Wi-Fi Microscopes

[rummels]

I am trying to find a digital microscope that I can use with my iPad.  I have a PC, but it’s a desktop, and its current location won’t easily accommodate having my WE130 next to it.

So I am hoping to find a microscope that will either connect to my iPad via Wi-Fi, or that has the software needed to allow it to work on the iPad via an OTG adapter (the OTG adaptor allows a USB connection to an iPad).

Any information regarding this type of microscope would be greatly appreciated, as would any suggestions on how I could somehow use a USB microscope attached to my PC when my Wicked Edge is on another table.

Thanks!

rummels

• This topic was modified 4 years, 5 months ago by rummels.

[Marc H]

rummels, most of the digital microscopes that are iOS compatible are wireless connected.  Some have a wireless receiver or adapter box that plugs into the USB port of the iOS device.  Other scopes connect to your home wireless network then you use them through your home network wireless connection. Most/all of these iOS compatible scopes I’ve seen do not connect directly, wire-lessly, to the iOS pad, itself.

The reviews or reports shared by WE forum members who bought and used these wireless scopes were fair to poor, at best.

Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)

1 user thanked author for this post.

Brewbear

[Dwight Glass]

I got a lap top to go with my microscope, but I would have used a tablet if I could figure out how to do it.

good luck “Rummels”

[rummels]

Thanks for the good feedback.

Given my options, I have decided to take a different approach.  Some friends gave me a 22″ HD LCD TV.  When they got rid of cable TV, they had no use for it as it is a “dumb” TV.  So I am going to try the Celestron MicroDirect 1080p HD handheld microscope.  It has a HDMI connection to the TV with a 3.5MP high speed sensor and 10x to 220x power magnification.  It’s a little more expensive than some of digital microscopes out there, but still much cheaper than a laptop (got it new for half the price listed on Celestron’s website).

I’ll let you know how it works.

rummels

• This reply was modified 4 years, 5 months ago by rummels.

3 users thanked author for this post.

Rodger, Bruce, Dwight Glass

[Bruce]

I’ve also been starting to think about getting a microscope.   I also know nothing about them, so I’m not about to blow a significant amount of $$ before I even know which way is up.   I look forward to hearing about how the Celestron MicroDirect 1080p HD works out for you.   Good luck with it!

[rummels]

The Celestron MicroDirect 1080p HD arrived on Monday and since then I’ve used it while sharpening several knives.

The microscope is 6″ long, which is probably larger than most of the microscopes that have been discussed on this forum in the past.  And it has two cables that connect the end of the microscope to the display (one is a USB connection and the other is an HDMI connection) instead of the single cable many other microscopes require.  But the microscope is very light, and I found it very easy to use.

When using the microscope, I simply placed the end of the microscope on the blade of the knife I was sharpening.  I’d attached a couple of short pieces of plastic rod to the sides of the microscope and positioned these pieces of rod so that, when they were placed against the edge of the knife’s blade, the microscope is immediately lined up with the with the apex of the knife.  And I found that, once I focused the microscope, I could use the microscope with the rest of the knives I was sharpening with little or no adjustment to the focus.

Note that, when the end of the microscope is placed against the side of the blade, there are depth of field limitations because the microscope’s lens is so close to the knife’s blade.  Consequently, when used in this way the microscope will only focus at 50x and 200x magnification.  But that definitely wasn’t a problem given how well the microscope worked at 200x magnification.

The microscope also has a slot for a MicroSD card.  This allows you to press a button on the side of the microscope and photograph the image that the microscope is showing on the display.  To transfer a picture to your PC, you take you simply have to plug the UBS cable into the PC.

Below is one of the images that I took while sharpening on of my knives

rummels

• This reply was modified 4 years, 5 months ago by rummels.
• This reply was modified 4 years, 5 months ago by rummels.
• This reply was modified 4 years, 5 months ago by rummels.

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Dwight Glass, 000Robert

[000Robert]

That’s great! I am glad that you have a decent microscope. That should help you out a lot.

[rummels]

000Robert

It has.  I was particularly helpful as I was trying various approaches to burr/wire-edge removal.  It allowed me to see what the impact of each approach was on the edge and the scratch pattern.

rummels

• This reply was modified 4 years, 5 months ago by rummels.

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