Products:
Dino-Lite AM-311S ($199)
Dino-Lite AD-413T ($449)
Big C MS35B Table Top Stand ($99)
Manufacturer: Big C
Author: aliencam (Cameron Kopas)

Big C makes a series o f high end digital microscopes for hobby or professional use.  They call the standard microscope series “Dino-Lite”.  There are many models available, with different resolutions, zoom levels, and functions; some are UV or IR, and there are models available with a metal shell instead of plastic. In this review I cover two microscopes, and an adjustable stand.

Packaging

Each microscope comes packed in a small plain white cardboard box, with a graphic cover that slips over the box.  This cover looks like it is the same for each product; the model contained is marked out of a list on the back side.  Inside the microscope is the first thing you see, separated by a cardboard cover are the quick start guide, driver and software CD, and the fixed microscope stand.  The AD-413T also includes a drawstring carrying case and a box with a different front cover. The box was not wasteful, these are the perfect size to fit necessary components, and the graphic conveys all important retail information.

Products

AM-311S ($200)

(pictures above)
The AM-311S is listed as the company’s most popular item.  It is one of the cheapest options.  This one has almost all the capabilities of the more expensive ones, but does so at a lower resolution.  The maximum resolution for this microscope is 0.3 Megapixels, or 640×480.  This microscope can also take video at up to 30 frames per second, twice the framerate of the higher resolution model that I tested.   The adjustable zoom levels are 10-200x. This microscope has 8 white LEDs around the lens that can be turned on and off from the software.  This particular model does not have micro-touch, so in order to take a picture or video you have to press a key at the computer, which can be difficult if you do not have a stand, but should not be a problem otherwise.

AD-413T ($450)

This is one of the more expensive microscopes that Big C produces, it has a resolution of 1.3MP (1280×1024), magnification from 12x to 220x, and this one has “micro-touch,” which allows you to activate image or video recording directly from the microscope.  This is available in plastic (this model) or an MT model which has an aluminum shell. The AD413T also has removable “nozzles” or “front covers,” the plastic piece protruding from the bottom.  This allows you to get closer to the subject, allowing you to find more focal lengths and fit into different sized spaces.  It comes with two front covers of different lengths, but, since I was using the stand, I found that I usually did not use either of them.

After a few hours of use with the LEDs on, this unit does get a hot, so I would suggest not using it for long periods of time (turning it off for about 10 minutes cooled it down).  This may be one instance where the aluminum case model (AD-413MT) would be better to have.

With the front cover/nozzles on, there was somewhat of a glare from the lights reflecting off of the front cover itself.  The LEDs are very bright, and also can cause a glare when viewing some high reflective surfaces (like glass); this can easily be solved by the user by making a simple white light diffuser.  I did this by using pieces of white post-it notes over the LEDs, but not the lens.  This is the same technique used by some photographers over the flash instead of buying an expensive light diffuser.

The micro-touch feature is a welcome addition; it does make taking pictures much easier when you are using the microscope by hand.  However, I would have preferred a physical button to this touch interface.  The problems I had with it were that the micro-touch was difficult to find since there is no tactile feedback on the unit itself except for a sticker (that could be lost).  Sometimes I could not get it to work when I needed it, and other times I was accidentally taking pictures when I did not mean to.

Adjustable Stand (BigC Stand / MS35B) (~$100)

The adjustable stand is a necessary accessory for any of these digital microscopes.   There are options for some flexible stand microscopes, but I really think the adjustable fixed stand is the way to go.  When you are using the microscopes it is very important to have a steady stand, and the wheel allows for very fine adjustments in height.  This allows you to find the perfect focal length without adjusting the magnification.  One problem that I did have with the stand was that the microscope is held too high above where it connects to the post.  Because of this, the stand itself sometimes interferes with the microscope getting close enough to the sample.  If I were to recommend any changes to this product it would be that the microscope be fastened from the top instead of the bottom, giving more maneuverability near the sample.

Software

Unfortunately, the microscopes which I tested were only compatible with Windows.  The software is included on a CD in each package, but is also available for download on the website, where is it simple to find.  Unfortunately, the microscopes are not standard video devices, so they require these proprietary drivers, and then the proprietary software to use.

At this point, there is no Linux compatibility, but customer service assures me that they are working on a Linux client, and it should be released sometime around June 2009.  I heard that there is a way to use these without the drivers as a standard streaming video device, using a program like VLC, but I could not figure this out in either Windows or Linux.

I found this software to conflict with my streaming media server software (tversity), occasionally during heavy use on windows XP, the computer will restart itself.   This wasn’t a big problem though, it only occurred when I was both using the microscope heavily and streaming large video files at the same time.  There were no faults with the BigC  Dino-Lite software itself.

The Dino-Lite software records pictures in a .bmp format, and videos in .avi format.  If you intend to record videos though, make sure you have the available disk space.  Each 30 second video at 1280×1024, 15fps, (supposedly 88kbps) by the AD-413T takes up an astounding 1GB of space.

Photos

Below is a comparison of nearly the same picture taken by the AD-413T and the AM-311S.

Here are some pictures that I took while I was using the microscopes.  Most of these are taken using the AD-413T, you can tell for sure by clicking on the thumbnails and if the resolution is 1280×1024 it is the AD-413t, and if it is 640×480 it is from the AM-311S.

Videos

The above video is of some pool algae. While looking at the algae scraped from the side of a pool, I found this worm that eats the algae.

A video of a Pocketwatch. Seeing the live pocketwatch display (recording is much more blurry and slow than the actual live picture viewing) at CES got my attention and got me hooked on these microscopes.

Another video of a pocketwatch. This longer video is taken by the AM-311S.

This is a video of a camera (Pentax x70, that I am also reviewing right now) taking a picture.

Improper Use

Unfortunately, I was not able to take apart either of these digital microscopes, they were put together very well, and are screwless, so I did not want to risk breaking these.  I imagine it would be a fun project to try to replace the CMOS camera with another, even higher resolution one, but these 1/4″ CMOS cameras are quite expensive at high resolution and making the rest of the parts fit in the case would be difficult, if not impossible without a custom camera.  Anyway, I was able to take some normal-looking pictures at 2 meters, and very long focal lengths.

Conclusion

I really liked each of these products.  I believe that the AD-413T is worth the extra cost, because of its higher resolution images, and the ability to remove/change the front cover.  I am very impressed with the build quality of all of these products, and I feel that these would last a very long time.  For anything other than casual use, I would say that the adjustable stand is absolutely necessary, and I would seriously suggest buying the more expensive AD-413T.  As soon as the Linux client comes out, I will likely be purchasing the AD-413MT (AD-413 with the metal shell).

Tags: AD-413T, AD413T, AM-311S, AM311S, AV, Big C, Big Catch, digital, microscope, microscopes, USB