$35 lens turns any smartphone into a powerful microscope

View gallery - 14 images Six years on from the first iMicro smartphone microscope, the team has unveiled its latest: the iMicro Q3p, a fingertip-sized, lightweight device that makes microscopy inexpen

By Bronwyn Thompson

Six years on from the first iMicro smartphone microscope, the team has unveiled its latest: the iMicro Q3p, a fingertip-sized, lightweight device that makes microscopy inexpensive, portable and accessible to anyone with a camera on their phone. What's more, this new model features polarization, allowing you to see (and photograph) incredible detail in the structures of materials such as crystals and minerals – all for less than 1% of the cost of the equipment normally required to view these structures.

The iMicro Q3p is the newest, remarkable addition to the fingertip microscope family, which has so far garnered quite the fan base across the globe. And once more, the team behind the tiny wonder has made it incredibly affordable, with a crowdfunding launch price of CA$49, or about US$35.

This model takes the polarizing function of 2021's iMicro Q2p and adds it to the most advanced phone microscope in the line, the iMicro Q3, which offers impressive magnification and resolution.

At a glance

• Resolution power: Below a single micron
• Magnification power: Up to 1,200x
• Polarizing function
• Stable focus control with stand
• Very low distortion: Comparable to a desktop microscope
• Low profile and weight: ½ inch (1.3 cm) and ~1/60 oz (0.42 g)
• Easy to carry: Packed in a card-sized PP case
• Around 1% of the price of a desktop microscope
• Easy to use on any camera phone

The iMicro gadget attaches to almost any smartphone with a camera by a reusable nano-suction pad, and is designed to have a low profile so it won't add bulk to the device. As this video shows, once the lens is attached, simply set up the stand over the object being viewed, and adjust the focus as you would a traditional microscope. It has a range of magnification power, allowing everything from single fibers to leaf cells to be viewed clearly.

The stand is a new addition to the range, created after feedback from customers, and it's a valuable tool to keep things steady when viewing anything at its highest (1,200x) magnification. The whole kit – stand and lens – is stored in a card-like package, making it easy to carry around with your phone in your pocket when not in use.

Perhaps most impressive is the quality of the imaging for about the price of what a decent phone cover would set you back. Though one of its other strongest points is its portability, providing accessible microscopy to everyone with a phone. So whether in the field, on a factory floor or just exploring around the house for fun, the iMicro Q3p has endless possibilities for use.

You can read more on just how the creators have created such impressive tech on the campaign page, but essentially there's a three-stage magnification process that uses digital enhancement to reach its powerful magnification. Polarization is mimicked without the complex light filtering hardware that would normally be involved.

The kit also comes with a stage micrometer, which may not be that interesting to casual users but is an important tool for professionals and students in calculating correct scale measurements of magnified objects such as cell width. A dedicated app is also included, which allows you to adjust magnification and switch the polarization function on and off.

The iMicro Q3p already has nearly 2,000 backers and, not surprisingly, the campaign has far exceeded its fundraising goal amount. The Q3p kit is available in limited quantity at CA$49 (approximately US$35), which includes the iMicro Q3p lens, focusing stand, ruler, i-Seeing app and instruction sheet. You can also buy the entire set of iMicro lenses in the "ultimate" pack, from CA$88 (around US$63), which includes the iMicro Q3p, iMicro Q3, iMicro Q2p, iMicro Q2, iMicro C, and all the other extras listed above.

Check out the Kickstarter campaign page for more options. Bear in mind there's a bit of a wait period, as worldwide shipping begins in April 2025 (if all goes to plan).

And have a look at our gallery for some more examples of what this little gem can zoom in on and capture.

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