Digital Pocket Magnifiers

Pocket magnifiers are relatively new to the high-tech VI world but they're a great alternative to CCTVs, especially in a secondary school environment where portability is so important. The Maxlupe has been around for a while but, in my experience, has always suffered technical difficulties. The popular Traveller from Tieman was one of the first of the new range of portable CCTVs and had a big impact on schools.

I have had a chance to use two portable magnifiers that, unlike the popular Traveller, one can actually fit in one's pocket. Here are the important statistics for The Pico from Telesensory and the Quicklook from Ash Technologies:

	Pico	Quicklook
Display	Colour / Negative	Colour / Positive / Negative
- Size	4"	4"
- Magnification	x3 - x11	up to x5.5
Size	6.5" x 3.5" x 1.1"	6.5" x 3.7" x 1.1"
Weight	10 oz	10 oz
Claimed battery life for continuous use	1 hour 15 mins	1 hour 15 mins
Charge up-time	2 hours	2 to 3 hours

Now find out how these two devices really compared: