Review of SE MW10087L Mini Brass Microscope with Illuminator

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List Price: $8.84
Sale Price: $3.04
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I'm a biologist and I bought a couple of these to take outside and look at certain parts of plants. I didn't want to spend a lot of money on something that I'd probably end up breaking or losing. So far I'm happy with my choice. The scope is TINY. Smaller than I was expecting, but in a good way. The magnification is nowhere near 45x, probably closer to 20x. That being said, it provides all the magnification I need and the LED light is extremely useful. Durability-wise, it feels a bit flimsy (made of plastic, not metal, made in China) but it's held up to a couple weeks sharing a pocket with a camera and cellphone.

Overall, this is a small, cheap scope. It's definitely worth the money, especially if you're like me and tend to lose and break things.

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Given the very low price of this 'scope I must say I'm pleasantly surprised! The SE Mini is very, very compact yet clear and powerful. In a lot of ways this is easier to use and more effective than my 10X Belomo loupe that cost nearly ten times as much. Much of this has to do with the very powerful LED illuminators; what a great feature. Powerful light, focused on the precise spot you need it. Okay, this 'scope isn't perfectfor $5 how could it be? I would like to see a little better switch for the light. As it is it sometimes takes a bit of wiggling of the switch to get it to work. I would gladly pay $20 for an identically-designed but more robust version of the SE Mini. For the price it's hard to fault. One final comment: I have no idea how close this comes to 45x magnification. My feeling is that it's maybe half that, perhaps slightly less. It seems that the manufacturers of cheap 'scopes and loupes simply pick a number out of the air. Again, not a big issue for the price.

As an FYI I bought this 'scope to view the edge of a knife blade while sharpening. It works well for that purpose.

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Within the first day of use, the battery cap popped off. It is a screw on and it was as if the threads are too far apart and do not catch on the inner threads. I can tape it into place if I want to use the light. No idea if this was a manufacturing defect or a problem with every product.

If you don't need the light, the actual microscope part is easy to look through and gives great magnification. I can inspect individual specs of pollen on plants and clearly see their shape.

The battery cap problem drove me sufficiently nuts so that after a week I just threw it in a drawer with the batteries and use it only where there is bright light.

It is made from silver plastic. Not metal. Do not expect scientific quality.

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I made this purchase based on what all the other reviewers stated. It is true, this is a nice inexpensive little magnifier. It beats a magnifying glass hands down, as well as a magnifying loupe!!! Quite similar to looking into my stereo dissecting microscope at the lower power (20X). The little two bulb LED light that is attached to the side of the scope is a very useful feature and lights up whatever you're looking at perfectly!! You could also use a bright table light and get good results. The unit is very small and takes up no space at all and fits easily in my toolbox.

Got mine from the Amazon seller hobbytoolsupply.com. Free shipping. Ordered on a Sunday and received three days later on Wednesday!!!!!! I am a happy Amazoner!!

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These things are increadible! I'm a novise collector of old American coins and had been using a jewlers loop or a magnifying glass to see detail. I thought that I was seeing all there was to see. But when I saw this in an auction I decided that for the price I would give it a try. What A difference! It was like a whole new experience! The detail and clearity are not to be belived! My loops and magnifying glass are in a drawer somewhere now. I may never use them again. I really fell for this scope. In fact, I ordered another one!