A Kickstarter project promises to transform your mobile phone camera into a powerful microscope, allowing up to 1000x magnification.
Going by the name DIPLE, this cardboard-like kit from Google will allow users to examine microorganisms, bacteria, particles in engine exhaust, and even our own blood cells.
Following the standardized procedure, the user will need to collect a small blood sample and place it on the prepared slides.
Diple, microscope for your Android mobile phone
However, instead of requiring a full pathology microscope, you will only need a mobile phone.
The portable kit offers three levels of magnification (35x, 75x and 150x), which can be radically increased with the digital zoom of a mobile phone.
According to the developers, achieving 1000x magnification without pixelation will require a smartphone with excellent camera specs. The setup works on both iPhone and Android smartphones. Also, you need to install an app for the microscope to work.
The developers of DIPLE claim that the kit can survive "a 10-meter drop and still function perfectly." In general, the mobile phone microscope kit is an inexpensive alternative to the standard microscope.
Interestingly, DIPLE is not the team's first project. Previously, they developed BLIPS, which was mainly a bunch of smartphone macro lenses for extreme shots. Although BLIPS was a successful project, it did not offer the macroscopic levels of DIPLE.
These days, USB microscopes are a popular alternative to inexpensive microscope kits. However, the DIPLE team claims that all other alternatives do not produce the same quality and detail in the images.
DIPLE is currently selling for $40 for the 35x zoom kit, up to $120 for all three magnification kits.
Interesting, right? Especially for schools and laboratories, both home and more advanced. Leave your comment below.