The ZWO ASI2600MC Air is a wireless smart camera that combines three elements in one compact unit: a main imaging camera, a guide camera and an astrophotography controller.
At first glance, the ASI2600MC Air looks like a standard deep-sky camera. It is barrel-shaped, mid-size and surprisingly lightweight at just 760g.
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However, a look at the front of it reveals that behind the M54 tilt plate there are two CMOS sensors: an APS-C-sized 26MP ‘main capture’ sensor and a smaller 1/1.8-inch high-sensitivity sensor above it.
Another clue to the extra capability on offer is found at the rear of the body where there’s a Wi-Fi antenna, which establishes a signal through which the ASI2600MC Air can be controlled.
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Clearing up the cables
Veteran astro imagers will be aware of the almost laughable amount of cables and connections often needed to control astrophotography setups.
This camera completely side-steps that problem, as the only cables it requires are a 12V/3A–10A DC input to power it up, and if you don’t have the newer, Wi-Fi- or Bluetooth-enabled kind of mount, then an appropriate cable to link the two together.
We used a USB-to-serial lead on our older mount, which connected and worked seamlessly, allowing full control of our mount via the included ASiair app.
Setting up the ZWO ASI2600MC Air
Because the guiding sensor uses the main telescope, there’s no need for a separate guidescope.
As a seasoned off-axis guide user, this dual-sensor arrangement proved to be far superior because there was almost nothing to set up.
In fact, the initial set-up was so uncomplicated it made the rest of our observatory cameras, guide systems and cable harnesses appear rather old-school.
In contrast to many smart telescopes, the ZWO ASI2600MC Air does provide some degree of flexibility, as you can choose your own mount.
Plus, it’s compatible with any telescope that provides a 44mm or larger image circle to cover both sensors.
This means it has far fewer limitations than a smart telescope while providing every feature necessary to make a fairly technical hobby less complicated.
With weather patterns in recent times often proving unpredictable, an opportunity to quickly set up and take advantage of clear spells is much appreciated, and this camera allowed for one of the fastest set-ups of a separate mount, telescope and camera combination that we have experienced.
In no time, we were polar aligned and ready to start our imaging session.
How the ZWO ASI2600MC Air performed
The reputation of the Sony IMX571 main imaging sensor is well-established.
It has a peak quantum efficiency (QE) of 80%, does not suffer from amp glow issues and the 16-bit ADC ensures there is plenty of dynamic range to capture the faintest objects alongside the brightest.
We chose familiar targets like the Pleiades, and the Andromeda and Triangulum galaxies, where the ZWO ASI2600MC Air faithfully captured every detail the conditions allowed.
The bright core of Andromeda was nicely controlled, alongside its intricate dust lanes.
As this is a one-shot colour camera, there’s no need for extra filters, although you can add and control a ZWO filter wheel via the ASiair app, if desired.
Once the images were captured in the camera’s built-in 256GB memory, we simply inserted a USB flash drive and transferred them, ready for separate stacking and processing as normal.
There is also the option to connect the camera directly to your PC and use it like a USB drive.
With the three-in-one camera, autoguider and complete image-capture package contained in the ASI2600MC Air, ZWO has certainly made high-quality astrophotography less daunting to newcomers.
In our opinion, even experienced astrophotographers will find that this clever device will drastically simplify their hobby while returning impressive imaging results.
Using the ASiair control app
The three-in-one ZWO ASI2600MC Air is already impressive, but combined with the wonderfully intuitive ASiair control app it sets a new benchmark for user-friendly astrophotography.
From the moment you install the app on your device and connect to the ASI2600MC Air, you feel like you have a coach offering a helping hand, through useful prompts and tips.
It perfectly complements the smart camera’s physical features as it ties everything together in an easy-to-use platform.
The app is full of features. It helps you polar align your mount and performs autoguiding from the ASI2600MC’s guide sensor via PHD2.
There is a built-in Sky Atlas and once you choose your target, the app slews your mount into position and then takes a series of exposures while plate-solving them to accurately centre the mount.
It also has a ‘Live Stacking’ feature for on-the-fly imaging and an ‘Autorun’ planning tool that allows a complete night’s image scheduling, including darks and calibration files.
With an easily navigable main screen, ZWO really has made astro-imaging simple with this capable app-enabled camera.
ZWO ASI2600MC Air best features
Main image sensor
The Sony IMX571 CMOS sensor provides an excellent imaging platform. It has a 6,248 x 4,176 array of 3.76µm pixels and is 28.3mm across the diagonal. As the beating heart of the camera, it reliably produces clean, low-noise images. Five-minute exposures taken with default gain settings provided great results.
Guide camera sensor and focuser
Although it’s essentially parfocal with the main sensor, the guide camera benefits from its own focuser, which allows for fine-tuning or even slight defocusing of guide stars. The sensor has a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080, with a high QE of 92%, capable of detecting a wide range of suitable guide stars.
Built-in Wi-Fi
The camera emits a 5GHz/2.4GHz dual-band Wi-Fi signal that allows you to connect your smartphone
or laptop to it. We found the signal to be strong and steady over a few metres’ range and the connection to be fast enough to observe key details, such as autoguiding performance, in real time.
Thermo-electric cooling (TEC)
Controlled via the app, an active cooling system is applied to the main image sensor, reducing noise. It is capable of cooling to –35°C below the ambient temperature, with the central heatsink fins helping to dissipate heat. In use, the camera maintained our selected temperature very well.
USB & 12V power hub
The ASI2600MC Air has three 12V sockets. When a 12V/3A–10A supply is connected to any of them, the other two become outlets which, along with the four USB slots, can be used to power and control accessories like a ZWO filter wheel or auto focuser, allowing shorter cables and a tidy imaging rig.
Key specs
- Price: £2,149
- Main sensor: Sony IMX571
- Resolution: 6,248 x 4,176
- Exposure range: 32ms–2,000s
- Size: 98mm x 90mm, antenna 94mm
- Compatibility: iOS, Android, Linux, ASCOM
- Connectivity: USB 2.0
- Weight: 760g
- Supplier: 365 Astronomy
- Tel: 020 33 845 187
- www.365astronomy.com
This review appeared in the February 2025 issue of BBC Sky at Night Magazine
