Tasco
| Corporation | |
| Industry | Technology |
| Founded | 1954 |
| Founder | George Rosenfield |
| Headquarters | Miami, FL, United States |
| Website | http://www.tasco.com/ |
Tasco (also known as Tasco Worldwide) is a major international distributor of telescopes. Tasco mainly makes telescopes for amateur astronomers but has expanded into other optical products such as spotting scopes, microscopes, binoculars, and telescopic sights and other rifle accessories. Tasco sells via specialty outlets, catalogues, and online retailers.
Tasco is based in Miramar, Florida. George Rosenfield founded the firm as the Tanross Supply Company in 1954. It started as a distributor of fishing tackle and hardware. The name was later shortened to Tasco as inventory expanded to include binoculars and eyepieces.
Tasco manufactures both a variety of optical equipment including terrestrial telescopes, microscopes, binoculars, telescopic sights, and accessories for each.
Three categories of telescopes are available from Tasco - Novice, Luminova, and Spacestation. Each family has several models. The Novice family features the most economical telescopes using manual focus and view finding, while the high end Spacestation utilizes fully automated sky-mapping, "GoTo" technology. Magnification ranges of the telescopes are advertised as between 25 and 675 power. Both reflecting telescopes and refracting telescopes are available in each category.
Tasco's astronomical telescopes have a noted poor reputation as a usable instrument. It is one of several companies that follows the deceptive practice of advertising their products based on claims of high magnification, far beyond any attainable usable magnification. Tasco's astronomical products usually get lumped in with the whole series of telescopes pejoratively referred to as "department store telescopes", low quality and low cost instruments targeted at the impulse purchase market.
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