National Geographic Dual LED Kids Microscope - 50+ pc Science Kit with 10 Prepared Slides & 10 DIY Blank Slides, Biology Experiment Activity, Microscope Kit for Kids 8-12 (Amazon Exclusive)

This to me is a great scope for kids getting into science. It has both top and bottom lighting (allowing lots of objects to be viewed without putting them on slides.) The bottom lens is far away from the object (This keeps the children from cracking the lens into the object and breaking it) and it is portable (so you can take it with you outside if the kids adventure into outdoor discovery). The one suggestion I would make is to have the eyepieces lock into the scope. If someone picks this up to carry it from the back, the eye pieces can fall out easily. The included slides are a great entry into the world of the small, and the ability to throw a rock, or a leaf, or any other object under the scope to zoom in is great for kids without having to prep a slide. The brine shrimp are a wonderful way to get kids into thinking about looking at small things in greater detail, and the clear box allows them to throw insects into the box and look at them in detail. Overall, I would definitely buy this again.

Very pleased and satisfied with this microscope. It is a difficult product category to find good quality and good durability while providing an excellent learning experience. I have purchased this item several times along with separate slide kits. I give these to my nieces and nephews right after the 4th of July to give them something fun and educational to invest their free summertime in. They all have enjoyed it; some wanting to go even deeper into the science. In all cases, it gives them an advantage in their STEM classes.

This is so cool. It has great manification. Great quality, but a little higher in price.

Such a fun and educational gift. My daughter looks at all kinda of things with the slides. Easy to use and great picture quality. If you buy, buy a case to put slides and extra pieces in.

National Geographic Dual Microscope has surprisingly clear lens for an inexpensive microscope. The microscope has 10x and 25x lens that are easy to exchange. You simply pull to remove the lens and the next lens slides in. The distance between the two heads is adjustable, but this does not have a Diopter adjustment. You do have the Coarse Focus knob to adjust the distance from the specimen you're viewing. You have two different light sources, one from above your field of view and one below the stage that shines through the condenser lens (glass circular piece). The condenser lens comes out easily, so make sure to be careful when unboxing. Depending on what you are viewing the light source from below may still be too bright to see details. We found that if you take a small piece of wax paper and place under the glass piece it diffuses the light more and makes the specimen easier to see. There are many slides that come in a plastic case and most are already setup for viewing. (Examples: onion skin, fungi, earthworm cross section, etc.) The earthworm slide is one I would recommend diffusing more with the wax paper to see the individual layers of intestine and epidermis. This set also comes with a vile of Brine Shrimp eggs and a hatchery. The instructions to hatch the eggs are in the instruction manual. It's quite simple to make the saltwater using bottled water and salt without iodine. The eggs are supposed to hatch 24-48hrs later, but we were unable to see any hatch after waiting four full days. After research, there are many factors that could cause the eggs to not hatch, such as water was too cold, too many eggs, etc. You are instructed to place the hatchery in a window sill and it has been cold outside. With the shallow water for the eggs I fear the water may have gotten too cold. I will start the hatching process over very soon. The microscope is battery-operated and requires 2 AA batteries that are not included. Otherwise, this is a near complete starter kit for a teenager who is interested in science. I have a 7 and 6 yr old that enjoy looking through the microscope with our help. They love to find things when outside and bring in to get a closer look! Thanks for watching!

Excellent microscope! This is not a toy, this is a real piece of optical equipment! It is nicer than the one that my school's science lab had when I was in school. It does have a plastic housing, but that's not a problem as long as it is used with adult supervision and handled like a piece of scientific optical equipment. We had a blast looking at everything we could fit under it. The two way lighting system is perfect. Bottom light for thin sliced items on slides, top light for opaque large items on the petri dish. I did make several more plastic "petri dishes" out of the myriad plastic packages left over after Christmas. (You know, all those plastic boxes that enclose toys, cars, pok-e-mon decks, etc.) I recommend making or buying several little clear plastic trays to use so that the lighting stage doesn't get scratched or dirty. Trays are necessary to contain small critters to look at too. I can't believe we got a binocular microscope this nice for this price. I am so glad I took a chance and bought this one. It's not a scanning electron microscope, but for a child under 10, it will open up an entire new world.

We use this to look at SO much stuff. We even put hair strands to compare the thickness. We could even see dirt within our fingerprint that is not visible from the Just looking at our hands normally. It functions perfect! It was worth the money for sure. Its not heavy to move around. Its small enough to keep in a small space. All of plastic and metal and glass are durable! Battery lasts a long time.

I had originally bought a single eye-piece microscope for viewing slides only. This was intended as a gift for a 7 year old. It was impossible to focus (even for me the adult). So, we decided to give this one a try based on the reviews - we love it!! The kids have enjoyed collecting small items and viewing them under the microscope. Pros: Very easy to focus, portable Cons: My kids struggle a little with the spacing of the eye pieces. It's not a deal breaker, but they seem to think they should be able to squeeze them closer together. This hasn't prevented them from using it, but they all (ages 4, 6, 7) have mentioned it while using it. Other comments - the depth of field is somewhat limited to about 1 inch tall objects. Not a deal breaker, but if you find a big rock or want to look at your shoe tread, you will have to make sure it's in that size. I would totally buy this again and as a gift for cousins. We haven't tried making our own slides, but in all honesty, this wasnt what we planned ot us it for anyhow.

I bought this for my 7yr old grand daughter and she loved it!! Bonus is this uses the STEM learning system which is what they use in the schools now. It is easy to use and comes with pre-made slides and she is presently growing the brine shrimp included. Excellent quality! Great gift idea and I highly recommend it!

El producto superó mis expectativas, a pesar de venir el manualito en inglés, es muy didáctico y mi niña encantada con el producto, viendo todo lo que podía a través de él. Los materiales son de muy buena calidad y es sólido, no es de plástico. Las muestras deben ser manipuladas por un adulto, ya que los bordes son filosos y un niño puede cortarse o quebrarlas con una mal manejo. No se arrepentirán de la compra.

My nine year old granddaughter loved this microscope. Seeing the 'wriggly things' in pond water was very exciting -and the scales on butterfly wings.

I bought this for my sons birthday and it was a good gift but unfortunately the glass broke and I couldn’t find a replacement so it’s just a decor now lol

Excellent microscope. Be careful not to break the glass stage though. My son accidentally did that. Might be good to tape the sides in so it doesn’t slip out. Otherwise the slides and usage is excellent.