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Topping DX5 II: Two-minute review

The DX5 II is the product that Chinese specialist Topping hopes is going to force its name into the ‘affordable desktop audio’ conversation – and so it’s specified it accordingly and then priced it in the most aggressive manner imaginable.

A selection of digital inputs and a wider selection of balanced and unbalanced outputs mean the DX5 II can function as a DAC and headphone amp, like many of the best portable DACs we recommend can, but it can also become a preamp for use with a traditional stereo system or a pair of powered speakers – which your average portable DAC definitely can't do. So, this is new ground for many a headphone amp-owner.

ESS Sabre digital-to-analogue conversion with a native resolution of 32bit/768kHz and DSD512 means the DX5 II is as high-resolution a device as these things ever get. A variety of finishes, each one tidily realised and each one complementing an impeccable standard of build and finish, means the DX5 II won’t lower the visual tone of your system or your desktop. A selection of desktop Topping technologies designed to maximise sonic performance act as the cherry on top.

And no matter if you use it as a DAC, a preamp or a headphone amp, the DX5 II has an awful lot to recommend it where sound quality is concerned. It creates a big, open soundstage and organises it carefully. It’s detailed and dynamic in equal measure, and it controls low-frequency information to the point that rhythms are delivered with real positivity. It’s eloquent through the midrange, and its top-to-bottom frequency response is smooth too. In fact, there’s only a suggestion of overly bright treble response that represents a tiny fly in a great big vat of sonic ointment.

Topping DX5 II review: Price and release date

(Image credit: Future)

• Launched on June 10, 2025
• Priced $299 / £299 / AU$499

The Topping DX5 II is on sale now, and in the UK it goes for £299. Those numbers apply in the United States too, where it sells for $299 (subject to tariff fluctuations) while in Australia it will set you back AU$499.

A quick comparison then: it's a fair amount of product for the money. FiiO's pocketable BTR17 portable Bluetooth DAC/headphone amplifier sells for just a little less, at around $219 / £179 / AU$329 – but it's a portable little beast rather than a 'desktop' option.

The USB DAC iFi GO Bar Kensei is more, at $499 / £449 / AU$769, while the five-star iFi hip-dac 3 is less, at $199 / £199 / AU$349. All of which is a roundabout way of saying, there's certainly a market for the Topping DX5 II at this price, if it can take care of business.

(Image credit: Future)Topping DX5 II review: Features

• ESS Sabre 32bit/768kHz and DSD512 DACs
• Bluetooth 5.1 with aptX Adaptive and LDAC compatibility
• Balanced and unbalanced outputs

If Topping has attempted to build the DX5 II down to a price, it’s in no way obvious from the way the device is specified. There are similar products costing a fair bit more than Topping is asking that don’t tick as many spec boxes.

Consider the array of inputs and outputs, for instance. The DX5 II can accept digital audio information via coaxial or optical (which both top out at 24bit/192kHz), USB-B (a giddy 32bit/768kHz and DSD512), or Bluetooth 5.1 with SBC, AAC, several aptX standards (up to and including Adaptive) and LDAC. It’s worth mentioning that Windows PC users will need to install a driver to make use of that USB-B socket. Once the digital audio information been converted to the analog equivalent (which I’ll get to in a moment) it can come out again via single-ended stereo RCAs or balanced stereo XLRs (for connection to powered speakers or the amplifier of a traditional stereo system), or via a trio of headphone outputs – balanced XLR, balanced 4.4mm and single-ended 6.3mm.

Conversion to analog from digital is handled by a couple of ESS Sabre ES9038Q2M two-channel DAC chips – one attends to the left channel, the other to the right. They include ESS Sabre’s latest ‘Hyperstream IV’ architecture that’s intended to suppress noise and deliver optimal dynamic range – and their native 32bit/768kHz and DSD512 resolution is about as hi-res as hi-res ever gets out in the real world. To further suppress noise and distortion, Topping has developed a bespoke current-to-voltage conversion module that should also make the DX5 II compatible with a very wide selection of headphones and powered speakers.

And on top of this, Topping has included its own ‘X-Hybrid’ headphone amplification technology. It’s a fully balanced four-channel design with three stages (discrete input, op-amp -based gain stage, discrete output). This optimised circuit topology is designed to offer extended dynamic range, optimum efficiency and low distortion – and it should mean the DX5 II has no problem driving even the most uncooperative and power-hungry headphones.

Now, the free ‘Topping Tune’ software: it was only available for Windows PC at the time of testing, but it’s now also available for Mac OS users and provides access to Topping’s new ‘PEQ’ (parametric equaliser) algorithm that allows control of bandwidth, frequency and gain across ten definable bands. It means multiple audio profiles can be created, saved and uploaded to the DX5 II, target curves can be defined and imported – and different profiles can be applied to specific inputs, so the ultimate sound of headphones or speakers can be individually tuned by the Topping.

Features score: 5 / 5

(Image credit: Future)Topping DX5 II review: Sound quality

• Great sense of space and detail
• Dynamic and punchy when required
• A hint of top-end brightness

In virtually every respect, the Topping DX5 II does straightforwardly impressive work. So much so, in fact, that I might as well deal with the one aspect where it doesn’t outright excel – which should leave plenty of space for me to explain just what’s so likeable about it.

The top of the frequency range is just a little flimsy and bright when compared to everything else that’s going on underneath it. There’s an overly bright quality to the treble reproduction here, a sort of latent edginess that means the DX5 II is just slightly pickier about partnering equipment than it otherwise would be.

And with that out of the way, let’s get to all the good stuff.

The DX5 II is an open, detailed and considered listen, with the sort of soundstaging ability that makes even a complex recording like The Birth and Death of the Day by Explosions in the Sky easy to follow on a granular level. This recording also allows the DX5 II to demonstrate its considerable dynamic headroom – the distance between the moments of greatest intensity and attack, compared to the quietest and most contemplative moments, is significant.

The Topping is also alert to the dynamics of harmonic variation, too – and, in fact, shows a great facility for detail retrieval in every circumstance. It can identify, reveal and quite carefully contextualise even transient or minor details in a mix. And this goes a long way towards creating the sensation that you’re in full receipt of everything a recording has to offer.

The tonality of the low frequencies and the midrange is tidy and naturalistic, and the frequency response from the very bottom to the very top is smooth and even. Low frequencies are deep and textured, and carry a huge amount of information along with very pleasing tonal variation – and they’re controlled at the point of attack, too, so rhythmic expression is assured. The DX5 II punches into bass sounds, rather than slurring, and it observes the decay of those same sounds very carefully too.

The midrange is equally well-realised. The voice during a 24bit/96kHz FLAC file of Ghostpoet’s Off Peak Dreams is characterful and attitudinal, and there’s a tremendous amount of fine detail regarding technique and tone revealed at the same time as information about intention and emotion. The Topping communicates through the midrange in the most articulate manner, and as a result voices always sound direct and positive.

All of the above is true no matter what you’re asking the DX5 II to do. As long as you take a moment’s care with your choice of headphones, as long as the system you’re introducing it into doesn’t share the same latent treble tendencies, it’s a deft and remarkably accomplished performer.

Sound quality: 4.5 / 5

(Image credit: Future)Topping DX5 II review: Design

• 44 x 190 x 155mm (HxWxD)
• Black, silver or white finishes
• Properly built and finished

It’s become apparent lately that ‘desktop’ is a relative term – but Topping really means it when it describes the DX5 II as a desktop device. At a neat 44 x 190 x 155mm (HxWxD) it isn’t going to get in the way, even if your desktop is as untidy as mine.

The standard of build and finish is exemplary, and the DX5 II even feels good in a matte-finish, square-edged kind of way. The little indent around the rear of the fascia adds a tiny hint of visual interest, and the Topping looks very presentable in any of the black, silver or white finishes that are available.

Design score: 5 / 5

(Image credit: Future)Topping DX5 II review: Usability and setup

• 2-in full-colour display
• Remote control handset
• Legible and sensible on-screen menus

There are some physical controls on the fascia of the DX5 II – they’re grouped to the right of the crisp, full-colour screen that occupies the centre. Three rectangular buttons take care of input selection, accessing set-up menus, and cycling through the various display options for that screen, while a larger turn/press dial takes care of volume and menu navigation.

Options for the screen consist of a ‘spectrum analyser’ (which is sure to remind readers of a certain age of a graphic equaliser from back in the day), a readout of volume level, file format and file resolution, or a virtual VU meter (which is one for readers of an even more certain age). There’s a choice of colour and adjustable brightness, but in every circumstance the display is legible and crisply rendered, so navigating menus is always straightforward.

The Topping is also supplied with a little remote control handset that is, predictably, a lot less visually interesting and a lot less tactile than the control interface on the device itself. And unlike the DX5 II itself, there’s no choice of finish available – it comes in traditional black.

Usability and setup score: 4.5 / 5

Topping DX5 II review: Value

Judge it on the physical size of the product and the DX5 II can seem quite expensive. Consider it in terms of its specification and it suddenly seems much more realistically priced. And then think about its functionality, its flexibility and the highlights of its performance and the Topping starts to look like a bit of a bargain.

Value score: 4.5 / 5

Should I buy the Topping DX5 II?

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Features

Comprehensively specified – it'll even work as a preamp

5/5

Design

Small, svelte and useful enough to slip onto even the untidiest of desks

5/5

Sound quality

Dynamic, punchy and detailed, if just a tad bright on occasion

4.5/5

Value

It would be wrong to argue with the sound-per-pound value here

4.5/5

(Image credit: Future)Buy it if...

You want to up your desktop audio game
The difference the DX5 II can make to the sound of your laptop really needs to be heard

You have a traditional audio system that could do with some digital smarts
High-quality Bluetooth streaming can be yours, no matter how old-school your stereo system

You have some nice headphones that need the best bringing from them
The Topping is ready and able to drive the most demand and/or most high-achieving headphones around

Don't buy it if...

You have headphones that are lively at the top of the frequency range
The resulting sound could easily be interpreted as ‘too much of a good thing’

Topping DX5 II review: Also consider

It’s pretty plain that the iFi Zen DAC 3 is the product the DX5 II needs to topple – or, at the very least, compete hard with if it’s going to be a viable option.

The iFi is a nice-looking, properly built and handily specified device, and it’s capable of extremely clean, confident and full-bodied sound. Which, of course, are all things that equally apply to the Topping machine…

How I tested the Topping DX5 II

I tried a bit of everything, basically – I used the DX5 II on my desktop, connected it to my laptop via USB, and plugged in a pair of high-end IEMs via the balanced 4.4mm headphone output.

I connected it to my reference stereo system using its single-ended RCAs and its balanced XLR outputs – this way I was able to use it as a DAC for my CD player and, with it wirelessly connected to my smartphone, as a Bluetooth receiver. And I tried out these various roles and functions for a working week or more.

• First reviewed: November 2025
• Read TechRadar's reviews guarantee

Topping is absolutely determined to become a force where affordable digital audio equipment is concerned – and the DX5 II proves it’s going the right way about it…

The 2TB Samsung 990 Pro SSD delivers read speeds up to 7,450MB/s, and it’s available for just £154 in time for Black Friday.

The DwarfLabs Dwarf III is a mini marvel: small and light enough to take in airline carry-on luggage but capable of seriously impressive astrophotography.

DwarfLab Dwarf III: Two-minute review

The Dwarflabs Dwarf III smart telescope is a mini marvel. My first astrophotography set-up 10 years ago weighed more than 20kg / 44lbs – but this excellent little self-contained device comes in at a mere 1.3kg / 2.8lbs and is small enough to fit in airline carry-on luggage.

In fact, that's exactly what I did with it a few months ago, taking it with me on vacation to Greece. I've also used it extensively in my garden in the UK and compared it thoroughly to another smart telescope, the ZWO Seestar S50. And as you can see from my verdict and score above, I love it.

But I'm getting ahead of myself, so let's start with the basics.

The Dwarf III is one of the new breed of smart telescopes which simplify and automate the process of astrophotography to bring it to within easy reach of those without the time or money needed for a 'proper' set-up of mount, telescope and camera.

As with smart telescopes from rivals ZWO, Vaonis and Unistellar, the Dwarf III doesn't have an eyepiece you look through, and doesn't in any way resemble a classic telescope such as a reflector or refractor. Instead, it tracks objects in the night sky then takes photos of them and 'stacks' them.

This process increases the faint signal being captured in order to bring out details – because if you just looked at a single shot, you'd see very little beyond a few stars. The resulting image can be viewed in real-time as it develops on your phone's screen, which is essentially your eyepiece.

You can see it in action below, with the fuzzy object that's barely visible after five frames eventually becoming the recognizable Crescent Nebula after about 60 frames:

The Crescent nebula appearing in real time on my phone (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

The Dwarf III has two lenses to capture its targets, one 35mm telephoto and one 3.4mm wide-angle – although the latter is mainly used for finding objects rather than shooting them.

The telephoto has a 2.9x1.7-degree field of view, which can fit the moon in it about six times and which has space for almost every galaxy and nebula you might want to capture. I go into this in more detail below, but this wide FOV is one of my favorite things about it.

Inside, there's a 4K IMX678 Starvis 2 sensor, which is on the budget end compared to that found within dedicated cooled astronomy cameras but which delivers excellent results, helped also by the fast f/4.3 f-ratio; this captures light more quickly than some rival smart scopes.

It's all controlled by the DwarfLab app, which gives you everything you need to take photos of the night skies without the need for you to do much more than choose your target and set it going. Even if you've never used a smart telescope – or any kind of telescope – before, you should be up and running within a few minutes.

In fact, roughly 20 minutes after taking it out of the box you could be viewing your first shot of wonderfully named objects such as the Elephant's Trunk nebula or Sombrero galaxy – the Dwarf III really is that easy to set up and use.

And when you do so, I'm pretty sure you'll be impressed, because the Dwarf III takes excellent photos given its small stature and low-ish price. It's truly one of the best ways into this fascinating hobby.

DwarfLab Dwarf III: price and availability

The Dwarf III is competitively priced for what it does – note you'll need to buy a tripod separately (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

The DwarfLabs Dwarf III was released in May 2025 and is competitively priced, coming in at $549 / £459 / AU$849. Depending on where you are in the world, that's either slightly cheaper or the same price as one of its main rivals, the ZWO Seestar S50, which costs $549 / £539 / AU$949. Compared to the Seestar S30, which is a comparable size to the Dwarf III, it's more expensive though; that model comes in at $399 / £419 / AU$699.

It's also worth noting that unlike the two Seestar models, the Dwarf III doesn't come with a tripod. Many keen photographers and stargazers will already own one, but if not you can buy one with the telescope for an additional $89 / £73 / AU$149. Or, of course, you can add your own; we have plenty of good options in our list of the best travel tripods. Either way, that might bump up the price a little.

DwarfLab Dwarf III: Specs

Aperture (tele)

35mm

Focal length (tele)

150 mm (737mm equivalent)

Aperture (wide)

3.4mm

Focal length (wide)

6.7mm (45mm equivalent)

Sensor

Sony IMX678 STARVIS 2

Resolution (stills)

Telephoto: 3840x2160 (4K); wide-angle: 1920x1080 (FHD)

Resolution (video)

Telephoto: 4K @ 30fps; wide-angle: 1080p @ 30fps

Filters (built in)

VIS, Astro, Dual-band

Mount type

Alt-azimuth and EQ mode

Accessories

USB-C cable, carry case, solar filter

Battery life

10,000mAh / 4 hours

Charging

USB-C

Storage

128GB

Dimensions

222x142x65mm

Weight

1.3 kg / 2.87 lbs

DwarfLab Dwarf III: DesignImage 1 of 3

The included carrying case is a nice addition (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 2 of 3

Small but mighty (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 3 of 3

The Dwarf III weighs only 1.3kg (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

Looks-wise, the Dwarf III is about as far from a traditional telescope as you could get. Powered off, it resembles a beefy external hard drive from about 2010, but turn it on to reveal the twin lenses and it's more like some kind of futuristic security-camera-robot hybrid.

It's actually pretty cute, with a certain Wall-E charm about it (or maybe that's just me). Either way, it's well built: solid, with a smooth plastic finish and an IP54 rating that keeps it safe from dust, moisture and dew.

It's also impressively small – like, how-did-they-fit-all-that-in-there small, a feeling that only grows after you see what it's capable of. It's relatively light, too, at 1.3kg / 2.87lbs; that's almost half the 2.5kg of the Seestar S50 and a little less than the S30.

There's not a lot to look at, externally. Beyond those two lenses and the DwarfLab logo, there's the main power button – a big circular affair that's very easy to find in the dark and which has a glowing green ring around it – plus a battery status indicator of four green dots, and a single USB-C charging port. On the bottom, meanwhile, there's a 1/4-inch tripod thread.

Image 1 of 4

The Dwarf III's twin lenses (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 2 of 4

The power button is easy to find at night (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 3 of 4

Battery life is not the best (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 4 of 4

Charging is via USB-C (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

It comes with an excellent carrying case, plus a couple of accessories: a USB-C charging cable, lens wipe cloth, plus a solar filter. The latter snaps on magnetically in a pleasing fashion, and comes with a pouch to keep it safe.

Design is all very well thought out and though it's a shame it doesn't come with a tripod, that's the only minus point in this regard. It's not a massive problem, either, because many of the telescope's intended customers will already have one, and it helps keep the price low.

I've been using either the Seestar S50's tripod or a K&F Concept 64in/163cm model which costs $49 in the US, £45 in the UK and AU$150 in Australia. This is light, sturdy and has a 360-degree ballhead which makes it very easy to angle the Dwarf III for EQ mode (of which more later).

DwarfLab Dwarf III: Features and performance

The included solar filter snaps on magnetically (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

The Dwarf III is a feature-rich device, with a multitude of abilities and use cases.

Obviously the first of those is to take photos of the night skies, and it does that very well thanks to its 4K Sony IMX678 Starvis 2 sensor – the same type as used in some of the best dash cams, including the Thinkware U3000 Pro. Starvis 2 is particularly strong in low light, while the IMX678's 4K resolution gives you more pixels to work with when cropping in on small and distant objects.

The twin lenses are very helpful. The telephoto is what you'll take most of your images with, while the wide-angle one is mainly for locating objects in the first place; you can take photos with it too, but it has a much lower resolution.

I've got a full gallery of astro images taken with the telescope below, but for now here's just one, my favorite that I've shot with the device. It shows the Eagle Nebula, Messier 16, and if you zoom in on the middle you'll see the famous 'Pillars of Creation', the swirling clouds of dust and gas that wowed the world when the Hubble telescope shot them two decades ago.

The Eagle Nebula, processed in Pixinsight, and showing the Eagles of Creation in the center (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

The Dwarf III has three internal filters. The most important is the dual-band filter, which targets the OIII (sulphur) and H⍺ (hydrogen) wavelengths – in layman's terms, this means it can capture more of the faint details in nebulae and reduce the impact of light pollution. There's also an astro filter, which extends into the infra-red range and which works best on galaxies and star clusters, and a 'VIS' filter which is used for daytime photography. All are easily selected within the Dwarf III's app; you don't need to physically attach anything.

Speaking of daytime photography, DwarfLabs make a big pitch around the telescope's usefulness around bird watching, and theoretically you could use it instead of a mirrorless camera and telephoto lens for any subject – just don't expect it to rival an expensive chunk of glass from Canon, Nikon or Sony.

The daytime photography ('General') mode includes burst and timelapse options, plus object tracking which I found to be a little hit and miss. 4K video can be recorded at up to 30fps, or 60fps if you switch to 1080p.

There's also a solar system mode for snapping the sun, moon and (theoretically) planets, plus a panorama mode. In Astro mode, meanwhile, you can shoot in either alt-azimuth or equatorial mode.

Performance-wise, the Dwarf III is pretty snappy to turn on and off, and slews to targets quickly and reasonably quietly; it makes less noise than the Seestar S50, for instance, although neither would be likely to wake even the lightest of sleepers next door.

In use, it's unerringly accurate in finding targets, zipping about the sky when you tell it where to go via the built-in star atlas.

It's also incredibly reliable when shooting. If the tracking on a motorized telescope is even a tiny bit off, you'll get star trails and the individual frame will be rejected and not included in the 'stack', potentially reducing detail in the final stacked image. With the Dwarf III, this almost never happened – I generally got around an 80-90% success rate, so if I shot a target for an hour, I'd get around 50 minutes' worth of photos. This is way better than my experience than shooting with the Seestar S50, where it can be more like 50% at times.

Plus, that's when shooting with 15-second exposures in alt-az mode; put it in EQ mode and you can get 30s shots with a similar success rate. This all makes it very easy to capture a lot of data on a target in a short time.

One of the few downsides is that the battery is not the biggest – only 10,000mAh, which is good for about 5 hours in astro mode when tracking and shooting a target, according to DwarfLab, and which was about right in my experience. You almost certainly won't get through a full night's shooting with it.

That said, I didn't put it to the test often, preferring instead to leave a much bigger power bank connected to it to ensure I got a full night's shooting. I tend to use Iniu power banks, which I've found to be very reliable and extremely well priced; the model below is well worth checking out and will triple the Dwarf III's capacity.

DwarfLab Dwarf III: Software

Scheduling on the Dwarf III is very simple (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

The nature of a smart telescope means that all of your interactions with it will be via an app – it's not like you can look through as you can with an old-school reflector or refractor.

That puts a lot of pressure on the device's software to be slick and simple to use, and fortunately the Dwarf III's is just that – with a few caveats.

I began using the Dwarf III several months ago, and on my first few nights shooting with it found the interface to be a little confusing. It wasn't a horror show by any means, but it wasn't as intuitive as ZWO's Seestar app. For instance, I'd click on the big 'Photo' button front and center to start shooting a galaxy or nebula, then would realize that I'd have to go back in and select the 'Atlas' option to actually choose my target.

Settings for options such as exposure time, meanwhile, were hidden within a menu called 'Function' – which really didn't (to me) suggest 'Settings'. I got used to it all after a few nights, but it was a little more confusing than it could have been.

The good news is that DwarfLabs is continually updating the platform, and a recent update has massively improved the experience. Those settings are now within a menu named 'Parameter, which is far more sensible, and the Atlas is available from within the shooting screen. There's a simple toggle between the wide and telephoto cameras, whereas before you tapped the small one to change between them, but again without labelling. It's all much more slick and easy to use.

(Note that most of my images in this review are using the old version of the software, because there's not been a clear night in the UK for me to take further screenshots for what feels like about 15 years now. I'll update them soon.)

There's a scheduling feature within the app, which works as you'd want it to and which is better than the one in ZWO's app. This is a vital inclusion, because most people won't want to stay up all night – they'll want to set the Dwarf III running with a list of targets, then wake refreshed in the morning to a lovely collection of images.

It's very easy to get polar alignment in EQ mode via the Dwarf III app (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

Switching to EQ mode is also pretty trouble-free. For the uninitiated, this lets the Dwarf III rotate fully in sync with the skies, meaning you can take longer exposures than in standard alt-az mode. Anything longer than 30 seconds will need to be in EQ mode (the maximum exposure is two minutes) and in my experience it's best for 30 seconds too; alt-az mode is fine for 15s exposures.

The Dwarf III app guides you through the process of setting the telescope into EQ mode, telling you exactly which direction and what amount to adjust the tripod head by, and the whole thing only takes about five minutes, less if you haven't moved the tripod since the previous session.

The Stellar Studio processing suite can get great results with very little effort (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

The included Stellar Studio software is also great. This lets you carry out basic processing actions on photos via the cloud, rather than needing to download them to your computer.

It's not exactly stacked with options, but does a really good job of reducing noise, sharpening stars and bringing out details. You can also remove stars entirely if you want that lovely clean view of a galaxy or nebula.

The Dwarf III's wide-angle and telephoto cameras work well in General/Daytime mode (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

Finally, in 'General' mode the app works pretty well to let you zoom in on a target. You can use the wide-angle view to get an overall view of your surroundings, then click on the screen to adjust where the telephoto lens is pointing. Another click switches to the telephoto view and you can start snapping away.

DwarfLab Dwarf III: Image qualityImage 1 of 38

The Eagle nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 2 of 38

The Eagle nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 3 of 38

The East Veil nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 4 of 38

The East Veil nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 5 of 38

The Bubble nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 6 of 38

The Bubble nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 7 of 38

The West Veil nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 8 of 38

The West Veil nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 9 of 38

The Andromeda Galaxy, M33, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 10 of 38

The Andromeda Galaxy, M33, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 11 of 38

The Heart nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 12 of 38

The Heart nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 13 of 38

The Soul nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 14 of 38

The Soul nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 15 of 38

The M33 galaxy in Triangulum, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 16 of 38

The M33 galaxy in Triangulum, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 17 of 38

The Omega nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 18 of 38

The Omega nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 19 of 38

The Pacman nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 20 of 38

The Pacman nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 21 of 38

M24, the small Sagittarius star cloud, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 22 of 38

M24, the small Sagittarius star cloud, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 23 of 38

The Iris nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 24 of 38

The Iris nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 25 of 38

The Elephant's Trunk nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 26 of 38

The Elephant's Trunk nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 27 of 38

The Crescent nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 28 of 38

The Crescent nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 29 of 38

The Pelican nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 30 of 38

The Pelican nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 31 of 38

The Double Cluster, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 32 of 38

The Double Cluster, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 33 of 38

The Wizard nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 34 of 38

The Wizard nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 35 of 38

The Dumbbell nebula, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 36 of 38

The Dumbbell nebula, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 37 of 38

The M39 cluster, unprocessed (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 38 of 38

The M39 cluster, processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

There's one very important thing that anyone using a smart telescope for the first time needs to understand: you won't be getting Hubble-challenging images straight out of the camera. Well, obviously, you won't be getting Hubble-challenging images at all; this is a $500 smart telescope, not a rig that costs 10 times that.

But even with that in mind, there's a big difference between the photos that the Dwarf III creates for you, and the results that you can achieve with some proper processing.

The easiest way to demonstrate that is with some before and after photos – so check out the gallery above. In every case, you'll see the unprocessed image produced by the Dwarf III first, followed by the version I processed in Pixinsight, the specialist astrophotography software I use.

Image 1 of 3

The unprocessed image of the East Veil nebula (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 2 of 3

The East Veil nebula processed in DwarfLab's Stellar Studio (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 3 of 3

And my version processed in Pixinsight (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

Now, let's get one thing straight: I'm not an expert when it comes to astro image processing. It's an incredibly complex hobby, with sometimes arcane software to master and a surprisingly large amount of technical knowledge needed to really get the best results. In fact, I think I prefer some of the Dwarf III's images, at least when it comes to color – which is one of the toughest things to get right.

Regardless of what you think of my images (I won't be offended, promise), you can see that processing reduces noise and brings out more detail and color. To really get the best from the Dwarf III, you will still want to do some processing.

Fortunately, as mentioned above, it's pretty easy to considerably improve things within the Dwarf III's Stellar Studio on your phone, with no need to shell out for or learn anything more complicated.

For instance, try the above image of the glorious East Veil nebula – the original, unprocessed image is pretty good, but Stellar Studio turns it into something epic, and my Pixinsight version is only a slight improvement (if anything).

The Dwarf III's wide field of view really shines with this shot of the awesome Bubble Nebula (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

One of the things I really love about the Dwarf III is its wide 2.9x1.7-degree field of view, even when using the telephoto camera. The Seestar S50 has a much narrower 0.7x1.2-degree FOV, while the S30 is close to the Dwarf at 1.22x2.13-degree.

The net effect of this is that you get a real sense of drama with the Dwarf III. I love the Seestar S50, but with many targets you end up with a close-up of the object. You can get around this by using mosaic mode (the Dwarf also has one of these), but in my experience mosaics take longer to shoot and are harder to process.

The Dwarf, meanwhile, almost always captures the object and its surroundings. Its field of view is wide enough to cover the whole of Andromeda, for instance, whereas the S50 gets only the central section.

Of course you may prefer a closer view of targets, but the Dwarf's 4K resolution means you can crop in anyway and still have a decent-sized image. It's possible that the Seestar S30 will give me the FOV I love from the Dwarf with some of ZWO's advantages too, but I've not used that device yet, so that comparison will have to wait.

Image 1 of 3

The Dwarf III takes decent nature photos, but they're not what you'd buy it for (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 2 of 3

The ability to easily find and then zoom in on targets is one of the Dwarf III's strengths (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)Image 3 of 3

Solar photography on the Dwarf III is easy and produces good results (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

In general mode, image quality is fine. That's a pretty nice shot of a pigeon on my lawn above, but view the full-size image and you'll see the feathers lack definition. My Fujifilm X-T5 mirrorless camera would do a better job with a good zoom lens.

Solar photography, meanwhile, is easy to do – you simply snap on the filter then move to the target. Admittedly, for some reason the Dwarf finds it much harder to locate the sun than it does a tiny object many millions of light years away, but the Seestar S50 is no different in this regard.

I've only taken a few solar shots with the Dwarf III and was relatively impressed by them, but it's not an area of photography I'm particularly interested in.

Should I buy the DwarfLabs Dwarf III?Buy it if…

You're a beginner
The Dwarf III is one of the easiest, most hassle-free ways to give astrophotography a whirl. Beginners will be taking photos of galaxies in no time.View Deal

You don't have much time
You can pick up the Dwarf III and have it shooting within minutes – which is great if you either have a busy life or are afflicted by cloudy skies. View Deal

You want to travel light
The Dwarf III is small enough to chuck in a bag and take away for a trip – and light enough that it won't break your back.View Deal

Don't buy it if…

You're an upgrader
The Dwarf III is unashamedly a beginner scope. Sure, it can take amazing photos, but after a year or two you may find yourself wanting to upgrade – and as this is an all-in-one device, that means buying a new model. View Deal

You want a tighter field of view
The Dwarf III's wide view is great for big targets, but you'll get a closer vision of small objects such as planetary nebulae with the Seestar S50.View Deal

You want to take photos of planets
As above, the Dwarf III's field of view makes it entirely unsuited to imaging Mars, Jupiter and the rest of the gang. You might see a small Saturn-shaped dot, but not much more. View Deal

Also consider

ZWO Seestar S50

The S50 has a longer focal length and bigger aperture than the Dwarf III, meaning you get a much closer view and a bit more detail. I own the S50 and have taken some wonderful photos with it – choosing between them is tough. Really it depends on which field of view you prefer. View Deal

ZWO Seestar S30

The S30 has the same focal length and a similar field of view to the Dwarf, but a smaller aperture. I've not used it, but I expect it to deliver similar – but probably slightly inferior – results to the Dwarf.View Deal

Unistellar Odyssey Pro

The Unistellar Odyssey Pro is in a different class of smart telescope entirely, with a price tag of $4,500 / £3,500 and far better specs in almost every regard. At this price you could get an impressive mount+telescope+camera set-up, though – so it's probably best suited to those who have more money than time.View Deal

How I tested the DwarfLabs Dwarf III

The Dwarf III smart telescope on a roof terrace in Crete (Image credit: Future/TechRadar)

I took the Dwarf III with me on vacation to Crete, Greece, where I was lucky enough to be staying in an apartment with a roof terrace – and in a country with clear skies every night. I used the smart telescope extensively over the next week or so, taking photos of multiple targets including the Eagle nebula, Omega nebula and Andromeda galaxy.

When I returned to the UK, I used it whenever I could, which unfortunately was not that often due to the clouds which blanket the nation for about three-quarters of every month. Here, I set it up alongside my ZWO Seestar S50, taking photos of the same subjects for the same amount of time so I could directly compare results.

I also tried it in EQ mode, in Solar mode, in General mode for a bit of nature photography and spent many hours processing the photos it produced in all modes.

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