Which size should I choose?

The DHS-1 for a lens or dew shield under 80 mm across, the DHS-2 from 80 to 110 mm. Those are the two options on the listing I link to.

Does it need a 12 V supply?

No. It runs on 5 V over USB, and KIWIFOTOS asks for a 2 A supply, so a power bank runs it. Its inline controller sets low, medium or high heat.

Why add a dew heater at all?

On a damp night dew settles on the front glass and the image fades. A heater strip keeps the glass a little warmer than the air, so it stays clear.

What comes in the box?

The heater strip with its controller and a cable of about 1.5 m, a storage pouch and an instruction manual.

What have I not tested on the USB dew heater strip?

I have not tested this KIWIFOTOS strip myself.

Generic dew heater: a USB strip for lenses and small scopes

Where does it rank on our leaderboard

Nine of the 46 accessories on my board, against price
Rank	Accessory	Stars for Your Buck	Recorded UK price
1	GEMINI EAF	100 out of 100	£42
2	Generic Dew Heater	93 out of 100	£9
10	MeLE MiniPC	84 out of 100	£490
18	Smartphone eyepiece mount	77 out of 100	£55
25	ZWO 7x2″ Filter Wheel	71 out of 100	£398
32	ZWO PE200	53 out of 100	£219
39	Celestron 8″ EdgeHD 0.7x Reducer	44 out of 100	£429
45	SKY ROVER 2x54 Binoculars	28 out of 100	£139
46	365 Solar Telescope Cover	5 out of 100	£73

Contents

01 Where does it rank on our leaderboard
02 Specifications and features
03 Should you buy it?
04 Questions and more about this page

In 30 seconds

Stars for Your Buck 93/100

Recommended 26 Sep 2026 Updated 26 Sep 2026

Rank: #2 of 46 accessories
Verdict: Damon's pick

Written by Damon Scotting 2 min read

Buy it if

You image with a camera lens or a small refractor up to 110 mm across
You power your rig from USB

Skip it if

Your telescope's dew shield is wider than 110 mm across
You run a 12 V dew controller and want a strip that plugs into it

The generic dew heater I link to is the KIWIFOTOS DHS strip: it wraps around a camera lens or a small telescope, runs on 5 V over USB, and comes in two sizes, for under 80 mm and for 80 to 110 mm across.

AliExpress £9 Ad

Specifications and features

Generic Dew Heater #2 of 46
Recorded UK price	£9
Type	USB heater strip for camera lenses and small telescopes
Models	KIWIFOTOS DHS-1 and DHS-2
Sizes	DHS-1 for outside diameters under 80 mm (3.15 in); DHS-2 for 80 to 110 mm (3.15 to 4.3 in)
Power	USB, 5 V DC at 2 A
Heat settings	Three: low, medium, high
Cable	About 1.5 m, rated to -40 C
Fastening	Hook-and-loop strap
In the box	The strip, a storage pouch, an instruction manual

Should you buy it?

93/100 Stars for Your Buck

Pros

Runs on 5 V over USB, so a power bank runs it
Three heat settings on an inline controller: low, medium and high
Two sizes: for under 80 mm across, and for 80 to 110 mm
A hook-and-loop strap: it wraps around the lens or the tube, nothing to thread

Cons

USB only: it does not plug into a 12 V dew controller
It asks for 2 A at 5 V, more than a standard USB 2.0 port supplies
The sizes stop at 110 mm across
The listing is written for camera lenses: measure a telescope's dew shield before you pick the size

There are only two things I can think of that you might want to still add to it just to make it absolutely perfect. Number one is a dew heater, which is very cheap.

Two alternatives

Questions and more about this page

Written by

Damon Scotting

The Telescope Man Verified

BSc (Hons) Physics with Astrophysics and Cosmology, Loughborough University PGCE / QTS, University of Nottingham

About Damon About Damon Damon Scotting is The Telescope Man. He holds a BSc (Hons) in Physics with Astrophysics and Cosmology from Loughborough University and a PGCE with QTS from the University of Nottingham, and taught physics in secondary schools before becoming an astronomy creator. He is a contributing writer for BBC Sky at Night Magazine and the author of 42 Wonders of Our Night Sky, and his photograph of the galaxy M100 with the dwarf planet Ceres was Highly Commended in the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2024 competition run by Royal Observatory Greenwich. He has appeared on the BBC's Blue Peter. More than 750,000 people follow his astronomy channels on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, and he has reviewed more than 140 telescopes, mounts, cameras, filters and accessories hands-on for this site. More about Damon · How I test · Damon's book

I review all kinds of gear: most of it I buy, some is gifted and some is loaned, and all of it is reviewed the same way. How this site is funded

Five questions, answered

Questions about the Generic Dew Heater

Recommended 26 September 2026 ·Updated 26 September 2026

I review all kinds of gear. Most of it I buy, some is gifted and some is loaned, and all of it is reviewed the same way: no company sees or approves a review before it is published. Shop links marked Ad are affiliate links: I earn a commission when you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. How this site is funded

Which size should I choose? The DHS-1 for a lens or dew shield under 80 mm across, the DHS-2 from 80 to 110 mm. Those are the two options on the listing I link to. The specifications ↓
Does it need a 12 V supply? No. It runs on 5 V over USB, and KIWIFOTOS asks for a 2 A supply, so a power bank runs it. Its inline controller sets low, medium or high heat. The specifications ↓
Why add a dew heater at all? On a damp night dew settles on the front glass and the image fades. A heater strip keeps the glass a little warmer than the air, so it stays clear. The specifications ↓
What comes in the box? The heater strip with its controller and a cable of about 1.5 m, a storage pouch and an instruction manual. The specifications ↓
What have I not tested on the USB dew heater strip? I have not tested this KIWIFOTOS strip myself.