ZWO ASI 294 MM-Pro monochrome camera

The ZWO ASI 294 MM-PRO cooled camera excels in both areas, offering both top-quality deep-sky photography and capturing the celestial bodies of our solar system.

The camera uses SONY's powerful monochrome Sony IMX492 back-illuminated sensor. The BSI backlight sensor combines very low readout noise with remarkably high sensitivity. Its QE is more than 90%, a value that previous types of sensors have not yet been able to achieve. ZWO ASI 294 MM-PRO cooled camera can be used in two resolution modes, Micro 4/3" sensor with 23.2 mm diagonal 46.8 megapixels, 8288 x 5644 pixels resolution, but forming 2x2 pixel arrays (binning) 11.7 megapixels to 4144 x 2822 pixels resolution, so instead of the original 2.32 micron pixels, we get 4.63 micron pixels with higher light gathering capability. The benefits of the former can be experienced when shooting planetary imagery, where extremely high resolution dominates, while the larger and more sensitive pixel sizes prove more useful for deep-sky photography, as if you had two separate cameras for two separate purposes in a single device. In locked, binned mode at 11.7-megapixel resolution, the camera operates at 14 bits, and in unlocked mode at 46.8-megapixel resolution, it reads out 12 bits/pixel.

The ZWO ASI 294 MM-PRO cooled cameras feature a high-performance Peltier Cooler that reduces sensor temperature by up to 35°C compared to ambient temperatures, further reducing the already very low noise level even at high sensitivity, thus reducing exposure times to 30 seconds with excellent quality. When taking images of the moon and planets, the high sensitivity and high resolution allow many fine details to be captured even at shorter focal lengths. At its highest resolution, the 16.3 fps (frames per second) frame rate is outstanding!

With the sensor being sensitive to the full infrared range, a separate IR-block filter is required when needed. A fast enough USB 3.0 port is available for downloading data, but the device also handles USB 2.0 at slower speeds. The camera comes with a 256 megabyte DDR3 memory buffer which increases the reliability of data transfer between computers and reduces amp-glow, especially when using USB 2.0.

Although the ZWO ASI 294 MM-PRO cooled camera has a T2 thread, it can be inserted into any 1.25" and 2" rack mount using the adapters included in the package. While its predecessors had a risk of the front of the camera unscrewing, this camera has screws to secure the front plate.

The back of the ZWO ASI 294 MM-PRO cooled camera features two USB 2.0 and one USB 3.0 connectors, as well as a DC power connector. The camera is cooled from a 12V supply voltage, with a minimum of 3A recommended by the manufacturer, and correct polarity is essential!

There are several free downloadable image capture software applications available on the internet, SharpCap and FireCapture are highly recommended.