I have a few comments on Dave's review. I’ll mention up front that I own the 100MHz version of this scope and, overall, I like it.
I fully agree with Dave’s implication that you’re throwing away your money if you spend $1,500 on an OWON SDS9302, BUT - dismissing the entire SDS line because of that is a mistake. Buying that model is like purchasing a Ford sedan with every option imaginable: You’ll wind up spending over $50,000 for a car built on a platform meant for a $30,000 model. Not a good decision when for $5,000-10,000 more you could have bought an equivalent Audi or BMW. However that doesn’t make the underlying model a piece of crap. It might be very competitive in its sweet spot of the low-to-mid thirties.
The ‘sweet spot’ of the SDS line is in the $300-500 range. If you spend $1,500 for a 9302 you get a $300 scope with 300MHz and 3.2 GS/s capability tacked onto it. Everything else is the same! The best things about the SDS line (the great screen and the huge memory depth) are tough to beat in an under $500 DSO – not so much in a $1,500 one.
Another thing about the model I own (the $429.00 SDS7102) is that it easily surpasses its stated 100MHz bandwidth - without hacks or alterations. Mine gets to over 150 MHz at the 3db down point and is functional to nearly 400MHz! Granted, the 1GS/s will limit its usefulness at those extreme limits but it’s very useable to over 200MHz.
The slow screen update seems to be the biggest complaint regarding the SDS line, and largely because of this Dave recommended the ancient Rigol 1000 series over the OWON SDS. From my point of view, there’s no way I would swap my SDS for the equivalent 1000 series model. The Rigol’s lack of dual vertical controls and limit of four measurements on that tiny low-res screen would annoy me far more than the slow screen update of the SDS. In the rare case when I’m looking for a glitch I use the persistence method that Dave demonstrated which ‘Works-a-Treat!’ (Sorry Dave).
Lastly, the scope hung when Dave attempted to save the screen to the USB card: That happens when the card is not formatted according to OWON’s specification (I know this from experience). Should the scope be so fussy about the formatting? – No, but cards are cheap and I keep one exclusively for use with mine. No problems since.
The scope is far from perfect. The PC software is very basic, and much more could be done with the firmware, but if someone handed me $500 today and said "Come back with the best scope you can find", I’d probably wind up buying another SDS7102.