Dino-Eye Digital Microscope Eyepiece Camera USB 2.0 Review

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(More customer reviews)This is the "X" version of the DinoEye AM423 line of microscope eyepiece USB cameras offered by AnMo Electronics and distributed in the USA by BigC--which means it has a longer tube than the generic AM423 and a coupler that allows it to fit both 23 and 30mm oculars. My review is for the AM423 line in general as tested on the Mac OS X platform.
Dedicated microscope eyepiece USB cameras have always trailed far behind both their webcam and digicam counterparts, and the AM423 is no exception. While digicams, for example, have gone from 3 megapixels to 6, and then from 6 to 8, and then from 8 to 10 and beyond, all while reducing their price-points, consumer microscope cameras during the same time period have barely managed to bump their resolution from .3 to 1.3 megapixel, and the prices haven't budged. This is what I call the "medical markup"; anything remotely connected to the health sciences costs about an order of magnitude more than it should. What really accounts for this discrepancy is anyone's guess--but probably a lack of competition combined with a significantly smaller market and an inability to take advantage of economies of scale. One thing is certain: you can indeed compare pixels to pixels, since there's nothing special about a microscope camera or the parts therein; indeed, Instructables has entries on how to turn cheap consumer webcams into microscope cams at a fraction of the cost. So on the one hand we can wrap up any review of any dedicated microscope eyepiece USB camera by simply stating that none of them are worth the price. On the other hand, if you want such a camera and are willing to pay the price, it helps to know what to expect.
In the case of the AM423, you can expect an all-aluminum-chassis camera and, depending on the specific model, various couplers to facilitate a connection to your microscope. In my case no coupler was needed; the 23mm tube slipped right in where the ocular lens used to be. But while the hardware may be the business end of any digital camera system, and will place certain absolute limits on what you can achieve, it's the software and drivers that ultimately determine the value of the camera. The AM423 is not a UVC device and uses a "Sonix" QuickTime driver. I tested a few apps just to see. Worked: MiXcope, Skype, Bear's Hand. Didn't work: QuickTime, Photo Booth, macam, iChat. Of course you can also use the officially supported app: DinoXcope.
I tested the Mac OS X version of DinoXcope on Snow Leopard. You can download DinoXcope for free and check it out prior to buying the hardware. Kudos to BigC for allowing customers to evaluate DinoXcope prior to purchasing, even if such evaluations are limited without the AM423 itself. The software is, in general, very Mac-like and stable, with all the image and video recording features you'd expect from such a product. Where the software falls short is in the details. If all you want is to record any video then you won't be disappointed. But what if you want to use a WMV codec that you just purchased for QuickTime? Unfortunately, DinoXcope offers only 3 video saving options: animation, Photo-JPEG, and H.264. Since all are compressed lossy formats, converting from one of them to something else at a later date is not desirable, since that will involve even more compression and a further degradation in video quality. DinoXcope should at least offer one lossless codec, and ideally make use of QuickTime, which would allow a huge variety of saving options and the ability to add more from third party vendors.
Just like webcams, the AM423 is advertised as being able to capture real-time video at "up to 30 fps". And just like webcams, you'll be hard-pressed to achieve this frame-rate at the higher resolutions offered. In the case of the AM423, 15 fps is the best you will do at max resolution. The culprit is neither the hardware nor software but USB 2.0 bandwidth constraints. That is why even the best USB webcams are only 2 megapixels, while point-and-shoot digicams are typically 10 megapixels or more. In theory, you could compress the video signal prior to sending it over USB, or use two USB channels in parallel and double the bandwidth, but manufacturers are apparently content with the status quo--blaming USB 2.0--and waiting for the advent of USB 3.0.
Many DinoXcope UI elements don't do anything at all, or have no relevance to the AM423. For example, there are references to LED lights, yet the camera has no LEDs. The reason for this is that AnMo Electronics produces other microscope camera products that do have LEDs, and the same software is clearly being used to control a variety of products.
The PDF manual for DinoXcope is little more than a set of installation instructions, and doesn't explain any of the more advanced settings like gamma and exposure time or how to minimize image noise. I laughed out loud when I read the section on "Calibration Fun", by which I assume they meant "Calibration Function". BigC would do well to hire a professional technical writer and really put some effort into the docs. And the reason for this is because their support is equally disappointing. You can expect lengthy week-long delays in receiving responses if indeed you ever get a response at all.
One significant issue is that, regardless of what software you end up using, automatic exposure is always on and cannot be turned off. BigC claims this feature is in the driver and cannot be changed. For those who can't control how much light they supply to their microscopes, this feature is useful. But for those who can, automatic exposure is crippling and results in additional and unnecessary image noise. Increasing the sensitivity also results in a corresponding drop in frame-rate, so it's best to have plenty of light available for your microscope.
Another significant issue is that the max resolution with all the software I've tested appears to be 1280 x 960, despite the fact that the AM423 hardware advertises 1280 x 1024. What happened to those missing 81,920 pixels? I have yet to determine if the problem is the hardware or the driver, but BigC needs to address this issue ASAP--for legal reasons if nothing else.
To summarize, if you own a Mac and you're running OS X and you want a dedicated microscope eyepiece USB digital camera, the AM423 is not a bad choice--providing you can live with less resolution than promised, auto exposure that can't be turned off, and a general lack of support. The fact that this camera works with other software packages is perhaps its saving grace, since it allows you to circumvent the aforementioned DinoXcope issues and even use software intended for webcams.

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