Live cell imaging allows researchers to observe living cells continuously — without removing them from the incubator. zenCELL owl automates this process: 24-channel brightfield imaging, AI analysis, remote monitoring. From €14,000. No subscriptions.
Live cell imaging is a microscopy technique used to observe living cells continuously over time — from minutes to weeks. In contrast to conventional fixed-cell imaging which captures only a static snapshot, live cell imaging reveals dynamic biological processes such as cell division, migration, drug response and morphology changes as they happen.
Observe cell proliferation, migration and drug response over hours or days — not just at a single endpoint.
Cells remain in their natural incubator environment throughout imaging — no temperature or CO₂ disruption.
Automated image analysis eliminates observer variability and generates consistent, publication-ready datasets.
Automated continuous imaging replaces hours of manual microscopy work — freeing your team for discovery.
Conventional microscopy workflows require removing cells from the incubator at every observation. Furthermore, this introduces environmental stress, contamination risk and operator variability. Modern in-incubator live cell imaging eliminates all of these problems.
Live cell imaging is an indispensable tool across cell biology, pharmacology, oncology and drug discovery. Additionally, it is increasingly used for routine cell culture quality control.
Track cell growth continuously. Automated confluency measurement generates reproducible growth curves without manual counting or endpoint assays.
Learn more →Automate gap closure analysis over days. High-precision migration rate quantification — no manual measurements, no subjective assessments.
Learn more →Monitor cell viability and morphology changes after drug treatment in real time. IC50 determination without endpoint assays.
Learn more →Timelapse imaging of spheroid growth and morphology for up to 2 weeks. Undisturbed monitoring under physiological conditions.
Learn more →Monitor cells under hypoxic conditions without disrupting the incubator environment — impossible with conventional microscopy.
Learn more →96 & 384-well live cell imaging with XYZ stage add-on. Full 96-well plate scan in under 90 seconds — continuous, inside the incubator.
Learn more →zenCELL owl is a 24-channel brightfield live cell imager designed to work inside any standard CO₂ incubator. Furthermore, it delivers automated confluency analysis, timelapse imaging and AI cell counting — at over 90% lower cost than Incucyte S3.
Monitor 24 wells in parallel — 5MP camera, 14x magnification
One-time setup per plate type — no manual adjustment needed
Fits any standard CO₂ incubator shelf — USB-C plug & play
Software included · ImageJ integration free · Your data stays local
Live cell imaging is a microscopy technique used to observe living cells in real time. Instead of conventional fixed-cell imaging — which takes a frozen snapshot — live cell imaging captures dynamic biological processes such as cell division, movement and responses to drugs over seconds to days. Furthermore, modern live cell imaging systems work directly inside the incubator, eliminating the need to remove cells from their physiological environment.
Fixed-cell imaging requires chemical fixation which kills the cells and provides only a single time point. In contrast, live cell imaging captures cells while alive and active, over an extended period. As a result, researchers obtain continuous kinetic data rather than static snapshots — revealing dynamic processes that endpoint assays simply cannot detect.
Traditional live cell imaging requires an inverted microscope with an environmental chamber, CO₂ and temperature control, and a camera system — typically costing €80,000–220,000. Modern in-incubator live cell imagers like zenCELL owl dramatically simplify this: the device sits inside any standard CO₂ incubator, connects via USB-C and starts imaging automatically — from €14,000 with no additional infrastructure required.
Live cell imaging can be performed in brightfield (transmitted light) or fluorescence mode. Brightfield live cell imaging — as used by zenCELL owl — requires no fluorescent labels, no phototoxicity concerns and no sample preparation. It is ideal for confluency monitoring, migration assays, cytotoxicity and spheroid imaging. Fluorescence live cell imaging additionally requires labelled reporters and is more complex and expensive. For the majority of routine and research applications, brightfield live cell imaging is sufficient and considerably more cost-effective.
When selecting a live cell imaging system, consider: imaging modality (brightfield vs fluorescence), number of simultaneous imaging positions, incubator compatibility, software openness and total cost of ownership. zenCELL owl specifically addresses the most common requirement — automated brightfield live cell imaging inside the incubator — at over 90% lower cost than traditional systems. Moreover, the rental option from €290/month makes it accessible for any lab budget.
zenCELL owl has been cited in over 50 peer-reviewed publications across cell biology, pharmacology, oncology, reproductive science and drug discovery. These publications validate the system's performance for confluency monitoring, scratch assay, cytotoxicity, spheroid imaging and hypoxic cell culture monitoring across multiple cell lines and research institutions worldwide.
See zenCELL owl inside a real incubator with real cells. Free 30-minute demo via MS Teams — twice a week. No commitment required.
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Watch zenCELL owl image live inside an incubator. Available.