Levenhuk DTX 350 LCD Digital Microscope

The DTX 350 LCD is a digital microscope with a 4.3-inch colour screen, so you look at a display rather than through an eyepiece and the whole table can see at once. Magnification is 20x to 300x, which covers coins and stamps, plants and seeds, fabric and print, and inspection of small electronics. Eight LEDs light the object from above with adjustable brightness, and the stand has a 120 by 165 mm stage with a measuring scale and clips.

It runs for up to seven hours on its built-in 2500 mAh battery, or from any USB power source, and photos and video save to a microSD card (a 1 GB card is included; it takes cards up to 32 GB). The camera sensor is 0.3 megapixels, which is sharp on the built-in screen and fine for sharing, but soft if you print or enlarge; if photos matter, the DTX 500 with its 5-megapixel sensor is the one to choose. The DTX 350 can also connect to a Windows or Mac computer over USB and output to an external screen.

Focus travel is 5 to 80 mm, enough for tweezers under the lens but tight for a soldering iron. Because it lights from above, it's for solid objects; for prepared slides and pond water you want a compound microscope. Our digital microscope guide explains why a screen model beats a USB stick for most adults.

In the box are the microscope, stand, USB cable, microSD card, software CD and manual. A mains adapter isn't included; any USB phone charger powers it.