Home > Consumer Reviews > Celestron 44104 500x Power Advanced Biological Microscope

Well I was hoping the review about Fire Hazard was wrong when I ordered this as I read all the reviews that were on at that time. However my experience was that the slides arrived damaged and the electric illuminator had the burning smell and was defintely overheating. This is the only item that I've ever actually returned to Amazon in the history of all items I've ever ordered from Amazon. Without the damaged slides and the overheating problem I think it would be a wonderful item however. Damaged Slides are easy to replace however the overheating issue is a very serious issue as it could catch on fire and cause your house to burn down or wherever you are using it. I hope to one day be able to afford one of the $500 - or above Microscopes as I'm still very interested in a microscope. But in the meantime I will choose to live without as this microscopes overheating problem is too dangerous.

I was so excited about this microscope. I read the entire manual and set the microscope up... and it almost caught my house on fire (luckily however, I could smell something burning and quickly shut it off and removed it from where i was working)... I used the electric illuminator provided with it... it gets so hot it poses a fire hazard! there are no warnings regarding this on the product or in the instruction manual... so beware of what you have the light source near or touching.

other than the fire hazard light source... it seems to be a great microscope...

We purchased this microscope for exploring freshwater pond life with our grandson. Overall, it is a good value for the price. Our only issue with the design is the eye relief - which is way too short. There is no way to view the entire field - even without glasses. So we have to "move our eye around" to see the full field. With respect to quality as received, the packaging is very good, and the shipment arrived in perfect condition. We did note many "specks" in the field of view during our initial use, though. So, we inspected the main tube, and found the inside walls were literally covered with some kind of dust. After carefully removing the objectives and the eyepiece and cleaning them AND the inside of the tube, we have "speckless" viewing. Also, the mirror was not centered below the condenser, so we disassembled it, straightend the mirror bracket, tightened the rivit end of the mirror "stud" and opened the split end of the stud slightly to snug up its fit in the micrscope frame. Finally, the electric illuminator would not fit in the microscope frame, and we needed to close up the split end in that part's stud just a bit. We've noted earlier comments about the heat generated by the illuminator, and we agree. We'll stick to using the mirror and a separate lamp. So, now all is satisfactory, and given the price, power, and features, we are O.K. Our next updgrade, though, will not be a Celestron product. Probaly either Leica or Zeiss.

This is an amazing microscope for the price. I looked at other microscopes and similar ones start at $300. It is actually just like the microscopes I used in college. Great for those who want a good microscope but don't need a fancy expensive one for more serious use. Very solid and durable. Excellent buy.

I bought this for use with my 5-year-old, and it's a great value for the money. Fine-focus knob, vernier adjustments for the stage X/Y movements, viewing-angle adjustment, sturdy construction, samples slides, and optical quality way beyond what I expected for $130-$140 (I paid $138).

My only niggling complaints have been echoed elsewhere--AC light source is too low, so don't use it on carpet or you'll run the risk of burning something. No switch on AC light source. Safety stop is a bit difficult to release with your fingers. I suppose you could buy a 'scope with all these features for $500, but this one is $130!

If you or your kids have any interest in microscopy, you should buy this scope.