Bandwidth savings in a hackable world:
We will always choose the lowest bandwidth model, as we know that we can upgrade it to 350MHz anyhow.
Siglent starts with 100MHz. There is no 70MHz model. So we can not go any lower to save costs.
Rigol starts with 70MHz. This saves us some extra money compared to the 100MHz model.
Number of channels and possible savings in a hackable world:
We need to make sure that the physical connectors are already there, as this can not be fixed with a software hack.
Siglent SDS2102X Plus does not come with 4 physical connectors, so we really have to go for Siglent SDS2104X Plus.
Rigol MSO5072 has only 2 channels enabled by default but comes with 4 physical connectors, so we can choose Rigol MSO5072 instead of Rigol MSO5074.
Conclusion: If we want a 350MHz scope with 4 channels in a hackable world, we can choose between Siglent SDS2104X Plus or Rigol MSO5072:
Siglent SDS2014X Plus can be upgraded to Siglent SDS2354X Plus.
Rigol MSO5072 can be upgraded to Rigol MSO5354.
But what is the best option of these two oscilloscopes when comparing them side by side?
Sample rate: Siglent only supports up to 2GSa/s sample rate, while Rigol supports up to 8GSa/s sample rate.
In practice we can consider Rigol has only double sample rate of Siglent if one uses at least 2 channels.
Do we really need 4Gsa/s for 350MHz? Or would 2Gsa/s be enough?
Waveform capture rate: Almost the same for both units. Siglent: 480.000 Wfms/s, Rigol: 500.000 Wfms/s.
But do we know if this value can be achieved for real or not? What are the limitations on the time base settings?
Maybe Rigol or Siglent perform very different on different time base settings. Are there any practical tests available about this?
Sample memory: Siglent supports 400MPts in total, while Rigol supports 200MPts in total.
There is no detail if the Siglent can achieve 400MPts when using only 1 channel in total.
Logic analyzer: The 16 channel Logic Analyzer costs about the same for both units.
However the Siglent Logic Analyzer looks of higher quality.
Do they support same voltage levels? What about the various trigger options?
Display output: The Rigol has an HDMI port while the Siglent has a VGA port.
Obviously HDMI provides better picture quality than VGA. But is the HDMI output 720P or 1080P?
Overall winner of both oscilloscopes based on the above comparisons:
Would that mean that Rigol MSO5072 (hackable to MSO5354) is the big winner?
Or what features (besides memory depth) would favor the Siglent SDS2014X Plus (hackable to SDS2354X Plus) instead of the Rigol?
The Siglent can be further upgraded to 500MHz, but wouldn't that reach the limits given that sample rate is max. 2GSa/s?