Hi
I am in the market for a scanner and a scope, could you tell us your personal experience using Pico vs. Electraspec/Electrajet for the Australian market?
I know Elctraspec has colored wiring diagrams and component locater pictures database. and it is geared towards the Australian models. any thing Pico does that Electrajet/electraspec does not?
First off, welcome to the Pico forums. It is good to hear that you are researching products before jumping into and purchasing a unit.
You asked for personal experience on Pico versus the Electrajetâ„¢ t-100 Toolbox. While I do not have any personal experience with the Electrajet model, I will try to give you pros and cons on each unit with hopefully not too much bias opinion towards Pico.
Pros to the Electrajet:
Has dedicated multimeter channels. Ohm readings are possible.
±200V Maximum Voltage Range (useful for testing higher voltages but still not quite up for hybrid diagnostics)
Capable of adding on Computerized Switching Module (CSM) for direct connection to 144 ECM channels - no backprobing pins on ECM
2MS/s sampling rate (compared to 20MS/s / secondary ignition can have ringing at around roughly 3MHz (depending on specific coils etc this will vary vehicle to vehicle. You traditionally wish to view this. At 3MHz you are going to want to have a scope that is sampling in the neighborhood of 15 MS/s to accurately display the signal and not miss anything)
Lowest voltage scale of ±100mV/div (compared to ±20mV / important when wanting to check current on low amperage signals.)
Requires 9-18VDC power supply (compared to USB powered / limits the mobility of the scope - always have to be within range of a wall outlet or power converter)
Parallel Connection (compared to USB 2.0 / greatly limits the data transfer rate and hence the screen refresh rate)
.3% Scope accuracy (Compared to 1% / generally speaking 8 bit scopes have advertised accuracy specifications of 3%, 10 bits 1-3%, 12 bits 1%, and 16 bits less than 1%. As this is a 10 bit scope I doubt that the accuracy is actually .3%)
200uS/div - 60S/div (compared to 500nS/div - 200S/div, a slight limitation especially when logging for intermittents)
128K buffer size / or 8k depending on how you read their specifications (compared to 512K - Essential for proper sampling rates at given times/div. Enter your details into our graph online at http://www.wavehook.com/dbase/comparison.html to compare)
No advanced triggers (helpful when tracking down intermittents etc.)
No high speed streaming (essential on slow timebases especially if scope buffer is actually 8k)
Things to consider:
The Electrajet appears to be a good unit for certain requirements just as the Pico is good for certain requirements. The Pico doesn't have the built in wiring diagrams etc, and the Electrajet doesn't have the performance standards of the Pico.
What is your intended use? Our company preaches factory tools and information systems. To be professional in the automotive repair industry you need to have the best equipment. As you obtain the best equipment your service levels go up, customer quantity/quality in turn goes up and you then make your business more profitable and the factory tools and information pays for itself.
The unit that you purchase will be based on personal preference on what you wish to get out of the equipment. You need to evaluate the makes of vehicles that you will be working on and see if you will be better off buying generic equipment or OEM. If you are a shop specializing in GM and Ford, I would recommend purchasing a Pico, a Tech 2/MDI, an IDS and GM and Ford information systems. If you plan on working on all makes on the road then it may be more cost effective to purchase a SnapOn Modis (or a Electrajet and a scantool etc) and generic information from Mitchel Ondemand or ALLDATA.
Evaluate your needs and the direction that you want to take your business. If you have further questions or need any help with the Pico feel free to post your questions here, call Pico’s technical support or give us a call.