Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought this as just a hobby scope and given its price, I didn't expect either a precision instrument or one that came close to the advertised 1200x magnification. What I didn't expect was one that maxed out at just over 100x. The site description says 1x-1200x with zoom. OK, I figured 4x digital zoom so that meant something like 1x-300x optical and probably the scope was going to cheat a bit at the high end but 250x was fine by me. Heck, even if it was 200x I wouldn't be giving this a 1 star review though that clearly isn't close to 300x. When I tested out the magnification using actual measurements, on the low end I got 6x and on the high, 75x. The 6x was driven by the fact that raising the optical tube to its highest position (high=low power, low=high power), I couldn't focus it. Unlike some other similar scopes, focusing isn't done via a wheel on the optical barrel but turning a knob. When the tube was raised to its limit and I turned the focusing knob, I saw the image start to come into focus and then hit the knob limit. It wouldn't have made a huge difference, maybe getting down to 5x but this was just one more bad design flaw. At the high power end of things, I could focus OK but the magnification wasn't there. Then we get to the zoom feature. This is a digital zoom, not optical, so one could achieve the same effect by displaying the image on a larger screen; increase the screen area by 4x and you'd get a picture 4x as large. But the 4x zoom didn't come close to 4x. Again I measured the image on the 7" display and the 4x actually delivered 1.5x enlargement. When the smoke settled, what I got was 6x - 112x, as accurately as I could measure it, vs. 1x - 1200x in the site description and enclosed product documentation. That is unacceptable. That is too far off to deserve anything but a one star rating. As for any pluses... The stage and support were made of metal which surprised me. The microscope was held firmly in place in a mounting ring by two set screws and while I feared the tube would not remain at some given height, this was an unfounded fear in that there was a set screw to hold the tube and attached display at whatever distance from the target desired. The display was suitably bright but seemed washed out to me. I didn't try and take any pictures so I don't know how that function worked. I can't recommend this as performance is way to different from the site description for the manufacturer to get a pass. They should change it to reflect actual performance, say it's a hobby scope for numismatists and philatelists, and work to get the low end performance closer to 1x. People who buy it would then not be disappointed as it would not only match the product description but also would match the buyer's needs. As it is, if you purchase it expecting optical performance to be anywhere close to 1x-300x, I don't see how you won't be disappointed. Update: After posting this review, I received 3 emails asking me to delete the review in return for a $30 Amazon gift card. I responded to the third, explained why I believe the review was accurate, and said their product description should be changed to reflect their product's performance rather than me deleting my review. Since that 13 June 2021 email until today, 8 July, I've received 12 additional emails all asking me to delete my review in return for compensation. I believe what I wrote is an accurate description of the product so I won't be deleting it but do think it's worthwhile posting how aggressively they are trying to make this review disappear.