Hi Paulo,
You ask the same question I have been asking. In order to answer it for myself, I have gone through many different telescopes including refractors,reflectors and compound along with many different apertures (60mm to 12.5" so far)and focal lengths. All have had something to offer and I realize now that I have to first define what I want to use the scope for. My preference is visual with a focus on lunar, planetary and globular clusters since I live near a major city and do not have dark skies. For me the best scope is one I can easily set up and use by myself and that gives the sharpest, most detailed images possible. At the moment that scope is a largeish TMB 175 APO but I also have a few small scopes and a 12.5" Portaball.
Since I live by the ocean, dewing is an issue. Refractors and compound scopes all struggle with dew and the anti-dew heaters, as good as they are, do not always keep up. My newtonians do not fall prey to dew as easily though it has happened once or twice. If you can leave your main scope set up all of the time, you will not need a "quick look" scope. If you do not plan to take a scope with you on trips, you may not need a small scope at all. If I were you, I would look through as many different scopes and styles as possible and then decide. If I could have only one scope, it would be the 12.5" Portaball as it does everything well and is optically excellent when seeing is good or better. If you think it would be of help, I have kept notes on most scopes I have owned and would be glad to send them to you. My e-mail is:
[email protected]When all is said and done, Vahe is right- the perfect scope will always be the one you don't have or can not afford. For me that perfect scope is a 8" to 10" APO which would be larger than I can handle alone, require a huge mount and permanent structure in order to get much use. Not quite perfect after all!!!