Amazing Sights In Your Own Home - The Carson MP-250 LED / UV Lighted Pocket Microscope (MicroFlip™)

The Carson MP-250 100x-250x pocket microscope was purchased for a photography project. The idea was to make beautiful microscopic digital images with this inexpensive gadget. It was only $20 at Amazon.com.
While this microscope is extremely portable, and a lot of fun, I don't think I'll be able to use it for my project. The video shows the reasoning.
However, I probably had too high of expectations, as it's more of an entry-level microscope. It's better suited for education, as the pocket microscope was featured on the Carson website as “EDUCATION ON THE GO”. It seems like the Carson MP-250 could be useful for homeschooling or extracurricular studying at home or even outside.
CHAPTERS
00:00 A Photography Project
00:49 250x / $20
01:11 Attaching To An iPhone
01:56 What's In The Box?
03:06 Microscope Illumination
03:32 🪙 The Quarter
04:23 Is It A Toy?
04:51 🥬 The Lettuce Leaf
05:57 🥭 The Mango
06:23 Alternative Lighting Technique
06:40 🍌 The Banana
06:58 Dark Circles
07:17 Banana Again
07:44 🍪 The Cookie
07:58 📦 The Box
08:25 🇺🇸 The American Flag
08:44 What Is It? 🤔
08:58 💵 The Dollar Bill
09:19 🐱 The Cat Hair
09:48 💾 The SSD
10:19 Conclusion
CREDITS
Carson MP-250 (Official Site)
carson.com/product/mp-250-led...
Carson MP-250 (Amazon.com)
www.amazon.com//dp/B015MS8O48/
Slow Shutter Cam (App)
apps.apple.com/us/app/slow-sh...
TAGS
#microscope #photics

[@3DThrills]

Nice presentation.

[@PhoticsTV]

I'm glad that you like the video. Making the video about the Carson MP-250 Microscope was fun and educational. HA HA! 🙂

[@LearnGermanOutside]

Do more experiments, I want see more other objects, Thank you 😁🔬

[@PhoticsTV]

Here are pictures of two other experiments… the lettuce leaf again, but using a slide and cover slip, and a closeup of an LCD TV… kzbin.infoUgkxT9PSFmiJ3BtKD4F2CMJjoIJa1dcFjHAd

[@jess53nz]

Have ordered one and waiting for it to arrive, what a great video! I think their official video says you can use the uv light to look at uv writing on things like bank notes

[@PhoticsTV]

I'm glad that you like the video. 🙂 It does seem suited for looking closely at currency. Most things I tried, the magnification was either too strong or not strong enough. But with the dollar bill, that seemed just right. This is something I read from a PDF on the Secret Service website about US Currency… “Each denomination has a unique thread position and glows a different color when held to ultraviolet (UV) light.”

[@f12025]

Great review 😊

[@PhoticsTV]

I'm glad that you enjoyed the review. That was a fun video to create. 🙂

[@yaykruser]

4:20 You zoomed into atomic scale by accident 😂🤣

[@PhoticsTV]

😄

[@Snowman_44]

I really want it as I'm not rich enough to buy a bigger microscope without receiving financial problems. Disappointingly though, Amazon is not available in my country so ordering it comes with many extra costs. I wish Amazon would hurry here. Thanks for the review. It's very detailed and helped me understand how it works.

[@PhoticsTV]

I'm glad that you liked the review. 🙂 Maybe one of these stores is closer to you? carson.com/customers/where-to-buy/ I saw Micro Center on that list. It reminded me of a similar problem. They often have the Raspberry Pi at a reasonable price, but they don't ship it. You have to go to the store. If I drove to the one in Brooklyn, the transportation costs could be more expensive than the Raspberry Pi… definitely more expensive than the Raspberry Pi Zero or the Raspberry Pi Pico. 😄 I saw that they have a Raspberry Pi 400 for $70. WOW! If the store was down the block, I probably would have that computer by now. But because the store is so far away, nope! 🙁

[@Snowman_44]

@@PhoticsTV Thanks for the list, but they're still very far away in another country. So guess I'll really just have to wait. Wow, that's something. Wish there was a stranger delivery service where you would just place an order and any stranger travelling from the store to near your place could just drop off the order after buying it for you. It would take some extra cost but what other choice would be there?

[@alinebsi7770]

Thanks!

[@PhoticsTV]

🙂

[@RhanzWithFigures]

Looking for a pocket microscope 🔬 Stayed for the voice

[@PhoticsTV]

😄

[@darylconnolly6877]

We use stuff like this at work when we are testing ink blotts on paper 📜

[@PhoticsTV]

This gadget does seem useful in printing. The CMYK test, shown in this video, worked out alright!

[@itsMkumar]

To use a microscope you should know slide making... Yo see good quality image, your slide should be perfect... A perfect slide gives you perfect image....so please next time try this with good slide making technic

[@PhoticsTV]

The microscope I have included “1 Starter Slide with Cover Slip”. I saw on Amazon that this microscope is also available with some premade slides - but that costs more. A lot of the things I looked at in this video just don't work with slides… like the quarter, the hard drive, or the dollar bill. I suppose the lettuce leaf and the banana peel could have been sliced up and flattened, so I tried again with the lettuce… kzbin.infoUgkxT9PSFmiJ3BtKD4F2CMJjoIJa1dcFjHAd The picture does seem a bit more clear when using the slide.

[@D-generon]

Well, I've got my hands on one recently and I was somewhat underwhelmed by its performance. You know bad optics when you see it. The lens produces quite noticeable chromatic aberrations everywhere and the picture is not sharp overall. The picture quality at 100x is not bad, but I'd guess the maximum *_useful_* magnification of this microscope is somewhere between 100-125x and there's no reason to zoom any further, since you would just get the picture closer without any additional details revealed. On the other hand, I wouldn't say that it's just a toy - you can surely apply it to inspect microchips, blades of knives, banknotes, etc.

[@PhoticsTV]

The microscope does have some usefulness, but I probably had too high of expectations for a $20 microscope. And yet, I recently reviewed a projector that was as low as $29, and I got a telescope that was $100. With all three gadgets, they seemed like a good value, but they would have been even nicer if the image was sharper.

[@jameshall7539]

you should look at pond water on the slide that came with it

[@PhoticsTV]

That's a great idea. I thought about revisiting this topic after seeing this video… kzbin.info/www/bejne/gXbaf2mjptucj5I …it's about the before and after with a LifeStraw and Pond Water. I saw that recently and then I thought - that's what I should have done! 😄 That might make a good KZbin short, but I don't have a LifeStraw… and those are not so cheap. I wouldn't want to waste it… but maybe just pond water is a good idea. It's been quite muddy in my backyard lately. 😊

[@yannisgk]

carson has a smaller microscope with a smaller magnification (of course)...that is the microscope i was thinking to buy, but i came across another one that is extremely tiny, but i don't remember its name!!!

[@PhoticsTV]

Did you mean The MicroMini™ (MM-380)? That's only 20x magnification. I originally got the MP-250 for a photography project, but the images weren't sharp enough. The one shown in the video seems best suited for looking at US currency. 😄

[@D-generon]

It's always hard to use digital autofocus with incompatible optical elements (like telescopes, rifle scopes, etc), even when your eyes have no problem focusing. So maybe it could have been better if you just stopped focusing with your phone, locked its focal length and started using the dedicated focus ring of the microscope instead?

[@PhoticsTV]

The problem with the standard iPhone camera app is that the long press lock is AE/AF… locking both the exposure and the focus. At least, I think that's why I didn't lock the focus in this video. This issue did reappear on the channel recently… kzbin.info/www/bejne/g5ymgGiNi5Wcj9U …I had a great view of Jupiter in the telescope. I could see the moons. I thought it looked amazing. But when I tried to photograph it, the results were just a blurry mess. I tried using a separate app called AstroShader, which has a focus setting. I still couldn't get a good shot.

[@D-generon]

@@PhoticsTV the problem in both cases can be generalized as the need to manually align two optical axes perfectly and guess the focal distance right. And the problem becomes exponentially more complicated when you have the autofocus on. It took me almost 200 shots and manual focus to shot a few somewhat decent pictures of Saturn with its rings through the eyepiece using 50 mm lens of my Canon RP. So it's much better to use a proper adapter or a special astrocamera for such purposes.

[@brentalan67]

Good tool for only 20 bucks. I noticed there's some sort of rainbow in many of your images, like it couldn't quite focus the light - especially where the bright LED was used. I searched and found that cheaper lenses can be victim to this. It's called a chromatic aberration. I guess that is not surprising, but I do think it interfered with the image in some of them.

[@PhoticsTV]

It's tricky to keep the iPhone centered in the clip. It slides around. So, I'd grab the microscope and try to straighten it, but then I'd touch the focusing dial, and then the object would move. Then I'd want to zoom and the process would start over. Heh, there are a lot of pieces that can move. 😄 But now I have to decide - is it worth getting a proper microscope for the photography project? Interestingly, I saw a commercial on KZbin that was very similar to what I was trying to create… kzbin.info/www/bejne/l3XYlpSolrtjbZI

[@alexvikendi1768]

Thanks for for the review. The aberratics chromations are pretty pronounced (the price is low it shows ) so I don't know what to take, would like something to inspect some blood cells

[@PhoticsTV]

The magnification only goes up to 250x. That doesn't seem like enough to get a really good view.

[@Kareem-Ahmed]

Hello. Can you see through its lens without using a smartphone? At first I thought it's an optical microscope.

[@PhoticsTV]

It is possible to look through the Carson MP-250 Microscope without a smartphone. I just tried it. I could see the printed dots on the box. But to make this video, I had to use my iPhone to record what was being magnified. The Carson MP-250 doesn't make pictures or videos. That's the job of the smartphone. The AA battery used by the Carson MP-250 is to shine a light on the subject… there's a button for LED and another for UV.

[@Kareem-Ahmed]

@@PhoticsTV Thank you for you detailed reply. 👌

[@yellow13bikebreakers]

Yellow 13 Motorcycle breakers Is going ask Santa for One of these. for Christmas 2023..

[@PhoticsTV]

It's a neat gift idea. If I was doing the Twelve Days of Christmas playlist when this video was created, the microscope would have been on the list. It's still only $20 at Amazon - nice stocking stuffer!

[@girijaghosh52]

what is a pocket mycroschop downward facing led? please answer sir

[@PhoticsTV]

I don't understand your question. 🤷🏻‍♂ There's an LED light, which faces downward. Pressing the LED button toggles the light on and off. That light is for illuminating the subject to be magnified. That's shown in the video. Without the light, the image could be very dark.

[@girijaghosh52]

what downward facing led?my mycroschop downward facing led no glowing but front facing led and uv light glow all pocket mycroschop downward facing led glow/not glow?? sir please answer my question

[@PhoticsTV]

@@girijaghosh52 The other light is a UV light. Ultra-Violet light is invisible to the human eye, but a blue light should turn on when the UV button is held down. If you're not seeing your LED light work, then perhaps your microscope is broken - or maybe it just needs a new battery.

[@karimrazak3798]

Can it be used without a phone?

[@PhoticsTV]

My Carson MP-250 is in storage, so I couldn't test this. But in the description for this video there's a link to the Amazon listing. The question… "Do I have to use my phone?" …was asked. A response from the manufacturer said, "You don't have to use your phone. The adapter clip is a separate piece that easily attaches to the eyepiece if you would like to use your phone, but it is not necessary."

[@heidimay9510]

Did he ever say what magnification he was using between 100 and 250? Confusing…

[@PhoticsTV]

The magnification I was using was between 100 and 250. 😄 It zooms. The documentation mentions a "Zoom Dial"… media.carson.com/repository/doc/MP-250-Guide_EN.pdf The exact zoom for each item, that shown in the video, was not specified. However, I think that I generally used the maximum zoom. But as mentioned in the video, the Microscope has an awkward range. I felt that the magnification was either too close or not close enough.

[@Bos_Taurus]

Uv light is for the pfone

[@PhoticsTV]

I'm not sure… but I think the UV light might have something to do with fluorescence. 🤷🏻‍♂ This video is fairly popular. So, I just started a list of “New Microscope Experiments” that I could put in a new Photics.TV video… and “Something UV” was added to the list. 😄 If I get around to making that video, figuring out a good use for that UV light… or at least makes for a pretty picture …seems like a fun experiment. 🙂

[@SC-qi1pz]

Use fixed focus.

[@PhoticsTV]

It's not just the iPhone that needs focusing. The Pocket Microscope needs focusing too!

[@SC-qi1pz]

@PhoticsTV Yeah, but I believe the reason it keeps going out of focus is because the iPhone camera is trying to refocus. The microscopes focus is fixed unless you change it manually. Correct me if I'm wrong, I was thinking of buying one. Most other videos the focus seems more stable.

[@PhoticsTV]

@@SC-qi1pz It's been a while, so I don't remember for sure, but I thought I would have locked the auto focus / auto exposure on the iPhone. There's a focus ring on the microscope. That's a big part of using the device. (It's mentioned in the User Manual/Guide.) media.carson.com/repository/doc/MP-250-Guide_EN.pdf I wasn't flattening the objects, which is why there's such a big range of focusing. I wasn't using the slide like a more experienced scientist either. Keeping the iPhone focused is important, but I remember using that Focus Ring a lot. That's part of the art in using this device.

[@PhoticsTV]

I watched the video again. It looks like Auto Focus / Auto Exposure lock was not on. You can see the iPhone working to regain focus and the exposure. That's shown by the yellow square. It seems to recover pretty quick though. Now that I think about it, I'm not sure if I'd want to disable the auto exposure. While locking the focus might work, since the camera doesn't move in relation to the microscope, the level of brightness could vary depending upon the subject. But basically, I was using the focusing dial on the Microscope a lot. My subjects weren't flat enough, so there was a lot of variance in focusing.

[@reza2kn]

Ok, this was written, and voiced by an AI, clearly, but how was it uploaded a year ago before we had really good AI?

[@PhoticsTV]

…because it’s not AI. 😉

[@alexvikendi1768]

It's text to speech... Stop calling AI everything 😂

[@PhoticsTV]

@@alexvikendi1768 It's not text-to-speech either. That's me speaking in the video.

[@joemama106]

@@PhoticsTVif that’s so then you have the cleanest voice I have ever heard

[@PhoticsTV]

​@@joemama106 Thanks! 🙂 That's my voice. At least, that's what I sounded like almost two years ago. I put a lot of work into these videos. There is editing involved. If you need more proof it's real, here's a video around a year later… kzbin.info/www/bejne/r6bYZ6Voe6aIaNE …that's not an AI trick. I had a cold. 😄