The humble “Oscilloscope” is one of the most fundamental tools of engineering. No mater which engineering major you were in, it is highly likely that you have worked on them , seen them or at very least heard about them. They are primarily used to capture signals and study their salient features. And what is a signal you ask? , well as per basic definition it is a “detectable physical quantity or impulse (as a voltage, current, or magnetic field strength) by which messages or information can be transmitted” . Since signals are all around us, so digital oscilloscopes will remain an integral part of academia and research for some time to come. As per that observation, we have compiled a list of the best portable digital oscilloscopes available under 300$.
Signstek TFT LCD DSO201 (88$)
Pro
- Very compact and light weight.
- Multiple trigger modes.
Con
- Low bandwidth at 1Mhz
- Low horizontal Sensitivity.
You can get one here
DSO Nano Oscilloscope v3 (88$)
Pro
- 32bit digital storage Oscilloscope.
Con
- Low Bandwidth
- Charges of USB which is time consuming.
You can get one here
Xminilab, Wave Form Generator (140$)
Pro
- Has a protocol analyzer(UART,I2C,SPI)
- Connects through USB to windows, mac,Android and Linux.
- Can sample both digital and analogue signals simultaneously .
Con
- Low Bandwidth at 50Khz
You can get one here
JYE Tech Pocket Digital Oscilloscopes (59$)
Pro
- Good sampling rate at 2.5Msps
- You can upload sample data in the form of CSV file.
- Provides more features than the price suggests.
Con
- Battery life unstable.
- Manufacturer is not reputable and lacks support.
You can get one here
VELLEMAN HPS140I Digital Oscilloscopes (119$)
Pro
- Great Bandwidth at 40Mhz.
- Time base is very good 250ns to 1hr per division.
Con
- Lacks multiple channels
- LCD is low resolution, troublesome at High frequencies.
You can get one here
SainSmart DSO203 Nano Digital Oscilloscopes (168$)
Pro
- Dual analog to digital convertors from 36MS/s to 72MS/s.
Con
- Bandwidth is not as advertised(72Mhz) it is more likely between 3 to 4Mhz
You can get one here
9-Channel 200Msa/s Oscilloscope-Link Instruments (250$)
Pro
- High Sampling rate.
- 60Mhz Bandwidth.
Con
- Lacks connectivity to smartphones
You can get one here
Velleman HPS50 Digital Oscilloscopes (249$)
Pro
- A decent bandwidth of 12Mhz at 40Mhz sampling rate.
- 50ns to 1hour time base.
Con
- Single Channel
- Lacks USB support.
- Battery Life only 2-3Hrs.
You can get one here
Siglent SDS1052DL Digital Storage Oscilloscope (280$)
Pro
- Triggers are present if the user wants to isolate signals
- Bandwidth of 50Mhz
- Good display quality
Con
- Only Two channels.
- Comparatively heavy for a portable device at 2.5Kg.
You can get one here
Owon PDS5022T Portable Digital Storage Oscilloscope (260$)
Pro
- Moderate to good Bandwidth at 25Mhz
- 3 channels, 2 internal and 1 external.
- Good resolution Display LCD.
- High Input impedance
Con
- Scopes available with the set are not of good quality.
You can get one here