Sega Homestar Original Black - Home Planetarium - Star Projector

I would love to have a custom-designed starry-sky bedroom ceiling, but just don't have the tens of thousands of dollars to have one put in right this minute... So I got this product, and could not be happier. This is a fantastic little device for a child's or adult bedroom.I wouldn't really call this an educational device. Yeah, you can sit under it and point out constellations and such, but it's much more of a relaxation/decoration item. That is its sole use in my home.Do not be influenced by the "Sega" product name; this is not some flimsy, toy-like star projector. Although small, this is a sophisticated (and expensive) device. As such, small children probably should not be allowed to operate it. Older kids, after sufficient supervised training, can understand the controls and functions, and should be able to use it properly.It is not very big, so takes up little space. The power cord is relatively long (could be a foot or two longer) to support your optimal placement in the room. It has a small fan for cooling as well as the rotation motor, and both are very quiet, supporting this as a go-to-sleep device. There is a sleep timer which you can set for 15, 30, or 60 minutes. The rotation option is very nice as it presents an ever-changing view of the star field. It rotates quickly enough that you can discern the rotation readily, but not so fast that you get the spins from staring up into it.As noted by a couple other reviewers, on first use it seems that the device is not focusing properly, and it appears that the focus ring is literally unscrewing from the housing. Not quite so. Be patient and slowly bring that focus ring out and the stars will come into perfect focus.This item is best used in a very dark room, so douse all lights and night lights. If being used in a child's room, the light from this device, if left on all night, serves as a night light on its own. That being said, the light is not harsh, and provides a nice soft glow throughout the room.The shooting star function is a nice little addition, but is kind of a letdown. The product photo appearing to show a shooting star looks a lot more like a comet, but either way, know that this is NOT how shooting star function appears. It's a purely optical effect using the lens, so the shooting star is always the same; it is in the exact same position on the ceiling every time, and its path and appearance are always the same.I recommend purchasing the optional discs as well, as they are a nice change-up to your standard view.Bottom line: I wanted a detailed and diverse starry sky on my bedroom ceiling, and this device has delivered well beyond my expectations.

I've been interested in astronomy for a long long time. I have owned about 30 telescopes, but currently a 10" and 16" dobsonian, and an SN6 . I've always wanted a decent little cheap planetarium. In the past I painted glow in the dark dots on the ceiling, different sizes for magnitude differences, using a huge paper template to get the star positions correct. It works fine but it's a lot of work, and the sky doesn't change.Then I saw this Homestar, and did some comparisons between this version and the new version. In every review I felt the new version was TOO bright. It does not accurately represent what a night sky looks like. For this reason I purchased the original version. The original version is also a bit too bright, but acceptable. Another reviewer mentioned that the stars do not revolve around the pole star (Polaris) but that is wrong. The sky does indeed rotate around polaris. This is neat because on my ceiling polaris is (correctly) in the same place all the time, just off to the edge of the ceiling. This means that the sky completely changes over the course of 30 minutes or so.I still feel this device is extremely overpriced for what it is, but I suppose that has to do with the limited demand, and cost of manufacturing the laser disks.The shooting star effect is pretty good even though it's always in the same place. It's spaced out timing wise, and the sky has rotated a bit by then so it does not get repetetive.Overall I am really happy with this. My wife lost her mom about a week ago due to covid. I was going out to a friend's house for awhile and knew she would go to bed early.I had just received the homestar and secretly set it up for her but left the room lights on so she couldn't notice. When she turned off the lights to go to bed she was rewarded with a star lit sky. I received a text which only said "thank you <3"In the morning she told me she was so delighted that it made her cry.Now we run it every night when we go to bed.BTW, even if you do not set the timer, it turns itself off after a few hours. I'm not sure how long that is yet because I'm usually asleep when that happens.BTW the other night I played "space music" really faint to add to the theme. I had already fallen asleep when my wife came to bed. She woke me up and said she keeps hearing UFOs taking off outside. Apparently she had been looking out the window for awhile before waking me.That was pretty funny! I just love her

I thought with the name Sega that this would be a quality product. Far from it. First, it is super dim so even in a dark room it is barely visible. The sphere itself looks and feels good but the most important part of the product is the lens which is as cheap as can be. It is impossible to focus without the slightest movement getting it out of focus. Most importantly, which was the total deal breaker, is that there are very visible rings that are displayed which were probably caused by cheap manufacturing. When you display the stars, the rings are more visible than anything you are displaying. Could it have been a one-off problem? NO! I returned the first one in exchange for a new one. The new one I received had the exact same issues. This would be unacceptable on a $20 product but to have this level of cheapness on a product that is over $100 is almost fraud. DONT BUY IT!