(1)
AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES
All-in-one DC power analyzer sidesteps programming

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "Let's say you're powering up an expensive prototype for the first time, or trying to determine how your design will behave at lower-than-normal input voltages. Both of these scenarios meld trepidation and expertise, and run the risk of device failure. Addressing that, Agilent Technologies's latest analyzers are appealing test-and-measurement products that may very well "keep the smoke inside the packages."

Readers Say:
"I can see how this would be very useful for power supply and digital engineers."
"Did a lot of over-voltage, over-current settings for power supplies when an engineer at NSC. Useful for measuring direct P/S values."
"Will it do feedback loop stability analysis?"
"I have improvised like any good H-P engineer for 40 years, and have no reason to spend $7-17K. Sorry."
"A nice integrated product, but overkill for even the densest 32-bit module I have designed."
"The price will be the concern."
"This is very useful for power supplies manufacturers. Our business is at present towards development of embedded systems."
"One of the best and state-of-the-art power analyzers I have ever read about."
"The economics of its use for design & development needs to be seen. As for production testing, it is an excellent equipment."
"Pretty cool!"
"Interesting combo product category. Reminds me of Agilent's combo scope + logic analyzer line."
"If I only had the budget for this!"
"A useful integrated combination of devices makes the whole greater than the sum of the parts."
"I have several applications that would benefit from a tool like this. Being a tiny engineering consulting firm, we simply can't afford the best while we can make do with the rest."
"A welcome innovation for the lab, field use, bench or in situ work environment"

USABILITY RANK: 1

(2)
TEKTRONIX
Cost-effective scopes time-correlate analog, digital signals

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "This MSO (mixed signal oscilloscope) line from Tektronix is in phase with the meteoric rise in the use of FPGAs (field programmable logic arrays). Indeed, FPGA suppliers Altera and Xilinx are experiencing double-digit growth, largely accruable to the explosion in embedded computing systems."

Readers Say:
No comments

USABILITY RANK: 2

(3)
LECROY
Low cost oscilloscopes keep digital memory turned on

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "These latest oscilloscopes from LeCroy Corp. once again expand the company's existing WaveRunner Xi Series and WaveSurfer Xs Series scopes. They also compete with new scopes recently introduced by Agilent Technologies, and others. The company is again aiming these mixed-signal oscilloscopes at designers working with embedded systems, where signals in analog and digital domains are found, often along with serial data streams. One of these LeCroy scopes lets you do this simultaneously--on one instrument--in realtime. "

Readers Say:
No comments

USABILITY RANK: 4

(4)
ANRITSU COMPANY
Economy RF spectrum analyzer troika sweeps the field

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "In its press statement (on the left), Anritsu Company claims no other spectrum analyzers in the MS271xB's price class offer the price-vs.-performance of its new analyzers, but Anritsu doesn't mention the all important price specifications! To clear the air, let me say that the three members of this family are priced at under $13,000 for the 7.1-GHz version, under $17,000 for the 13-GHz version, and under about $20,000 for the top-end 20-GHz instrument."

Readers Say:
"A good value for money."
"Want better amplitude accuracy."

USABILITY RANK: 5

(5)
AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES
Portable deep-memory scopes aim for price-sensitive sweet spot

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "When I met with Agilent Technologies product manager Phil Stearns, one of the first things he said was "let's see what you've been missing." What Stearns was referring to was the compact 5000 Series scopes' ability to make 25 times the number of acquisitions/s than Agilent's competitor Tektronix. Stearns mentioned the popular Tek TDS3000B) series of portable oscilloscopes, which he admits are presently de facto industry standards."

Readers Say:
"If I had disposable budget, I would already have purchased one."
"This is useful to our business. But we may take another six months to review the actual requirement."
"Excellent for field service and less frequent data dumps."

USABILITY RANK: 3

(6)
SAELIG
Less-than-$3000 box analyzes AC power quality under Windows

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "Supplied for less than $3000, Saelig's compact single-phase AC power analyzer shapes up as yet another cost-effective instrument hailing from the United Kingdom (many of Saelig's products are imported). Developed by UK-based Thurlby Thandar Instruments Ltd., the HA1600A can perform continuous realtime analysis, but can also be used in almost any application where power line monitoring is required."

Readers Say:
"If we can get the budget here I would use this prior to EU/CE EMI Testing to avoid having to re-test."

USABILITY RANK: 6

(7)
NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS
PCI Express plug-ins endow Windows PCs with fast digital I/O

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "Bandwidth, bandwidth, bandwidth. Marrying PCI Express (PCIe) with PXI (PCI Extensions for Instrumentation), National Instruments's (NI) latest PXIe-6537 and PXIe-6536 32-channel digital I/O modules comprise 32-bit interfaces on the PCIe bus, conferring unprecedented bandwidth benefits. Backplane bandwidth from 134-Mbytes/s to a whopping 6-Gbyte/s--a 45x boost. For its part, the PXI Express spec is what melds PCIe signaling with the PXI standard. "

Readers Say:
"I could have used this a year ago."

USABILITY RANK: 7

(8)
AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES
Test platform enables WiMAX test for 802.16e-2005

eeProductCenter's Gina Roos says: "Agilent Technologies Inc. has released its WiMAX Optimization Solution for IEEE 802.16e-2005. This drive-testing capability for its network optimization test platform enables WiMAX network equipment manufacturers and service providers to authenticate the actual subscriber experience in real-world WiMAX environments, said Agilent, enabling manufacturers to develop faster and more reliable WiMAX-enabled products."

Readers Say:
"What, no picture. What does it look like?"

USABILITY RANK: 8

(9)
R&R TECHNOLOGIES
Portable benchtop power supply delivers cordless testing

eeProductCenter's Gina Roos says: "R&R Technologies, Inc. has introduced its PS-1 power supply, a portable benchtop power supply with built-in rechargeable batteries that enables engineers to test low-power circuits without cord or power-main limitations. The PS-1 was designed to help engineers and technicians move devices to more convenient workstations to complete development without compromising their test environments or being restricted by wall outlets, said R&R Technologies."

Readers Say:
"A good idea. Would be great for remote instrument testing/troubleshooting."

USABILITY RANK: 10

(10)
DATA TRANSLATION
USB modules support scalable high channel-count applications

eeProductCenter's Alex Mendelsohn says: "One of the most striking attributes (no pun intended) of the DT9853 and DT9854 modules from Data Translation is that they can withstand 8,000-V spikes, directly to any pin, without disruption of operation or damage to the circuitry. In industrial applications that's a huge benefit. In non-factory-floor applications, the ability to thwart large ESD (electrostatic discharge) spikes can also ensure longevity."

Readers Say:
No comments

USABILITY RANK: 9

In case you were wondering, here's how Ultimate Products works: Our editors select up to 10 of the most significant products posted at www.eeProductCenter.com during the calendar quarter. Then, using an electronic balloting process, we submit the products with the accompanying editorial reviews to selected, qualified readers. Those readers score the products by technical significance and
USABILITY on a scale of 1 through 5, with 5 being the highest score. The product ranked No. 1 in each category was judged as most technically significant for that category. Relative
USABILITY rankings and selected reader comments are also reported. More than 1,000 of you helped to choose these products. As always, we are grateful for your enthusiastic participation.

Patrick Mannion
Editor-in-Chief, Techonline Network and eeProductcenter.com
pmannion@cmp.com