Andonstar AD409 Pro Digital Microscope - HONEST Review + Teardown

[@TallynTech]

The inverted color option is great for finding broken traces in PCB's

[@BuyitFixit]

Interesting, I'll have to try that. Thanks for the tip 👍

[@twotone3070]

"Who need instruction... " Top man! Some traditions should never be deserted.

[@BuyitFixit]

@@twotone3070 😂😂😂👍

[@MrEwool]

Nice and honest review and a great little sneak peak into the inner workings of the microscope. So when you aren't fixing everything around the house you help repair other people's things, that's really fantastic, keep up the good work and looking forward to seeing more 😊

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Morten 👍

[@Graham_Wideman]

Your teardown is a great service! It answers my question as to whether the screen portion of the product is easily separable from the camera part. That would facilitate putting the screen in a convenient consistent location for viewing, instead of it being at neck-straining height when using a high camera position. It looks like one could replace that ribbon flex cable for the LCD screen with a longer one, but it wouldn't be very robust, and might not be readily available. I had hoped the interconnect was HDMI, which would make separation easy.

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks 👍I'm glad it was of use to you 🙂

[@German_byte]

Thanks for the comprehensive review. Seriously considering buying one now 😊

[@BuyitFixit]

Glad it was helpful! They are ok, I do use it at our local repair cafe, but there are a few disadvantages, like the internal screen shutting off when connected to an external monitor which isn't so great.

[@luckywetland]

Nice review, Mick (I know it's a bit late to comment lol) btw this word you saw at 15:51 東芝 is Japanese for TOSHIBA

[@BuyitFixit]

Cheers mate, I didn't know that! Thanks for sharing 👍

[@luckywetland]

@ No problem 😊

[@TELsBENCH]

The comment you made in your video about not liking the fact that the Microscope Screen goes blank is something I totally relate to. 👍 In fact some of the ads on some seller sites show video of synchronised pair where it is shown both on the Microscope screen and on the remote monitor. But, as far as I am aware, this is almost never the case and is a huge problem when you are trying to record a running commentary of a board repair, and as well and this means your cannot put your mic and HDMI feed into something like EasyRec or OBS Studio AND also work on the microscope screen, and need to resort to recording the audio separately and having to sync up to the video recorded on the Micro-SD card. PS Nice review👍

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks 👍 as per thumbnail I did try to be as honest as possible. It probably wouldn't be a problem for me, as when I record on my trinocular setup I just record to SD and sync it up in the editing software anyway. Sometimes it can be a bit of a pain, but it's usually not too bad as I can tell when I'm either testing something as I can hear the meter beep and see the probes hit the spot etc. I do actually use the Adonstar when I go to our local repair cafe, as it's not really practical dragging my big microscope, boom arm and 42" TV along 😂😂😂

[@whalan4509]

Hay Mike I reckon the Circuit board maybe just a dash cam board revamped as that would be the sound Jack for a microphone and the battery spot on the board would be for when it’s powered off to activate if bumped or run unplugged for a bit with no ignition power? of course the camera and housing would need to be different What do you think? Cheers and thanks

[@BuyitFixit]

Yes I think it is indeed based on a dashcam. I think the socket is for an endoscope attachment that some models have. I had thought about connecting a serial adapter to the tx and rx I found inside but haven't got round to that yet 👍

[@astrogerard]

@@BuyitFixit no, its for the endoscope

[@De5peratDan]

Just to let you know. The 3.5mm jack connector is for the optional endoscope

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks, yes I figured it out as I saw a few models with the endoscope attachment.

[@clivehaynes2183]

I have a similar type of unit but has a rechargeable battery which makes it even more portable. I assume your unit could be modified as the board does have the battery connections.

[@BuyitFixit]

Yes, I did notice that it had battery connections. I'm not sure if it needs any more supporting hardware (chips that are perhaps not fitted).

[@RockPaperRedshell]

For someone who doesn't do this kind of soldering too much, would you recommend something like this or a magnifying desklamp?

[@BuyitFixit]

I used to have one of those illuminated magnifier things but I didn't really rate it. I suppose it depends on what you are soldering such as smd resistors or through hole components. My eyes aren't as good as they used to be and electronics are getting smaller and smaller so I petty much have to use the microscope now.

[@cajuncoinhunter]

Your the 3rd person I know that has one , Buddy at The Radio Shop also mentioned that the screen goes away when hooked up to a separate monitor........ That's nice of you to go and do a repair cafe' and repair different items .....m Take care Mon Ami ....

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Cajun 👍

[@exodous02]

The audio jack is probably because the board is used as a dashcam, although do dashcams have audio jacks? The board might be used for a lot of things.

[@BuyitFixit]

I had just been thinking about the board and I saw another KZbinr doing a review and his had an endoscope attached, so because the chip is used in dashcams it may have the ability for front and back, the IC that the jack seems to go to looked like audio, but a search on the number came up with references to 1080p so possibly it's a video encoder.

[@astrogerard]

@@BuyitFixit No, this jack is for the endoscope camera.

[@BuyitFixit]

Yes, I thought that was what it could be for. I did mention it in the post above 🙂

[@astrogerard]

@@BuyitFixit I have the endo camera but still have to examine the pinout so that also other (composite?) camera's can be used.

[@BuyitFixit]

@@astrogerard Yes I would suspect it will probably be composite. There is debug interface inside which might be good to play with. I plan to have a mess with it at some point.

[@wisher21uk]

Brilliant and honest review, looks good for what it is, maybe a software update will sort issues out, that’s why they give them away to sort issues out. Keep up the good work 😊

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Cucumber man 👍

[@Temmie321]

How do you get pictures to iPhone or Windows? I tried using a card reader, but it won't recognise the card in windows. I also tried using the dashcam APP, which is supposed to save the photos the the camera roll, but it doesen't.

[@BuyitFixit]

I just used a card reader. I know some older readers don't work depending on the size of the memory card if it's too big, but I didn't have any problems.

[@trevorc6793]

Great review, what happens if you 'tilt' the camera back? Does it help with depth perception when soldering or does it make things look terrible? Thank you

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Trevor. I'm not too sure on that. I've always found the picture on it to be good. I've used it quite a few times at the repair cafe and it's been great. I've mainly use my other microscope at home as it's all set up and I can swing it out of the way when not needed.

[@exodous02]

You could attach it to a capture card for videos with that HDMI out. I wonder if it would just be a passthrough, like the monitor would work for you but the HDMI would go to your capture card. EDIT: Oh man, I guess not. Not a 16x9 image either.

[@BuyitFixit]

The inbuilt screen disables with HDMI connected, also I didn't overly rate the quality of the HDMI output. I've got a better microscope anyway so it's not an issue 😂😂😂

[@de-bodgery]

Did you ever find out what that headphone jack is for?

[@BuyitFixit]

Yes it's for an endoscope type camera that plugs into it.

[@de-bodgery]

@@BuyitFixit Oh cool! Probably whatever endoscope works for any one Andonstar works for all the "brands" these things are sold as. Elikliv, Joyalens, Linkmicro, Tomlov, Andonstar all come from the exact same factory and in many of them have the exact same logic board. It seems that all that differs from what I've seen so far is the amount of RAM they might use (2mb or 4mb) and what camera module is used. I'm betting that any canera that uses the same interface from any source will work in place of the main one. Probably that headphone jack is 4 wire and it's really USB. There is mounting bracket and table differences, but that's about it that matters.

[@geraldmcfadden2270]

The inversion of colours probably are for finding traces on multicoloured boards or for people with colourblindness? Looks sharp if your not using it send it over!! 😅

[@BuyitFixit]

😂😂😂I've not used the inversion but someone else mentioned the same. I usually take it with me to our local repair cafe where I've used it a few times now as my trinocular setup and 42" TV are not very convenient to take 🙂👍

[@Boogie_the_cat]

I thought: hey ive been looking for a good digital microscope. then i saw the price. no offense to Adonstar, but for that price, you can get a digital microscope that is more objective lens based, instead of digital zoom based. I understand they're following the industry standard of calling a digital "magnifying glass" a digital "microscope" like all the other companies do... but for that price, i'd go for something that focused (no pun intended) on zooming with some quality glass lenses. that wouldn't really work in this form factor, and that doesn't seem to be the market they're going for anyways.... its just disappointing because i don't know how many people who are going to be using such a pricey microscope for soldering.

[@BuyitFixit]

Yes I thought for what you get it's a little pricey too! That's one reason why I suggest the cheaper model might be an option for some.

[@martijn4740]

but why was there a wireless option on there

[@BuyitFixit]

To connect to a phone to record and view on the phone for some reason. I think the hardware is based on a dash cam

[@martijn4740]

@@BuyitFixit ohh yes why reinvent the wheel if they can get it ready built on the chinese electronics market

[@Hellmut195612]

Is there any place where I can buy addons for my Andonstar 409 Pro-ES. I would like a larger base like the one in the Andonstar 409 Max. Also things like the tool bar?

[@BuyitFixit]

Sorry I'm not sure on that one. Might be worth dropping Adonstar an email and asking?

[@Hellmut195612]

@@BuyitFixit Thx nevertheless

[@GregOnSummit]

The Chinese symbols say Toshiba 👍 Also, the other colors make it easier to read letters sometimes on backgrounds close to the same color

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks, I didn't know what the symbols meant at the time, it was only recently that someone else commented similar 👍

[@lifeisfuneh]

KUDOS to you for the NO BS review ! :)

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks, yes I'm honest and call a spade a spade 👍

[@lucymc0191]

hello great video well explained ... are you from the north east ? and where is the repair cafe ?

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Joe👍I used to be from the Northeast but live in Cumbria now. There's about 8 repair cafes in Cumbria, I'd guess there will be some in the Northeast too.

[@mikethedigitaldoctorjarvis]

I'd love one of them ! 😊

[@watchtime.halidh]

which is good for luxury watches checking ?

[@BuyitFixit]

Sorry I'm not too sure, I haven't worked on any watches.

[@trollenz]

The sepia option is useful if you're looking to make artistic pictures of PCBs 🤣

[@BuyitFixit]

😂😂😂

[@frozerinosrepairs]

Thank you for sharing 😊😊

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks for the support 👍

[@geraldmcfadden2270]

Has the pro not got the endoscope maybe this model isn’t the pro?

[@BuyitFixit]

It's still the pro but the endoscope is optional.

[@de-bodgery]

Crap HDMI cable. Notice how thin it is. To get it that thin, you eliminate shielding and use very thin wires.

[@BuyitFixit]

True, although the PSVR headset has quite thin cables and passes a whole lot more signals.

[@599miata]

👍👍

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Jacques 👍

[@stephenb4411]

Adamant IT just did a review of this product, KZbinr's will say anything for a freebie. 😏😏

[@BuyitFixit]

Not me. I already had it, and I tell it how it is. It's not like if I gave it an awful review they are going to jump on a plane and ask for it back 😂😂😂 and I already had a better microscope anyway.

[@kennybacchus1488]

Andonstar. AD409 pro. Digital. Microscope. Honest. Review

[@serdarxxx1073]

I have same one, it's perfect for me 😃👌👍

[@BuyitFixit]

Nice, I use it at the local repair cafe. I was thinking of seeing if it's possible to hack it and run doom or something on it 😂😂😂