ToupTek G3M662C Colour Camera

The ToupTek G3M662C is a colour planetary camera with Sony’s IMX662, a 1/2.8″ STARVIS 2 sensor of 2.1 megapixels with 2.9 µm pixels. It replaces the popular IMX462 cameras and has the same strong near-infrared response.

The small 1080p frame reads out at 103 frames per second, which is what planetary imaging needs: more frames to choose from when the seeing steadies. For the planets it samples well at around f/15, so an SCT or Maksutov works at its native focal ratio or close to it. Read noise falls to 0.46 e⁻ in high gain mode.

It also makes a good guide camera, and a high full well of 39 ke⁻ in low gain mode stops bright guide stars and the Moon from clipping.

Choose the window when you order. The IR-cut version is for normal colour imaging. Clear AR-coated glass lets infrared through, for use with an IR-pass filter on the planets and Moon, or your own UV/IR-cut filter.

Connections and fitting

The camera runs entirely from its USB 3.0 cable, so there’s no separate power lead to route. It fits the telescope with the 1.25″ nosepiece, which also takes 1.25″ filters, or with a C or CS adapter for lenses. An ST4 port and cable mean it can double as a guide camera. A 512 MB buffer holds frames while they transfer, so high frame rates don’t drop frames on a slower laptop.