Five Digital Microscopes Under $300

As LEDs and USB connections have come down in price some quite inexpensive digital microscopes have come on the market. In addition to entertaining the kids (and adults too) and providing a closer look at collectables like coins or stamps, these microscopes can also be used for inspection, documentation, dermatology, and biology.

1. The Dino-Lite Digital USB microscope. $249.00 USD

I've used this microscope for education purposes, and it works great. Easy for kids to use, and just as much fun for adults. Just hook it up to a computer and take a look at pond water, hair, clothing, insects, flowers, and more. It takes great images at up to 200X magnifaction. More information here.  

2. LCD Celestron Digital Microscope. $299.00 USD

Looks like a normal microscope, but wait there's an LCD screen instead of the normal eye piece. No need to hook up a computer to look at digital images of slides, but you can transfer your images to a computer via USB. The microscope has up to 400X optical magnification, but bump that up to 4000X when you add in the optical zoom. More information here. 

3. Mighty scope Digital Microscope  $199.00 USD

This handheld USB microscope is almost identical to the Dino-Lite microscope. It has up to 200X magnification. More information here. 

4. USB Digital Microscope Camera System. $99.00 USD

At 130X, a little less magnification than other models, but also costs less than $100. More information here.

5. Turn your web cam into a digital microscope. 

It you like to tinker, try this out. Check out instructions here.