Celestron Sky-q problem

[neilm]

Ever since I bought my Celestron CGEM EQ mount I have been having problems with the Sky-q link.

 

Although the thing works after a fashion it has suddenly started being erratic and producing wild gyrations resembling a fun-fair ride and seems to lose alignment very quickly with three iOS devices including a mac. running Sky Portal and Safari Pro 6 and Plus. Using Stellarium on a PC running windows with the USB cable through the handset works perfectly.

 

The motor PCB in the mount has a loose connection or two but when I pointed this out to Celestron's UK importers,  suddenly they didn't respond to the last email I sent them as part of a conversation about this.

 

The one thing I did notice was that when using the Sky-q  my iPhone (6s) & iPad had bouts of freezing which I have never noticed before tonight. I have had a lot of difficulty in getting the WiFi module to connect and sometimes won't talk to the CGEM mount.

 

Rother Valley, from whom I bought my start up kit from, aren't helping much either other than avoiding dealing with it saying it is outside the warranty period and I've just bought a sky watcher Az GTi kit with small scope from them.

 

Short of getting legal or buying another Sky-q and motor board, I'm at a loss as to what to try next. Any Ideas?

 

Regards,

 

Neil.

[neilm]

Quote

Having spoken to Tring it seems that Celestron knew that there is a problem with the original Sky-q (before the Sky-q 2 ~2016) and that it is susceptible to low voltages, which made sense because the issues listed above weren't so apparent at the start of the observing session.

Have now ordered (from Tring) a Sky Portal (apparently the Sky-q 2 version rebadge to avoid confusion with the Sky (TV) brand).

Rgds,

Neil.

 

[Bottletopburly]

12 hours ago, neilm said:

Rother Valley, from whom I bought my start up kit from, aren't helping much either

Well surprise surprise there then , usually find talking on the forum either here or SGL  there will hopefully be someone who can assist you with an answer to overcome your problem, if a product has a known fault then your still covered by consumer law  

[neilm]

Quote

 

Re going to law - it wasn't going to be much use as getting to judgement would be about 6 - 9 months and with the expense & hassle involved it is much cheaper, not to mention quicker, to buy fresh elsewhere. Rother would have had an arguable case that when I bought the Sky-q it was the latest kit - the fact that WiFi specs have changed in the interim (3 ~ 4 years ago) is not their problem quite forgetting that they should have known and been able to tell me is irrelevant when I first asked them about it some time ago. The same goes for Celestron's UK outfit.

 

The best thing is that Monday I sent them an email asking them to supply me a Skywatcher Az GTi with a small tube for a travelling set up. The reply I got back said that their suppliers were out of stock (of the GTi) so I asked about a complete boxed kit which included the mount in a subsequent email that was available (and arrived direct yesterday). Not impressed. He should have known what I was after and been able to offer it in the first reply.

 

I suppose the lesson I should take away from all this is that I buy from other outlets unless I know exactly what I am buying and need it the same day.

 

Rrds,

 

Neil.