 from the sources cited at the foot of the page. They are not my selling prices.

  2. 02

    The diameter. The ZWO Seestar S30 Pro opens at 30 mm. The ZWO Seestar S50 Pro opens at 50 mm, which is 67 % more. Diameter commands resolution, the finest detail that can come out of the exposure, whatever its length.

  3. 03

    The time it takes. ZWO Seestar S50 Pro is the faster of the two, f/5,2 against f/5,3. Le Seestar S50 Pro makes in 1h an image that takes 1h 02m au Seestar S30 Pro.

  4. 04

    The weight. The ZWO Seestar S30 Pro weighs 1,65 kg. The ZWO Seestar S50 Pro weighs 2,8 kg, which is 70 % more. Weight says nothing about image quality: it says what you can carry.

These lines read published specifications and hours actually logged. They do not rank the two devices and do not rate their quality. An empty track is a device that was not tested, not a bad device. The exposure equivalence compares nothing but the published focal ratios, with sensor, sky and target held identical. It says nothing about resolution, about the field, or about optical quality.

The two devices

Their strong points, and their weak points

ZWO · ≈ 749 €

ZWO Seestar S30 Pro

The S30 keeps its body, its weight and its 30 mm, and changes what is inside: a sensor four times larger, four lenses instead of three, and a rebuilt wide angle.

Strong points

  • The telephoto sensor goes from 1/2.8 inch to 1/1.2 inch. ZWO quotes a light sensitive area four times larger than that of the S30.
  • 8.3 Mpx instead of 2.1: four times as many pixels, and room to crop.
  • Apochromatic four element lens with ED glass, against three elements on the S30.
  • The wide angle is rebuilt: the S30 already had one, this one gets an IMX586 and goes to 2,160 × 3,840 px.
  • Dual-band filter still standard: oxygen III over 30 nm, hydrogen alpha over 20 nm.
  • 128 GB of onboard storage, twice the S30.
  • 1.65 kg and 21 × 14 × 8 cm folded, like the S30: it still goes into a rucksack.

Weak points

  • 30 mm of aperture, like the S30. The diameter does not move: it is the sensor that changes, not the light gathered.
  • The focal ratio goes from f/5 to f/5.3. It is the slowest in the panel, and so the one whose exposure runs longest.
  • Equatorial mode asks for a compatible Seestar mount, the TH10, sold separately. ZWO writes that without it the mode cannot be switched on.
  • 6,000 mAh battery quoted at six hours, as on the S30. A whole night still asks for an external battery.
  • It costs €350 more than the original S30 in the same shop, €749 against €399, for the same aperture.
  • Nothing can be changed and nothing added: neither optics, nor sensor, nor mount.

ZWO · ≈ 999 €

ZWO Seestar S50 Pro

The heaviest overhaul in the Seestar range. The dual-band and the equatorial mode were already there; what changes is the sensor, the optics, the battery and the price.

Strong points

  • The telephoto sensor goes from 1/2.8 inch to 1/1.2 inch, and the resolution from 2.1 to 8.3 Mpx.
  • Apochromatic four element lens with ED glass, against three on the S50.
  • A 3.4 mm wide angle lens at f/1.75, absent from the original S50, which frames 63° at one go.
  • 10,000 mAh battery quoted at nine hours, against 6,000 mAh and six hours on the S50.
  • 128 GB of onboard storage, twice the S50. ZWO writes that a hundred or so gigabytes are really available.
  • It speaks the open ASCOM Alpaca protocol and plugs into N.I.N.A. No other device in the panel does.
  • Dual-band filter as standard and solar filter supplied, as on the original S50.

Weak points

  • The price doubles: about €999 at the recommended rate, against €499 for the original S50 from the same manufacturer.
  • 50 mm of aperture, unchanged. The diameter does not move.
  • 2.8 kg for the main body, against 2.5 kg on the S50. It is getting heavier.
  • The launch price has a date on it: it drops on 15/09/2026 at 9h, and the manufacturer's recommended rate is €999.
  • It is sold on pre-order. ZWO quotes shipping in about three to four weeks.
  • Nothing can be changed and nothing added: neither optics, nor sensor, nor mount.

Getting hold of one

These two devices, you can order them here

There is no basket and no online payment. You say which one interests you. You can also describe what you want to photograph, and from what sky. The answer comes in writing: a price, a lead time, and what the device can and cannot do. If neither of the two suits, it will say so, and it will say which one suits better.

Ask for a price for the Seestar S30 Pro Ask for a price for the Seestar S50 Pro I do not know yet, advise me

The prices shown on this page are market prices recorded in 2026 from the sources below. They are not selling prices, and they do not constitute an offer. Your price, your lead time and availability appear in the written reply.

Sources

Where these figures come from

No value on this page is estimated. The differences are worked out from the values above. The focal ratio, for its part, is recalculated from the published aperture and focal length. A specification wrong or out of date? Report it.

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