Tektronix Targets Hobbyists, Students, and Educators with Its 1 Series DPOs — Starting Under $500

Test and measurement specialist Tektronix has announced a new entry-level digital phosphor oscilloscope (DPO) family, the 1 Series, which it says puts "advanced capabilities [and] an intuitive experience" in reach of students, educators, and hobbyists — with prices starting at under $500.

"Engineering is a constant learning curve. The earlier the right tools get into an engineer's hands, the sooner they can connect theory with what they actually see and measure, and the better prepared they are to solve real problems," opines Tektronix' Daryl Ellis, with the unspoken implication that his company's devices are, of course, the right tools. "We designed the 1 Series to give students and educators access to serious measurement capability early, while giving engineers at every level an instrument that's capable, approachable and flexible enough to keep close at hand."

The new 1 Series, which shares its user interface with the company's more capable devices in order to provide an easy upgrade path, is available in two- to four-channel 50- to -200MHz variants. The base model, the DPO1052, features two channels, a 50MHz analog bandwidth, 1.25 giga-samples per second (GS/s) sample rate on one channel or 625MS/s using bogth channels, 10 million point record length, and a 12-bit vertical resolution. The top-end DPO1204 upgrades to four channels and a 200MHz bandwidth, with two- and four-channel 70MHz and 100MHz models in-between the two.

In addition to measurement, the 1 Series is also available with a built-in arbitrary function generator (AFG), signified by an "S" suffix on the model name. All feature the same 7" touchscreen display, and all include the open to turn off automatic modes in favor of fully-manual operation, aimed at classrooms teaching the fundamentals. Analysis functions include SPI, I2C, and UART protocol decoding, fast Fourier transform (FFT), limit testing, and, exclusive to the S-suffix variants, Bode plot capabilities.

More information on the 1 Series is available on the Tektronix website, with prices starting at $450 for the DPO1052 two-channel 50MHz model without function generator and topping out at $1,650 for the four-channel 200MHz DPO1204S with function generator.