If your looking for a scope for the same reason most of us here use it for I would highly recommend the Digital Blue computer microscope. This microscope may be considered a toy by many but trust me, it's a pretty damn good one and it has several advantages over a more professional, higher priced type. I learned my lesson the hard way by starting off using the digital blue with 10x - 200x magnification that I purchased for less than $100.00 and then later purchasing a digital, biological, trinocular scope with 40x to 1600x magnificatione for $1200.00, I would take the digital blue any day, here's why.
First of all the image sent to the computer from the digital blue is outstanding, hands down it's impressive, it's much better than the one I get from digital camera that comes with my $1200.00 one. Which brings up my next point, the digital blue is designed around the digital camera, the camera is integral with the scope, the camera IS the scope basically, not true with the higher priced ones, until you get into the way way higher priced units that are basically way out of much of our reaches, the camera on the professional units are accessories that take the place of the eyepiece,I'm not at all impressed with mine.
Lighting
The lighting is one of the main issues to consider here,the digital blue will light from either above or below, your traditional scopes light from below which is fine if all your looking at are tiny specimens or objects but with something like a piece of skin for instance lighting from above provides a totally different picture, much more true in color and clarity. With the digital blue I probably use lighting from below maybe 20% of the time.
Magnification
Here's the basic facts, your not going to get decent magnifications over 1000x with a light microscope, period, and to get that your going to be using an oil medium where you place a drop of oil between the slide and the objective, which requires careful preparation and very small specimens under a properly applied cover slip.
You shouldn't expect to use magnifications over about 400x unless you are experienced, have a good, typically high priced scope, and are in a laboratory type environment where you have the tools and accessories you need to deal with higher magnifications and the small size of the specimens. For practicality, 200x that the digital blue offers is really all you need as an amauteur doing what we do here.
If your wanting to see bacteria there is more involved than just magnification, staining is typically required and even at 1000x you might be able to see them but wouldn't get much detail.
The Stage
The stage is what the slide is place on for observation and unfortunately the digital blue's stage SUCKS, it's really the only con I have with it, but of all things considered that's a minor detail. The stage on my expensive scope is badass because of it's instrument like design and the ability to move the slide mechanically with precision. The digital blue provides no mechanical movement laterally so the slide has to be moved manually which starts to become a major issue at about 100x and the vertical movement, which provides the focus, is constructed out of plastic and fine focus detail is pretty much out of the question, plus it strips out easily.
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December 10th, 2011, 11:00 PM
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