Bresser Biorit ICD CS 10-20x Stereo Microscope

The Biorit ICD CS is a stereo microscope on a boom arm rather than a fixed stand, for soldering surface-mount components, inspecting circuit boards and other close handwork where a normal stereo microscope's stage gets in the way. The head sits about 230 mm above the bench, so there's room for both hands, an iron and the board underneath, and the arm swings through 210 mm, so the microscope comes to the work instead of the work going to the microscope.

Magnification is 10x or 20x, and you change it by swapping the eyepiece pair, WF10x for WF20x; both pairs are included with one set of rubber eyecups. Those are the two settings you'd use for placing and soldering a component, where a wide view counts for more than high power. Objects can be up to 70 mm tall. Focus is coarse only and there's no dioptre adjustment.

Light comes from a dimmable LED above the work, run from the mains with the power cable in the box, and there's no light from below because there's no stage to shine through; this is a microscope for opaque things. The stand is all metal and weighs 6.4 kg, which is what keeps a boom arm steady when it's swung out, and it measures 51 cm high by 43 cm long.

A dust cover completes the box. It's a bench instrument for a workshop or a repair desk rather than a nature table; our microscopes for electronics page compares it with the USB and screen models, and the Analyth STR 10-40x below it is the one for insects and minerals on a conventional stand with light from beneath. The Biorit ICD CS 5-20x above adds a 0.5x objective for a wider view. Our guide to microscope types explains stereo against compound.