ZWO

ZWO ASI676MC

Name: ZWO ASI676MC
Brand: ZWO

A fast, square-sensor colour camera for planets, the Moon and EAA, high resolution and a large square field in a small, affordable, uncooled body.

84/ 100

Polaris Score

#2 of 4 planetary & all-sky cameras

See the breakdown ↓

Camera Type

PlanetaryLunar / EAA

A high-frame-rate planetary and lunar camera whose large square sensor also makes it a capable EAA and solar imager.

Type

Colour (planetary / EAA)

Cooling

Uncooled

Pixel Size

2.0µm

Read noise

0.8 e⁻

Resolution

12.6 MP · 3552×3552

Sensor

Sony IMX676 · 1/1.6"

From$399

Lowest in 90 days

Price tracked by PolarisObserved 55 timesTracking since Aug 2026

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Where to buy

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The frame it captures

Same camera. Different telescope. A completely different photograph.

A camera has no field of view of its own, the telescope in front of it decides everything. Pick a target and watch the same 12.6-megapixel frame become three different images.

RedCat 51

250 mm · f/4.9

FOV 1.6° × 1.6°

Overflows frame

Overflows the frame, the outer arms extend past the edges.

Esprit 100ED

550 mm · f/5.5

FOV 0.74° × 0.74°

Overflows frame

Only the bright core fits; the spiral arms spill off the sensor.

EdgeHD 8

2032 mm · f/10

FOV 0.20° × 0.20°

Overflows frame

Only the bright core fits; the spiral arms spill off the sensor.

Explore any telescope in the Simulator →

01What it's good at

What it's best at — and the trade-offs.

High frame rates capture thousands of frames for lucky imaging on the planets

Best at

✓High frame rates capture thousands of frames for lucky imaging on the planets

✓Tiny 2-micron pixels resolve fine planetary and lunar detail

✓The large square sensor frames the whole lunar disc and suits EAA

✓Small, light and inexpensive, and it doubles as a guide camera

Trade-offs

!It is uncooled, so it is not built for long deep-sky exposures

!The shallow full well limits dynamic range on bright, high-contrast targets

!Planetary results depend heavily on steady atmospheric seeing

02In plain English

The numbers, in plain English.

Sony IMX676 · 12.6MP · 2.0µm · Uncooled

Pixel sizeVery fine

2.0 µm

Small pixels resolve fine planetary detail when the focal length and the seeing support them. On a 2000 mm SCT with a Barlow this samples Jupiter and Mars well; on a short refractor it wastes resolution.

Sensor shapeSquare

Square, 1/1.6 inch

A square field frames a target identically at any camera rotation, which removes a fiddly step when you are chasing a planet across the field. It also covers the whole lunar disc at moderate focal lengths.

Read noiseExcellent

About 0.8 e⁻

Planetary imaging reads the sensor thousands of times per session, so read noise accumulates in a way it does not for deep-sky work. Very low read noise is what allows very short exposures to still carry detail.

Frame rateLucky imaging

High over USB 3.0

Image quality here is set by how many frames you capture before the atmosphere changes, since only the sharpest few percent are kept. Using a region of interest around the planet raises the rate substantially.

CoolingPlanetary only

None

Exposures are measured in milliseconds, so thermal noise has no time to build and cooling would be wasted cost. That also rules this camera out for long-exposure deep-sky imaging.

03Typical targets

What it shines on.

Jupiter, The Moon, Mars

Excellent

Jupiter

Fine 2-micron pixels resolve the belts and Great Red Spot in good seeing.

Comes alive

The Moon

The large square sensor frames wide, detailed swathes of terrain.

Strong

Mars

High resolution captures surface markings and the polar cap at opposition.

04Build your imaging rig

Everything you'd actually buy.

Capture · Steady · Sharpen

Capture

The scope that forms the image

Sky-Watcher Skymax 180 Maksutov-Cassegrain

A long-focal-length planetary tube that gives high image scale.

Steady

What holds it steady

A tracking mount

Keeps the planet centred through thousands of frames.

Sharpen

Reach and detail

A Barlow or Powermate

Increases image scale to match the tiny pixels to the seeing.

05The Polaris Score

How it scores, and why.

84/100 · #2 of 4 planetary & all-sky cameras

84/ 100

ZWO ASI676MC

#2 of 4 planetary & all-sky cameras

High resolution and a versatile square field at a low price. Uncooled and shallow-welled, so it is a planetary and live-view tool by design.

Image quality

Low-light sensitivity

Ease of use

Value

Polaris weighs how well the camera does the job it was designed for — image quality, sensitivity, versatility and value — never list price or brand.

06Who it's for

An honest fit check.

Planetary and lunar imagers who want high resolution affordably

Buy it if you

✓Planetary and lunar imagers who want high resolution affordably

✓EAA observers wanting a large square field for live viewing

✓People who want one camera for planets, the Moon and the Sun in white light

Look elsewhere if you

!Deep-sky imagers, who need a cooled sensor for long exposures

!Anyone chasing faint nebulae, where a cooled colour camera wins

!Imagers who want a large APS-C field for wide targets

07The numbers

Full specifications.

18 measured and stated values

Sensor

ModelSony IMX676

TypeCMOS · 1/1.6"

Megapixels12.6

Pixel Size2.0µm

Bit depth12-bit ADC

Noise & sensitivity

Read noise0.8 e⁻

Full well9,000 e⁻

Peak QE~

Dynamic range12 stops

Cooling

CoolingUncooled

Connectivity & fit

InterfaceUSB 3.0

Weight0.12 kg

More

cooledfalse

Sensor Height7.1mm

Sensor Width7.1mm

Editor’s Take

The IMX676 is a square 12.6-megapixel sensor with tiny 2-micron pixels, a lot of resolution for lucky imaging on the planets, and a big enough field to frame the whole Moon or run EAA. Uncooled and shallow-welled, it is a fast capture tool, not a long-exposure deep-sky camera.