Cheap digital microscopes - are they worth it ?

Turns out I bought this same microscope about 3-4 weeks ago for soldering small SMD devices. I was pretty surprised at how well it worked for how inexpensive it was. It's not great, but it's easily enough for soldering even 0402 SMD devices.

Glad I found you Nigel. Great review and I'll get one on order as soon as the wife's in a good mood. I'll go through the rest of your back catalogue as soon as I can and I'm looking forward to the old BBC Micro stuff. Had one of the very first Model B's and did more with that thing than any other machine since... happy days indeed. Cheers 🍺

Huh, somehow the algorithm knew I was thinking about a microscope for electronics repair and suggested your video. Thanks for going over soldering considerations, including fumes - wouldn't have though of that. Even a cheap one like this seems miles more convenient than hunching over a PCB, squinting at it with head-mounted magnifiers. That arm-mounted solution looks very handy, but it would need to really stay put and not sag - cheapness might become a problem there.

was wondering if I need one. thanks for the review

I’m amazed at the quality of the image

I got that same microscope on Amazon. It was branded 'XCLifes' but came in the very same box. I also just use the windows camera software and don't bother with the remote. I find it works well for watch repair.

No mention of make/model, no link in description, no mention of the purpose of the chrome diffuser…. There is an led light ring at the tip of the camera that you did not mention. These light can cause glare which that chrome diffuser can soften. For those that want something similar sear for 7” digital microscope on aliexpress or temu

That Amcap program is based on demo code for Microsoft Visual Studio. It's basically an old demo camera program to teach you how to code AV capture for Windows.

I don't mind those style of microscopes. The usual marketing lies bother me a bit, but as a simple scope to let me easily read components and inspect soldering I'm perfectly fine with. They're not a Mantis, but I'm also not a NASA engineer! 😊

I have a very cheap usb microscope / borescope that plugs in to the computer ... i mean its better than nothing but for doing rework having stereo vision is really nice, just got to find room on my already filled desk for a small optical one that can be had around 100 ish dollars if your keeping an eye out

God video thank you, I got a similar unit from Aliexpress £25 the stand was pants so I bought a angle poise magnifier and the bracket for a camera, that was another £18. If you go for an angle poise stand use the one that clamps to the desk as the freestanding one will fall over. Tip, stretch cling film over the lens cover. You large microscope bracket, it looks like you could fit a metal strap (0.5mm) on the outside and capture it with the bolt fixing, some epoxy bonding the strap to the broken plastic should effect a good repair. You have nothing to loose as it is broken and I suspect the other one will be doing the same sometime in the future.

Glue it scan it 3D print it

Wish you had supplied a link for the device on TEMU! I can't find anything similar for anything like the price you mentioned.

I have a full on stereo microscope on my bench out in the garage, but I bought this exact same microscope the other day for playing around in the house. I used it to recap my Mac SE/30 the other day. I absolutely have to use a microscope for SMD work, I have problems with my eyes due to diabetes.

mine came with the hdmi output on 1080p and it works great

I have a TOMLOV with a 10" screen and i can connect it to an external monitor and record to SD card. It also runs on a 18650 cell if I don't have a power outlet nearby. I payed around $170 (incl VAT) for it from AE ...

I've got something similar, although the base is nice and heavy I found it to be conductive so I put a rubber mat over it. The big down side to these is the centre stand limits what you can put on it in line with the camera lens, would have been better if it was a flexi tube at the top so you could tilt the camera.

Maybe take some measurements of that spare bracket and try some 3D printed spare for when the spare will break in the future.

I have something like this one and I love mine. The image quality is better than expected and I can run it off my cheap 50 dollar powerbank from amazon.

1:05 The box tells you everything you need to know.