The refractor telescopes are the earliest type of telescopes. This type of telescope was invented during the early years of the 17th century and different versions were developed by famous scientists. Refractor telescopes, like its counterpart, reflector telescopes use an objective to gather light. The reflector telescopes use mirror in gathering light while the refractor telescopes gathers light through lenses. The name refractor refers to the process of the lenses as it bends or refracts the light as it passes through the lenses. By bending the light, the objective lens creates parallel lights only to join when they hit the secondary lens which could be used by the naked eye. This simple operation has been used not only in telescopes for the sky but also in general telescopes for different use.

The advantage of this type of telescope is its durable design compared to reflecting telescopes. Refractor lenses just need to stay in one place and could be handled easy because of its straightforward design. Virtually no maintenance is needed in this type of telescope because its lenses are usually encapsulated. This type of telescope also promises better view because of the removal of distractions which could affect the general perception of the lens.