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Great analysis! My wife just bought me AndonStar USB digital microscope as a present at Buyrarest in eBay. I received it yesterday, and I´m very happy with it. I´m impressed with this product because of its design, its price-value, and the sharpness of the image you can get with this device. Thanks for your review, Dave, because it´s 100% corresponding to reality.

The first cam's software should work with the second cam. They are probably both UVC compliant devices.

The first one is not a tool for adults, it's a toy for children to look at leaves and textiles etc. I've never seen it sold promising anything more than that. That sort of thing is good for catching the kids curiosity and interest and maybe they might grow up to be scientists.. I had a plastic toy telescope when I was young, now I work with a £6k microscope :)

Btw, I love your sudden change in tone at 27:12. Your voice raises or drops an entire octave based on whether you like or dislike something.

I really like that second one!, I may have to pick one up, especially for teardown vids!

The first one isn't as bad as shown here. If you use double sided tape you can make it stick firmly on a table. And under Linux I have virtually no lag at all viewing it with guvcview. The lag under windows I can confirm, it is not usable under windows.

I got the 2MP Andonstar on Ebay for £35, very cheap. I will hook it up to a big monitor and use it for PCB inspection. Thanks for the review.

Thanks, this really helped me choose a miniscope. I got the same slim one you showed here - they go for around $40 shipped on Ebay these days.

I bought the second one for vinyl surgery, it's a pretty neat thing to keep around!

Adonstar seems to be surprisingly good for microfotos even with 2mpx sensor. What I need is make a photo of my metal detecting coins. This is way cheaper of SLR cam, light set etc..Will give it try, thanks for sharing review :)

I've noticed on ebay that they are selling the first type of camera you hate with a similar mount (poor substitute) from the second that you love.

I was about to toss one of these out when I decided to play around with it a bit. Turns out, the lens is mounted much too far from the sensor. I placed the lens assembly flush to the PCB and it worked a charm. With the focal point being much closer to the sensor now, I get much better working clearance, and can still use it close up if I need to. Also yes, the amount of light does affect the frame rate since the image processor appears to do some post processing to give consistent brightness. Better lighting means better frame rates. imgur.com/a/zzPBt

The base of the oscilloscope that falls over its own weight is hollow. I filled it with a mix of sand and wall filler. Put the original foam back, so it is invisible. Problem solved. These Chinese device often have okay functionality, but they go too extreme in cost saving. Some work on it can make them usable. The second one is certainly the nicer oscilloscope though.

Hey Dave - thought about maybe an update on this type of cheapo micro ?, I am in Osaka and picked up a $40 version which was also a wifi model for my kids to play with. Obviously not stellar but works great for the kids.

I noticed that everyone that went for the high magnification(50-500x, 50-1000x) super cheap one said it was junk. I went for the lowest magnification 20-200x and found that if you zoom it right out to 20 you get a 100mm gap under it. Fully zoomed out to 20 still shows massive magnification, and with the large gap you could easily solder with it.

handy for pulling splinters out of your fingers

I have a similar one as the first, with 200x magnification. And I don't think it's bad at all. It's not really for live soldering under it, but for later inspections it's quite sufficient. But in one point you are right. The stand is not really the best. But you can use any stand with an appropriate clip on it. And you also can use it as a webcam with the correct focus set. So I am fine with it :) In contrary, I don't really like the stand of the second one, too, because you cannot flip it to an angle, which can sometimes be useful. For the software, I think any WDI compatible software will work, acutally. I even tried Cyberlink YouCam and it works.

I bought the Andonstar and I must admit it does have a handy stand. Too bad it died after about two hours use :P It works great as a USB powered LED torch..... though a bit expensive for a tethered flashlight.

The black dot on the silver camera drove me nuts

Earlier Dave reviewed the de-soldering station and I purchased it. Now I've just ordered a USB Microscope. I've cleared a spot on my bench for a mini drill press. Just waiting for the review.... :) Thanks for the video...

I see there's a gooseneck version too. Wonder how it compares...pros/cons.

My first thought on the low framerate is I'm guessing low light - what happens if you use external high-lighting (significantly brighter than the ring light) and see if the pinhole camera gets better exposure-time performance?

I recently bought one of the first type, but it came with a much beefier stand. Even so, focusing is a long trial-and-error process because you have to touch the unit, sending it into a shaky blur for a few seconds. Also, I don't like the plastic bottom because I will surely touch it with a hot iron at some point. This one is going back.

Thanks Dave for testing this ;) It's something like this i need for my PCB check , and the help you provided here made me buy the Andostar from the ebay link you provided. Thanks again ;)

My USB microscope (pretty much the same as your first one) isn't actually too bad: surprisingly. I use it for taking micropgraphs of crystal structures for my geology hobby. For electronics though, I suspect you'd need a lot of post processing to get any use out of it... it also has very little in the way of focal distance (

Hi from Quebec, Canada!

the first one is not for soldering, its a el'cheapo microscope intended for misc. with different angles (not intended for soldering, here is the working distance to little).. You neeed to use item as they are intended and not try to hump some thirdparty item into something its not,. and then bash it for that. Just as if i recorded your voice and send it into some dame Edna show (Barry Humphries) then you would likely get bash, for not doing a very good job as sounding like Dame Edna, but after all your not trying to be Dame Edna, so who can blame you.(yousee) Same with the first USB microscope and here today they cost like 8 to 15 bucks delivered and for the price they do a great job,, getting such digital microscope result for 10bucks price is mindblowing.

that coolingtech software is made in visual studio (the icon on the second tab that shows video gives it away)

would have been a good idea to put the snapshot button on that light adjustment thing.

Hi Dave, Could you ask to try out one of those video microscopes you tried for a minute when you were at the trade show a while back? They looked excellent and I would love to see how that compares to the Mantis when using for real work. Thanks

Great review! Based on your review I bought the endoscope style with the really nice stand.

The first cheap microscope could function better if the led's would be replaced with those warm light type led's you can find in spotlights, also a transparent matte white paper would diffuse the light and stop glare.

That second one is pretty good actually, I'm impressed, I just wish these ebay microscopes would get 30fps at resolutions higher than 640x480, if they could do it at 1200 x 900 or whatever 4:9 resolution is close to that it would be great.

My eye sight isn't like it used to be, however I have a couple of good working processors that have some pins bent. Can you tell me "honestly" do you think the cheap ones are usefull for just repairing the pins on the processors?...Great video and thanks in advance :-)

Thx for the fix Dave :) I really enjoy your videos and have learned alot of things ;)

I like the second one, but I can't NOT focus on that smudge on the lens.

Dave, just wondering if you could use the 12mm diameter microscope with the first reviewed microscope software since it had better/more features ??

21:48 this is actually quite nice quality.. it's really surprising

Do you think the resolution is actually higher than 640x480? All of the ones I looked at which claimed "megapixels" looked to be scaled/interpolated at higher resolutions. I picked up a similar cheapie from dealextreme with a similar junk stand (though mine at least has metal balls in the clamp), and it's much lower lag. Using guvcview in linux, I can adjust the exposure setting, which helps since it tends to overexpose anyway, and lower settings give faster frame rates. It's "200x" as well, which seems reasonable. With a decent stand, I could easily use this one for soldering.

13:37 it's actually quite a nice little inspection microscope

26:46 very nice!

I just wanted to add for anyone who has picked up one of the "bad" ones before seeing this video; 1. Installing the driver does make a difference to performance of it. 2. CPU speed greatly affects how fast it reacts at higher resolutions. Other than that, I can only agree with the verdict. Though it is a useful tool for me to read the text on components with.

I am going to get the second video microscope. I have a hopeless one. But, I use it for picture taking

I wonder if you used built-in webcam software (like on Windows 8) if lag would be better, or if it is the camera itself.

That thumb wheel is not a zoom. It is a focus control. You zoom by moving the whole microscope back and forth.

Dave can we use this USB microscopes for some type of Do it your self Pick and place?

Great introduction, thank you. I'm done spending hundreds of dollars on fancy microscopes when very simple and low-cost (I dont mean cheap ) can do the same job.

hmm.. nice.. nice.. i use my raspberry pi and its camera connected to a monitor.i did it as a test but it turned out to be really great!plus you have great framerate and a big pc screen!

Hello Dave, how do you think Andonostar would work in a hot air soldering setup? I have some SMD to do and i d like to pair the station and the scope but im not sure if i could get a good working distance or I d have to get in with the hot air from the side which could be not so optimal.

Is that a black smudge on the second microscope? you can see it around the 15:00 mark? or is that some video artifact?

A bit one-sided there Mate ! And that lens mark and glare are delightful ! Have you been Drinking ?

Thank you, saved me from blowing 30-40 on those crap microscopes! Great video

Just for laughs did you try the good software from the cheap scope with the better scope?

Is this still a good buy in 2019? Also link needs to be updated.

what gpu are you using I would think that with a great gpu the frame rates would be better.

How do you manage to do the "hi!" exactly the same every time?

Love how you immediately recommend stuff VERY few people can afford :/

Thanks for a very informative video, that's going to be very helpful for many people :)

hi, what happens if you plug those USB microscope to an androïd tablet ? do you got an image ?

Good stuff.

amazing review, how you find the time I don't know

Nice review i know witch one i want, time for a tear down on these puppies !!!!

Question, I know this video is pretty old but is the first one you reviewed the same as a Celestron deluxe? They look pretty similar. That's the one I've been using, it's really crap, I always had the problem with it moving when I took pictures with it. Great review btw!

is andonstar have heat protection on lens? i think it well melt.

Hey man! Could you tell me the diameter of that hole @ 26:01? Even if only an approximation... Cheers!

hurry up with the transmitter teardown, we're pulling our hair out here Dave!!!

Nice review

does this come in usb 3.0 version which should get video read speeds at up to 10x faster?

Funny, mine also has a similar lens smudge!

Dave, I need help. I bought the $69 one and it didn't come with software. :( Where can I download the software to get it to work? Can you send me the link?

嗯嗯 你的视频很客观，我有一个一模一样的显微镜，就是那个黑色的。而且用在了工作上，发现支架很难用，后来干脆用手了。我只是用来拍摄一下回流焊后产生的锡珠。 白色的那个，有空会买个的。看着确实不错。 另外，你使用的那个大个的显微镜是什么型号的？需要多少美元？

Noooooo that solder bridge!

Ahaa, is Dave going to have a closer look at the LVDC?

Maybe lagging is caused by low speed of data transfer in USB port.

is it just me or does the Andonstar software icon look like the IOS 6 camera app icon?

15 people wanted you to get a Mantis!

I know this isn't a photography vlog but geez, you've used "zoom" instead of magnification and even dolly in/out. From your other optics/camera-related videos I'm pretty sure you know the difference.

how can i instal my usb microscope if i lost the cd and i dont know wich type is my microscope, i just have it but i canot find the cd....:(

What an utter pile of junk that first one is. That thing would only have to topple over the once with me and I will have been uncontrollably compelled to stamp on it. How you got by without stamping on it is a miracle!

Where do i find pilot for window 7?

How do you look exactly the same in this video from 9 years ago compared to one of your videos from 2023!? Are you using electronics to keep yourself looking fresh 🙂

That is a great T shirt ...

@pauljs75. I did not have sand box on the freeware version. Mine crashed my system almost one year to the day after installing it. A call to their techs at "level 1" was unproductive after they did a few minimal attempts using standard reboot from earlier restore points etc. Then I had to bump up to "level 2" which cost me $119. I paid it since I really had no choice. They ran all kinds of third party software from various other sites that I would normally NEVER use on my system, such as "registry cleaners" etc. They fixed a couple of things but added others. I had to go through my credt card company to get the charge removed from my bill. It was a nightmare that took almost three months to resolve. In the end I won and got a refund from them. Avast is not an American company, they're Czech. My experience with them was very bad. It would be extremely easy to write a few lines of code that would randomly bring a few computers down here and there around the world on a random basis such that it would be very hard to prove anything. $120 a pop ten or twenty times a week, perhaps more, makes for a fairly lucrative business enterprise. As a former computer tech on Univac mainframes I'm completely convinced this has happened on two electronic devices I had. One was an indoor/outdoor thermometer with atomic clock time keeping. After about 18 months the radio stopped receiving the signal. Of course it could have been a valid part failure. But then again it could be code. Almost everything we have is controlled by PICs, ASICs and FPGAs. All "failure" code loops could easily be self destructive after activation.

Dave where's the analog stuff? :D

Yeah, I saw the first one on ebay and I thought I should stay well away from it. I did end up getting a digital endoscope in the end, it came with smd led lights etc and works pretty well, although the software that came with it is awful. But I only paid £15 including shipping. So I can't complain. It's also waterproof so I could put it in the bottom of a glass and watch myself drink beer, lol joking.

I bought the piece of garbage. I just wanted to check out shit around my house under a microscope and post it on RU-vid. It's fine for that. Wouldn't rely on it for important stuff.

woaaa you can solder with a virtual reality

Awww cr*p! I did not know these things even existed and after watching the video I am now certain I need one! :-O

Thanks for this great review! Is there also a fullscreen mode and digital zoom in software for the silver camera ? If not, could someone test if my SW works on that camera? ( instructables.com/id/Convert-overhead-projector-to-overheaddocument-cam/step4/Assemble-back-the-head-assembly-Download-software/ )

I really wanted to buy the seccond one but it isn't a "cheap USB Microscope" anymore!

I'm wondering why they do not simply add some kind of milky plastic cover for the LED rings. Would make the light more ambient, and you wouldn't see the single LEDs on reflective surfaces.

One can figure out the password on your pc from thise keys....

you just got a new subscriber :)

How can you take measurements with the second one ?

when I saw the video I thought it was cheap usb microwawes o-o

Hack it by putting double sided tape

What do you mean 'wun hun lo'?

What crap is that. The second one at 640x480 with whatever mag it has shows me as much detail as i can see with my own eyeballs.

the first is a ripoff from the DINOLITE version. the real ones are pro stuf and work much beter and have beter stands

lol, fun video, you really know how to entertain nerds like us right XD hahaha