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Should a reviewer keep a $20K Oscilloscope?

scottiebabe

I am just putting the thought out there, that I think a reviewer keeping a $20K oscilloscope is too much.

When an automotive journalist reviews a vehicle, its my understanding typically they return the vehicle afterwards (perhaps that’s not always the case).

I have not seen a review on element14 that I believe is any way deserving of such a reward.

I do believe a reviewer should be rewarded in some form for taking the time and effort to produce a quality review. But I think the reward would have one less zero in its value.

I think there are a lot of other creative opportunities to help see the community grow and flourish.

I don’t intend to say anymore than this.

But I do hope you take a second look at how the terms and conditions for the MXO4 review are defined.

Just a thought...

  • in reply to robogary

    Your knowledge, passion, and enthusiasm shines as bright as the sun! Don't change a thing bulldog.

    As always thank you for the kind words of support :)

  • in reply to dougw

    That's what usually happens, in practice, with the "for loan" instruments. They go from reviewer to reviewer. May sometimes pop up on a fair or trade show. It's the marketing contingent of devices that's seeing places. Often getting a bit of TLC between duties, to fix/clean/restock consumables or lost options.

  • in reply to scottiebabe

    Of course everyone has a different concept of what constitutes a good review, but I don't think the bar for an acceptable review should be set too high. If the reviewer makes a good effort given their experience level, that has to be acceptable. That is a murky definition, but I think you could get general consensus of whether a reviewer made a decent effort. I don't think potential reviewers should abstain just because they feel their best effort doesn't meet some standard. For example I am sure you would make a perfectly adequate effort with such a road test and the members would not have a problem with it.

  • in reply to scottiebabe

    Cant please everyone. I wouldnt be picked to review the scope if I didnt show basic competency and/or had a poor test plan. 

  • in reply to dougw

    I wouldn’t personally say the high-end road testers are stratified based on knowledge, experience, and personal access to test equipment. I suspect the regular road-testers are the most motivated to invest in the application process (what drives that motivation, not sure). How many individuals are interested in spending 10+ hours authoring a road-test proposal (based on the applicant count very few…) to maybe be selected.

    Presently only 15 people want experiment with a new state of the art oscilloscope:

    image 

    Now, there are still 5 days remaining, but I do find the number of applicants mysterious.

    Again providing a broader view of the situation there are going to be (Applicants - Kits ) individuals who are going to be very disappointed and hopefully not too disenfranchised with the e14 community. That's just the math and the reality of the situation, not saying there is an clear answer there either.

  • in reply to scottiebabe

    I expect almost everyone to want the scope, but few think there is any chance at all of being selected even if they give it their best shot.

  • I wonder if there is any incentive to let the members provide some input into who gets to review a fancy instrument. Not necessarily the definitive decision, just an additional factor in the decision. I can think of a few members I would like to see tackle this scope for example, but they probably won't even apply (and not because they wouldn't enjoy the scope or wouldn't put forth a good effort).

  • in reply to dougw

    I think that is a huge loss to the program/community. I know there are far,far more than 15 people who would be capable of addressing the product specifications I am skeptical, misunderstood, and excited about.

    If a roadtester can test a 6.5 digit smu with a 5% power resistor... I truly believe their are large number of members who could form an intelligent objective opinion of the product. Is their review worthy of keeping the product, well I don't know...

  • in reply to dougw

    Maybe we could lobby or petition   about who we would like to see review some particular gear, although his job is tough enough without dealing with petitions.

  • in reply to scottiebabe

    I think it depends on what the provider of the equipment is looking to get out of the review. A $20k oscilloscope is far out of the reach of most hobbyists - and many of the features that push the cost that high are generally of professional interest.  Without expertise and supporting equipment, it isn't possible to actually review the product in depth for those use cases. To really get the most of out it, you want access to differential probes, power rail probes, etc. These can easily be $5k each. Experience with other mid-range oscilloscopes in the $20k-100k range would also be beneficial to provide a point of reference - how does it compare to the competition?


    If you want to really push the performance envelope of the equipment and see if it performs at that level, there's a minimum barrier to entry.