Cheap telescopes for the IYA
Nobody around me believed a 1 EUR telescope would be doable.....Then it's now 10$....
But still without a tripod....The aim was to enable children to see Saturn's rings....That means a stable tube, meaning a tripod.
After all, if a parent wants his child to see the heavens and has no experience with telescopes, he can send him to an astronomy club!! That's what they are for!
The WOW factor is normally experienced with someone else's telescope.
I remember going to an astronomy club near Orlando when I was in Florida for the STS 61A launch.
Jupiter seen as never before!