Flea-Scope Miniature Test Device

While the cost and size of test equipment have both fallen dramatically in the past decade, few, if anything on the market today can compete with the tiny Flea-Scope by Richard Testardi. This ~$13 oscilloscope, logic analyzer, and waveform generator combo is capable of taking 18 million samples per second (Msps), and exists as a PCB barely larger than two quarters. Perhaps best of all, it operates via any Chromium-based web browser running on a computer, tablet, or phone, without additional software installation!

The Flea-Scope is based on the PIC32MK MCU — and PCB files, the BOM, and build instructions can be found here. It uses mostly SMD components, which in Testardi’s case are now reflowed using a toaster controlled by another Flea-Scope. Once you’ve gotten past or sidestepped this little chicken-and-egg problem, you’ll also want to hand solder solder on a BNC connector for probe attachment.

The device is programmed through the board’s six-pin ICSP header, after which you can plug it in via USB and open a browser to access its GUI. As outlined in its manual, the Flea-Scope features a single 18 Msps analog input with a 10-bit ADC resolution, along with 9 digital logic analyzer pins. It also has a trigger out pin to allow two Flea-Scopes to work together like a multi-channel oscilloscope or a more capable logic analyzer.

While this small unit might not replace a bank of expensive test equipment, for extreme portability at a near-disposable price level, it would appear hard to beat the Flea-Scope!