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HomeStar - 21st Century Home Planetarium Review

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the my-god-it's-full-of-stars dept.

Jeff writes "Direct from Japan, the SegaToys HomeStar is a unique home projector that turns any room into a planetarium, giving a clear view of the night sky. Using interchangeable plates, it's capable of displaying up to 10,000 stars of either northern or southern hemisphere, as well as their constellations. The starfield can move on a timer to simulate the earth's rotation. Also comes with a meteor generating function and sleep timer. Makes a great gift for the dad who has everything, or people who live in light-polluted areas." Check out Jeff's review of the unit.

4 of 98 comments (clear)

  1. Homestar, you say? by Keith+Russell · · Score: 4, Funny

    /reads HomeStar name...

    (Must not make Homestar Runner joke. Must not make Homestar Runner joke.)

    Hmm, the warning label says: Do not look into lens when activated. Burnination of retinas may occur.

    (Oh, bloody hell!)

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  2. Re:Now we know by PFI_Optix · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I live in a town of just 7,000 people, and the light pollution is so bad that the majority of stars aren't visible (yes I know the vast majority of stars in the universe are never visible, but you all know what I mean). For about fifty miles in any given direction of most major metro areas, only a few stars can be seen. I've only seen the night sky as it used to look a handful of times. It's interesting now to watch people who have never seen in person just how many stars should be visible.

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  3. I bought one of these by I+Like+Pudding · · Score: 5, Funny

    After reading up and correctly identifying every constellation in both the northern and southern hemispheres, I was kidnapped and transported against my will to the Credence system where I was then press ganged into service for the Unitarians as the so-called "Last Starfighter". It was a harrowing experience; I barely defeated their leader, Xenu, in a last-ditch attack with the Yellow Submarine's emergency weapon system, "Mortal Flower". After a long, boring awards ceremony, I was transported back to Earth. Nobody believed me when I told them my tale, of course, because I had been on acid at the time.

    I do not recommend this product.

  4. Re:Now we know by jdbartlett · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I think this is a nice, if expensive, toy for people in big cities. Even in small cities, light polution dims the view.

    I've a friend back in London who had her ceiling painted with a mock-up of the night sky somewhere in Africa. She hired some company that specializes in glow-in-the-dark night sky displays working from real star maps.

    I doubt this box is much more expensive.