I went out a couple of nights ago and did some comparisons. With a pair of 10x50 binoculars, one can easily find some of the bright objects in the sky. Some fuzzy and dim objects can still be found, however, they are dim. I have learned to recognize those dim objects (many look much better under very dark skies). Also, it is easy to get tired holding the binoculars, but with an inexpensive adapter, they can be mounted on a standard tripod. That makes a more pleasing experience. I then used a 80mm F5 (that means short) refractor. Note: this is a "el cheapo" scope from ebay. It is not the best, however, it is not that bad after a couple of upgrades: one, I use a larger tripod than the one included, and two, I use my other eyepieces instead of the ones that came with the scope. This scope came with a diagonal that gives upright images (instead of upside down). That is an advantage in that it is easy to point (like using binoculars). While the aperture is not much greater than the one you currently use, the short focal length gives the advante of providing brighter images (but not larger images) than your current telescope. My son likes to play with that telescope (he is 12) and a red dot pointer helps a lot too. Anyway, based on your current telescope, either option (binoculars or short tube refractor [with easy "upgrades"]) would give your daughter a more pleasant experience. Neither will give you views like the pictures advertised, however, once you understand on what you *can* see, they are quite usable. __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Meet the all-new My Yahoo! - Try it today! http://my.yahoo.com