What is the best buy for a phase contrast microscope with the ability to take digital photographs?

Big E said:

What is the best buy for a phase contrast microscope with the ability to take digital photographs?

check with:
1. Applied Scientific Instrumentation, Inc.
1-800-706-2284
2.Nikon Instruments Inc. 800-52-nikon
3.Olympus America Inc.,800-455-8236
4.Carl Zeiss MicroImaging Inc., 800-233-2343

Olympus America Inc.,800-455-8236 is what I am using, it can do everything well you asked.

We are using exclusively Olympus scopes. They are by far the most ergonomic and flexible, at least for electrophysiology. I use a basic CCD through a $100 TV tuner/videocapture card in a PC to take basic DIC images, and they look great.

Leica DFC 320 is able to take digital photos

Would like to know if you have decided on the best buy?

I'm also interested in a similar 'scope.

jim

Big E said:

What is the best buy for a phase contrast microscope with the ability to take digital photographs?

I would suggest trying the scopes your interested in. Specifications and price don't mean anything if your stuck looking through eye pieces that bother you. I like Leica in the past and I'm not very happy with Nikon quality-IMO/YMMV.

Any new microscopes we buy these days are always Olympus. I suggest going to their web site and finding your nearest distributor.

Our newest one is an Olympus IX71.

It has a Sutter Lamda 10-2 filter wheel for fluorescence microscopy and Fura imaging, and an olympus digital camera and a CCD camera off the same side port. This scope is also suitable for electrophysiology and we intend to adapt it to be part of a TIRF set up too in the very near future.

Big E said:

What is the best buy for a phase contrast microscope with the ability to take digital photographs?

We use Zeiss Axiovert200M equipped with DIC optics and fluorescence module + CCd AxioCam. Works great, but rather expencive compared to Nikon or Olympus. Before buying it we had Olympus BX51 for trial - I didn't like the software (Analysis) and the optics is visibly worse than this from Zeiss.

The most bang for your buck with quality in line with Nikon is LW Scientific's M2 or REV III microscope.

M2- with Plan optics, koehler illumination, 4 objectives, high point eye pieces, mechanical stage, parfocal, anit-fugal coated,binocular is ideal for buisy labs retails at only $1499 **Life time Warranty on all microscopes***
* there are options to get infinity optics, 50X oil objective, trinocular, software, epi-fluorescence, polarizing kit, heated stage. Skys the limit in options


REV III- with DIN semi-plan optics, anti-fungal coated, parfocal, mechanical stage, binocular, life time warranty. Retail price is only $849

* there are options to get a 50X oil objective, high point eye pieces, phase contrast, dark field, teaching head, reticles, and stage micrometer.

Either go to lwscientific.com or call one of your distributors to get more information.