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by topspin
2397 days ago
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There is a forthcoming NanoVNA version 2 that will have improved dynamic range due to better down mixers and added audio op amps. I think the whole NanoVNA eruption (including the clones and alternatives) is outstanding. I believe there is a large unsatisfied demand for low performance instruments that are sufficient for experimentation below ~3 GHz. There are a lot of used instruments around that are large, heavy and usually need service, and there are a number of built-down-to-a-price entirely proprietary instruments from Asia, but nothing beats a device that fits in your hand, runs free code from GitHub and costs so little that you can fry it accidentally and not care much. |
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I've already heard about it, looking forward to the new one.
> I believe there is a large unsatisfied demand for low performance instruments
Yeah, there's a huge demand for low performance instruments of all types.
And a surprising amount of such equipment can be built using low-cost parts thanks to progress in semiconductors - very limited performance, often uncalibrated, sure, but valuable for experimenters. For example, a 1 GHz active oscilloscope probe for $50 [0].
I think the critical part is not simply the possibility of building them, but making them easily available. If you read the old homepage on the web, or old electronics magazines, you can see a lot of similar DIY projects. But a lot of those DIY projects are not very repeatable.
But in recent years, I think the rise of the web and the popularity of free and open source software and hardware design is a game changer in this aspect. Today, I can download a PCB design from GitHub and send it to a factory for assemble simply by a few mouse clicks, and a week later, I can get a prototype. Even if the original designer stopped working on it, others in the community can contribute easily and carry on.
> but nothing beats a device that fits in your hand, runs free code from GitHub and costs so little that you can fry it accidentally and not care much.
Can't agree more.
[0] http://blog.weinigel.se/2016/02/26/ghz-differential-probe.ht...