A portable MEMS-based scanning laser ophthalmoscope (MSLO). In one example, the MSLO includes a laser illumination sub-assembly, a two-dimensional MEMS scanning mirror, a conic front objective, and a detector sub-assembly all disposed within a portable housing. A battery configured to provide power to components of the MSLO may also be included within the housing. In one example, the laser illumination sub-assembly includes at least one laser configured to generate in each of two orthogonal dimensions one or more illumination beams separated from one another by a predetermined angle of separation. The MEMS scanning minor and conic front objective are configured to produce a two-dimensional area of illumination from the illumination beam(s) in each dimension and to direct the illumination from the scanning minor to the eye to illuminate the retina.
