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CONECA (pronounced: CŌ´NECA) is a national numismatic organization devoted to the education of error and variety coin collectors. CONECA focuses on many error and variety specialties, including doubled dies, Repunched mintmarks, multiple errors, clips, double strikes, off-metals and off-centers—just to name a few. In addition to its website, CONECA publishes an educational journal, The Errorscope, which is printed and mailed to members bimonthly. CONECA offers a lending library, examination, listing and attribution services; it holds annual meetings at major conventions (referred to as Errorama) around the country.

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Intel Matel qx3 for pictures ?

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  • Intel Matel qx3 for pictures ?

    Hi, I'm new to the forum, and its great to read all the different topics. my question is this, has any one tried the Intel Matel qx3 computer microscope? you just plug it in your usb port and the item your viewing is on your monitor. 10x, 20x, 200x, power, with focus, it has a camera for still pictures . It can be used with the stand or hand held. It has a top light, but I was told I would probably need more light. They can be bought on e-bay used for about $40.00. I have not purchased one yet and was reading the other ways to take pictures of coins in this forum and thought I would get some feed-back on the Intel Matel qx3, if any one has used it. thank you very much, and I look forward to the informative articles , bigbeardriver.....

  • #2
    Hi bigbeardriver and welcome to the CONECA forum.

    I do not have any experiences with the Intel Mattel qx3, however, I can comment on the magnification range. While 10X and 20X are great, the 200X is something that you would not use while doing any type of work in numismatics. A more acceptable range of magnification would be 7.5X to 35X, variable zoom.

    I have seen these plug-in scopes (mostly at coin shows) and while they can speed up searching through a stack of coins, when it comes to picture taking, they just do not have the options afford by using a camera.

    I guess what it all boils down to is what your primary use will be; searching for varieties or photographing them.

    BJ Neff
    Member of: ANA, CCC, CONECA, Fly-in-club, FUN, NLG & T.E.V.E.C.

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    • #3
      Hi, I would like to thank you for your response. I'm looking for varieties. I just want to see the coin better than using my 8x magnifying glass, my old eyes and bi-focal I need all the help I can get, Do you think the pictures would be good for selling on e-bay?

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      • #4
        I have the Intel QX3. It has its pros and its cons - and certainly does not do everything I need. But for doing certain things - such as DV hunting -- it is the best tool I have and I use it all the time.

        First of all, it is important to point out that the Intel QX3 is an obsolete model. The software provided will not install on Windows XP. However, Intel does have a download available to make it work on Windows XP. I doubt there is or ever will be any updates for Windows Vista. The QX5 is basically the same microscope (but no longer by Intel)- and is, I believe - still in production.

        Second - the product was intended for children. There are literally bells, whistles, beeps, honks, etc. every time you go to click on something. There is no way to turn it off other than to mute the sound on your computer.

        There are 3 magnification ranges: 10x, 60x, and 200x. For me, 10x is useless. The image is awful and it is impossible to get a decent focus. I use 60x 99% of the time. 200x comes in handy if you need to see some minor detail (i.e. is it a notch or a contact mark?). When searching coins at 60x, you can only see a portion of the coin and it takes a little practice to quickly scan all the areas you want to see.

        And as you have been told, an external light source is a must. I have a small flexible halogen desk lamp that I move around the microscope to get the best image.

        As far as the images go, with a little practice and experimentation, you can make them good enough to be useful. Here are some examples...




        Images above and below are at 60x and use both internal and external light.



        The image below is at 200x.



        So in summary, the QX3 can be a useful tool primarily for searching as BJ said. It is cheap - and definitely better than nothing if you need a close-up image. When I can afford a better microscope, I will get one. But for now, the QX3 serves my needs.

        The photo quality is nothing compared to what can be achieved with a digital camera. Here are some photos of the same coin for comparison...





        I took the photos above with a Canon Powershot a640 -- a reasonably priced point-and-shoot digital camera. If I find something with the QX3 - I then try to use the camera to get the best shot.

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        • #5
          bigbeardriver - Ken Russell (russellhome) has the best answer possible, since he owns and uses one. Ken has been responsible for finding over thirty new doubled dies in the OIV nickels, so he does have a grasp on what is happening, big time. Even his 9 year old daughter has two accredited discovery pieces of her own using this system.

          I hope that this gives you the insight that you wanted on the ups and downs of this system.

          BJ Neff
          Member of: ANA, CCC, CONECA, Fly-in-club, FUN, NLG & T.E.V.E.C.

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          • #6
            I completely agree with Ken Russell (russellhome)'s assessment. I own the QX3, and use the 60x almost exclusively, the 200x rarely, the 10x - never.

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            • #7
              There is a way to use a QX-5 without the included software (Don't know about the QX-3). Open My Computer, Look for Scanners and Cameras, there should be a link there for the QX-5. Open the link, and provide an external light source.

              I took the attached a couple of minutes ago using this method.
              Attached Files
              Profanity is the linguistic crutch of the inarticlate.

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              • #8
                I have a qx5 and i'm not happy with it at all.I use to have a qx3 and would highly recommend it before qx5 because the the software for the qx5 does not work with other programs like paintshop pro or anything else which the qx3 does..I called the people who make the qx5 and they told me straight out the qx5 will not work with anything but their own software,which i think is a bunch of crap..The other thing about the qx3 is it will take a picture of the whole coin like a penny and smaller but the qx5 only takes most of the coin like 7/8 percent and thats all because of the software..If the lines around the viewing area on the qx5 software was not there it would be just like the qx3.So stick with the qx3 if you must before the qx5.The other scope they have is the Smithsoaion or something like that is the same as the qx5 so stay away from that one also.

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                • #9
                  The QX-5 will work with other software via WIA support. I know it works with Photoshop CS3, but I can't say for Paintshop Pro since I don't use it. The problem I see is the size of the window it uses is very small, making it difficult to get good focus, which is why I use the method I mentioned earlier, that way you see the full 640x480 that the scope can produce. You're right about it not being able to take a picture of the full coin for anything larger than a dime. That isn't an issue for me, I have other cameras I use for that.

                  Tony
                  Profanity is the linguistic crutch of the inarticlate.

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