Question: My child is 11 years old and interested in science, what microscope should I buy for her / him?
Answer: Our recommendation is a stereo (dissecting) microscope because a person can find many items around the house and yard that can be viewed with magnification with out specimen preparation. Items like insects, lint, leaves etc. If one chooses a compound (medical type) microscope someone must prepare the specimen slides to view.
Question: What is the difference between a Stereo (Dissecting) Microscope and a Compound (Medical type) microscope?
Answer: A stereo microscope has lower magnification so one can see a three dimensional object in greater depth such as a fly, and the illumination usually comes from above rather than from the bottom, where as a Compound microscope has higher magnification (up to 1000x) and the specimens must be prepared in a very thin section so the illumination can show up through the item.
Question; Why wouldn't I want the most magnification that I could get?
Answer: The higher magnification the least "depth of field," that is, at lower magnification one can see a greater portion of the object such as the top of a fly's head and also further down through the eye portion.
Question: How do I know who I can trust when buying a microscope?
Answer: Questions for you to ask:
How long have they been in business (We have 18 years in this location.)
What do testimonials say about the company?
Do they have a full line of microscopes to choose from? We currently have two website - www.MicroscopesFromNightingale.com - a sampling of new and reconditioned microscopes and www.MicroscopesFromNational.com -- dedicated to educational microscopes from National Optical, San Antonio, TX. We also are preparing two more websites to showcase our Accu-Scope line and our Labomed line.
Do they have a secure checkout site - indicated by a Secure Site logo.
Have they been recommended by your friends and / or will they give you references such as our large clientele of School, Colleges and Universities as well as individuals.
Do they offer a warranty and return policy? .
