Dwarf 3 Smart Telescope Review
The Dwarf 3 smart telescope is a compact, ultra-portable device that was designed to make astrophotography easy and fun. While this device is in its third iteration, it is the first DwarfLab product I’ve ever used.
It combines a small telescope, an astronomy camera, and a computerized mount to track and photograph objects in space. It also features a secondary wide-angle lens that can be used for daytime photos, videos, and even astrophotography.
The Dwarf 3 can find and track objects in the sky and includes internal filters and stacking to help you produce an impressive image. Smart telescopes make it easier for beginners to enter the hobby of astrophotography and capture stunning images of the night sky.
From capturing impressive low-noise images to a versatile field of view, the Dwarf 3 has a lot going for it. In this article, I’ll explain what the Dwarf 3 is capable of and my personal experiences with it in the backyard.
The Dwarf 3 Smart Telescope package is listed for $499 USD at High Point Scientific.
I have captured several deep-sky astrophotography images with the Dwarf 3, and the image quality is fantastic. You can also watch my full review on YouTube:
What’s Inside the Dwarf 3?
The primary telescope (which could also be described as a telephoto lens) has an aperture of 35mm and a focal length of 150mm. This clever design maximizes light transmission in a portable device.
Compared to a popular astrophotography telescope like the William Optics RedCat 51 (with an aperture of 51mm), the Dwarf 3 has an even smaller diameter at 35 mm. That’s a teeny telescope!
However, in terms of image scale, it’s a good match for the SONY IMX678 sensor inside. It has an equivalent focal length of 737mm, which is quite a jump from the little scope’s native 150mm focal length.
The small sensor of the camera inside crops the image field substantially. The resulting field of view is very practical for plenty of deep-sky objects, such as the sun and the moon.
The field of view is a great match for many of the most popular deep-sky astrophotography targets, including the Horsehead Nebula shown above.
The Camera
The Dwarf 3 features a dual camera system, which includes a primary imaging camera for high-resolution deep-sky imaging and a secondary wide-field camera for capturing nightscapes and panoramic views.
The telephoto lens uses a SONY IMX678 image sensor for deep-sky astrophotography. This sensor has a pixel size of 2 µm and a resolution of 3840 x 2160 pixels (8.3 MP).
The dual camera system means that the Dwarf 3 can capture everything from distant nebulae and galaxies to wide-field Milky Way photography.
Telephoto camera and wide-angle camera
The Filters
The Dwarf 3 is equipped with various built-in filters, making it versatile for various types of photography.
There are two built-in filters for astrophotography. For broadband targets like galaxies, the’ Astro filter’ is what you want to use. It captures the infrared range (430-690nm), which is used for low-light photography and enhancing detail in night sky shots.
The Andromeda Galaxy captured using the Dwarf 3 with the ‘Astro’ Filter. (Post-processing by me)
For emission nebulae and supernova remnants, the ‘dual-band’ filter is the best option, which targets OIII (500.7nm), Hβ (486nm), and Hα (656.3nm) wavelengths. I found this filter to be the most practical from the city as it reduces the effects of moonlight and city lights. You can choose the filter before you start imaging your target.
There is also a VIS filter, which is ideal for daytime/terrestrial photography. It allows you to capture sharp images of landscapes, wildlife, or other objects.
Tracking Mount
The Dwarf 3 uses an alt-az mount, meaning it moves in two directions. While this type of telescope mount can create field rotation and limit your exposure times, you can offset this using the EQ mode with a tripod and ball head.
The EQ Mode is my favorite part about the Dwarf 3 and what sets it apart from other smart telescopes. It involves adjusting the angle of the Dwarf 3 to align the device with the celestial pole (polar alignment).
You know what that means—better, longer tracking, longer exposures, and more options for capturing your projects. There is even a simple polar alignment wizard to help you get it at just the right angle.
Dwarf 3 with included magnetic clip-on solar filter
Dwarf 3 Specifications:
- Aperture Diameter: 35 mm (Tele), 3.4 mm (Wide)
- Focal Length: 150 mm (Tele), 6.7 mm (Wide)
- Equivalent Focal Length: 737 mm (Tele), 45 mm (Wide)
- Sensor: Sony IMX 678, Stravis 2
- Built-in Filters: Tele: VIS/Astro/Dual-band, Wide: Astro (for day and night use)
- Battery: Built-in 10000 mAh with External USB Charging Support
- Storage: 128GB eMMC included
- Shooting Modes: Photo (Tele & Wide), Video (Tele & Wide), Astro (Tele & Wide), Pano (Tele & Wide), Burst (Tele & Wide), Timelapse (Tele & Wide)
- NPU: 5 TOPS
- Telephoto Video: 4K resolution at 30fps frame rate
- Telephoto Picture: 3840 × 2160 max resolution
- Wide-angle Video: 1080p resolution at 30fps frame rate
- Wide-angle Picture: 1920 × 1080
- Maximum Exposure: 60s (in EQ-Mode/Astro mode)
- Size: 222 × 142 × 65 mm3
- Weight: 1.3 kg (2.9 lbs)
Like many smart telescopes, the Dwarf is not suited for operating in extreme hot/cold temperatures. The manufacturer recommended operating temperature is -10C to 45C (32F to 113F).
What’s Included in the Box?
The Dwarf 3 weighs 1.3 kg (3 lbs) and comes in a compact fabric carry case with room for the device and a sleeve to fit all the small accessories included with the Dwarf.
- Dwarf 3 main telescope/camera device
- UBS-C charging cable
- Wipe cloth
- Magnetic solar filter with pouch
- Travel bag and strap
Everything that is included with the Dwarf 3
Unlike the Seestar S50 (and S30), the Dwarf 3 does not come with a tripod, so you will need to use one you already have, or purchase one before using the Dwarf. It can fit on an tripod with a ¼” thread.
Technically, you can use the Dwarf 3 without a tripod by placing it on a level surface, but getting it off the ground is recommended.
There is a mini tripod for sale on the product page for an additional $79.00 USD. But it would have been really nice to have seen one included.
Dwarf Mobile App
The Dwarf 3 is connected wirelessly through the DWARFLAB mobile app (Apple and Android), available in 10 different languages.
Within the app, you’ll find their built-in sky atlas, which allows you to locate objects and observe real-time image stacking during your imaging session—very similar to the one you’ll see in the ASIAIR and the Seestar.
This is my favorite way to choose a target because I can focus on my available area of sky from the backyard and see what’s up there. You can search for objects or manually point to an area of the sky you want to capture.
In my tests, the Dwarf 3 was found and locked on to my target, and the camera was autofocused incredibly quickly after choosing it.
I want to remind you that it wasn’t too long ago that I was doing a 3-star alignment on a hand controller to achieve this level of pointing accuracy.
Getting Started
The first thing you need to do is thread the device onto a tripod, which you will need to purchase separately. I used one of my old collapsible carbon fiber photography tripods. You can also use a mini tripod like this Manfrotto model.
Before you get started, make sure you have downloaded the DWARFLAB app. Once you’ve done this, the following instructions will ready your Dwarf for a night of astrophotography.
- Power on: Hold down the button on the side, it will turn green
- App Connection: With your bluetooth on, open the app and select connect. Search for Dwarf 3 to connect and select your device and use the default password provided in your manual.
- Photo: select the photo button
The DWARFLAB app is simple and well-designed. It’s been through a few updates, and it’s been stable for me.
The app interface using the wide-field camera to help find the sun in the telephoto camera
You can try out the camera in ‘photo’ mode and pan around in the live view mode to take pictures or record 4K videos, but there is no sound.
The controls to move the Dwarf 3 around are responsive, and at the max speed, this thing flies around. And when you need to fine-tune the pointing, you can slow it right down.
I didn’t expect to really care about the Dwarf 3’s daytime camera mode, but the wide-angle/telephoto combo makes it so easy to scan your surroundings and zoom in on an area of interest.
The autofocus works well, too, whether locking on to a branch to capture a bird or a distant building.
A Red-Tailed Hawk captured using the Dwarf 3 in 4K video mode.
More Options
With both a wide-angle and telephoto lens, and the various filters included, there is a lot of versatility when it comes to the Dwarf 3.
- Daytime Terrestrial Imaging: with the internal VIS filter, you can capture detailed images of landscapes, cityscapes, wildlife, or other objects during the day.
- Planetary Imaging: while technically you can photograph planets with the Dwarf 3, they will appear incredibly small with very little detail.
- Deep-Sky Imaging: capture stunning nebulae, galaxies, and star clusters. The built-in filters (astro and dual-band) help reduce noise and help you image in less than ideal lighting conditions (i.e. full moon or light pollution).
- Wide-Field Imaging: using the wide-field camera you can capture panoramic views of the night sky, including shots of the Milky Way and constellations.
- Solar Imaging: use the included magnetic clip-on solar filter to safely capture solar activity and celestial details with images of the sun and solar eclipses.
Live stacking of the Orion Nebula with the Dwarf 3
Astro Mode Setup
You must be in ‘Astro’ mode to set up your imaging plan. Next, press the ‘function’ button at the bottom. Here, you can
- take your dark frames
- go through the EQ mode walkthrough (highly recommended)
- start the sky calibration process
- access the sky atlas
- and adjust some camera settings
I looked into what this AI enhancement actually does – and Dwarflabs says: “It is for image stretching and noise reduction. AI Enhance will not add any synthetic data or AI-generated content to your images.” That works for me.
Next, you need to choose your exposure and gain settings for your astrophotography target. To do this, click the bottom ‘settings’ button and choose your:
- Exposure length
- Gain setting (similar to ISO)
- The filter you want to use
If you’re using EQ mode, you can try 30-second exposures. If not, stick to 10-15 seconds.
For the majority of my photos, I took 30-second exposures to collect a good signal. I took advantage of the EQ mode, which allows you to shoot longer subs. If you haven’t polar aligned the Dwarf 3, stick to 10-15-second shots.
I also took several images using 15-second exposures with the EQ mode (for the Andromeda Galaxy), which seemed to be a great middle ground. The sub-exposures looked great, with sharp, round stars.
Next is polar alignment, which was a bit of a strange process. You have to face the back of the Dwarf III to the north and tilt the device downward at the angle of your latitude.
To utilize the EQ mode, you must match the angle of the Dwarf 3 with your latitude.
I got pretty close right out of the gate because I’ve been polar aligning my equatorial telescope mounts to 43 degrees north for a long time, but if this is new to you, it might take a few tries.
The wizard in the app walks you through the process and then checks the alignment you have set. It provides guidance on which way you need to adjust the angle, but it’s still just a rough guideline.
However, even with this rough polar alignment, you’ll get better tracking than without it.
Astrophotography with the Dwarf 3
Deep-sky imaging is where the Dwarf 3 really shines. The focal length and field of view are perfect for many projects, especially the larger nebulae.
Most galaxies will be quite small, but Andromeda fits the frame perfectly, and that is very satisfying. I enjoy watching the live stacked image on the screen get better and better.
Some of the sub-exposures are worse than others, which is why I prefer to select and stack the best sub-exposures myself using DeepSkyStacker.
Framing of the Andromeda Galaxy in the Dwarf 3
Considering I was taking 30-second exposures, the results were impressive for a $500 smart telescope. The potential for capturing an epic image using EQ mode under a dark sky is huge.
While you can also use the wide-angle lens in astro mode, I’ll have to wait for the moon to go away, and get under some dark skies to test that.
Image Review and Processing
Images are provided in JPG, PNG, FITS, and TIFF formats, offering options for post-processing. I took all of my images in the FITS format so I could stack them using my preferred image stacking software.
Here is a look at the individual subs on the Horsehead Nebula in DeepSkyStacker. These are 30-second exposures with the Dwarf 3 in EQ mode. As you can see, the stars aren’t perfect, but I bet I could get better tracking with a careful polar alignment.
My individual 30-second sub exposures looked good, with most of the frames showing round, sharp stars.
I was expecting images to be 3840 × 2160 pixels, but these images are half that because I didn’t have the option to not bin 2×2. I am not sure if there will be an option to use 1 x 1 binning in the future.
The 2×2 binning creates a better image scale anyway, so I recommend setting it to 2×2. Also, after reviewing my images with the Blink tool in PixInsight, it appears the Dwarf 3 automatically dithers the images as well.
After ditching the worst 15% of my frames, I was left with 52 exposures, totaling 26 minutes of overall exposure time.
Next, I brought the stack into PixInsight to run some advanced tools. I’m not going to lie—it felt kind of funny running Blur Xterminator on a smart telescope image like this—but it works!
I also did some noise reduction and a handy star reduction script Luke shared on his channel. Here is my final 26-minute Horsehead and Flame Nebula with the Dwarf 3.
Remember – this was a nearly full moon night from Bortle 6. Think of how good you could get this image from a dark sky site!
The Horsehead Nebula straight out of the Dwarf (left), and processed (right).
What are the Best Targets to Try?
You can utilize the built-in sky atlas in the app to try out suggested targets. Below are some of our suggestions for the Dwarf 3 based on the focal length.
Remember, for the best results, use the EQ mode (which requires a rough polar alignment), and use 15-30 second exposures.
Limitations
The Dwarf 3 is an exceptionally capable smart telescope, especially considering its cost. While there are many different types of astrophotography projects you can take on with the Dwarf 3, it does have a few notable limitations.
It is not suitable for photographing planets. The focal length and aperture make it difficult to capture a great image of a planet, even the largest ones like Jupiter and Saturn.
Also, you may find the Sun and the Moon to be just a little too small for your liking. Compared to the images I’ve captured on the Seestar S50, you can see how much smaller they appear.
Even though the Dwarf 3’s EQ mode helps offset the limitations of an alt-az telescope mount, exposure times to capture an image with sharp stars will be limited to a maximum of 60 seconds.
Essentially, you may get to a point in your astrophotography journey where you find yourself wanting to push your images further and to do that; you will need to invest in a more traditional deep-sky astrophotography kit.
Dwarf 3 vs Dwarf 2
There are a few key upgrades that were made to the Dwarf 3 when compared to its predecessor – most notably the enhanced optics and imaging power.
1) Upgraded Sensor: The Dwarf 3 (Sony IMX678, Starvis 2) has improved upon its camera sensor since the Dwarf 2 (SONY IMX415 Starvis), offering sharper and more detailed images at a higher resolution. The improved sensor also means better low-light performance.
2) Larger Aperture: The Dwarf 3 includes a larger aperture and longer focal length than the Dwarf 2, allowing for greater light-gathering power and more zoomed-in images of celestial bodies.
The newly added features to this model that were not included in the Dwarf II include:
- Wide-angle video with a maximum resolution of 1080p at 30fps frame rate
- Wide-angle astrophotography
- NFC One-touch Connection
- Astro Mosaics
Other Smart Telescopes
If you are in the market for a smart telescope, the Dwarf 3 will be very hard to ignore. In my tests, it performed extremely well, and overall, it was a great first experience with a DwarfLab product.
The hard part now is choosing which smart telescope is right for you. The fact that this one costs about the same as the Seestar S50 doesn’t make things any easier.
Dwarf 3 (left), Seestar S30 (middle), Seestar S50 (right)
As for which one is better? It’s honestly too close to a call, but the user experience and results are both impressive. I will say this, though – the EQ mode is a big deal for me. I love that the option is there so I can push the exposure time and take on tougher projects.
The Seestar S30 arrived the same week as the Dwarf. We will provide an extensive review of this smart telescope, following the Dwarf, but a table of the specs have been included below.
| Feature | Dwarf 3 | Seestar S30 | Seestar S50 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aperture | Tele: 35 mm Wide: 2.4 mm | 30mm | 50mm |
| Focal Length | Tele: 150 mm Wide: 6.7 | 150mm | 250mm |
| Focal Ratio | f/4.3 | f/5 | f/5 |
| Sensor | Sony IMX678 | Sony IMX662 | Sony IMX462 |
| Resolution | Tele: 3840 × 2160 Wide: 1920 × 1080 | Tele: 1080 x 1920 Wide: 1080 x 1920 | 1920 x 1080 |
| Storage | 128 GB | 64 GB | 64 GB |
| Weight | 1.3 kg (2.8 lbs) | 1.65 kg (3.6 lbs) | 2.5 kg (5.5 lbs) |
| Tripod Included | No | Yes | Yes |
| Price | $499 USD | $349 USD | $499 USD |
Conclusion
The Dwarf 3 is an impressive package. Its biggest weakness is simply that it’s a smart telescope. It has a very small telescope, a tiny sensor, and a mount that can’t track as smoothly as a traditional equatorial mount.
However, it certainly makes the most of what it has. The images I captured on the Dwarf 3 were shockingly decent, and with the right processing and enough data, they could really give DSLR images a run for their money.
The battery life is decent, but I used the Dwarf 3 on some very cold nights, and I was losing battery life quickly. To remedy this, I connected a portable power bank, and that kept it topped up for the night.
The Wi-Fi connection is decent, but you can’t get too far away from it without losing connection. I used the Dwarf inside the garage about 10-15 feet away, and it worked fine.
I’m looking forward to taking this telescope to a location with a darker sky to see how much better my images can be! Until next time, clear skies!
The Orion Nebula captured using the Dwarf 3 from my backyard (40 minutes total exposure).
You can also order the Dwarf 3 package directly from the DwarfLab website.
Trevor Jones
is a deep-sky astrophotographer and a valued member of the RASC. His passion is to inspire others to start their astrophotography journey on his YouTube Channel, so they can appreciate the night sky as much as he does. His images have been featured in astronomy books, and online publications including the NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD).
