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Principal at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Real User
The technical support ecosystem is what really makes it good.
Pros and Cons
  • "Because they're such a big industry standard name, their products are standardized across many customers, which is why people own these products."
  • "The customer support is very good. If you need an application to do any measurement, you can easily get a hold of people to help you with it. This is a whole ecosystem."
  • "There is a learning curve depends on the client that I am working with. E.g., if I'm working with a client, and they have a test and measurement equipment company, when I go to another company, the new company may not be using the same model."

What is our primary use case?

I use Keysight products on and off depending on the customers that I work with. If they have Keysight equipment, then I will use it.

My primary use case is measurement equipment. I work on high-speed designs, With those, there is a whole array of Keysight equipment, but again, when we go as in-house consulting engineers, we work with the tools that the customers have.

How has it helped my organization?

They are one of the top name in the industry. When it comes to grabbing precise technical data, having an ecosystem of logging it correctly and working with the diagnostics, they are probably the industry leaders in the field.

What is most valuable?

Because they're such a big industry standard name, their products are standardized across many customers, which is why people own these products. 

The customer support is very good. If you need an application to do any measurement, you can easily get a hold of people to help you with it. This is a whole ecosystem.

The user interface is top-notch in the industry.

What needs improvement?

There is a learning curve, depends on the client equipment that I am working with. This is where application support teams are helpful.

Buyer's Guide
Keysight Oscilloscopes
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about Keysight Oscilloscopes. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
831,265 professionals have used our research since 2012.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is what really makes it good.

You are not just buying the equipment; you're buying the support structure around it. If you don't have the right engineers to answer your questions, then you're stuck.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I do consulting work. I don't own my own test and measurement equipment.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I don't make product buying decisions for these.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

The clients may use different vendors.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
SignalIn1b97 - PeerSpot reviewer
Signal Integrity Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Enables our high-speed compliance measurements for USB and display port HDMI, but GUI needs improvement
Pros and Cons
  • "We rely on the data and we make our design calls, risk-assessment, all based on the measurements that we take with the Keysight equipment."
  • "Their GUI is not the best. They need to improve on that. I think their software team needs to put in a little bit more work on how they are presenting the application on the scope."
  • "I would also like to see a more detailed change-notice from version to version, what changed. If they had a more detailed description of what is changing and the reason for it, rather than just releasing, that would be good for us so we know whether or not to upgrade."

What is our primary use case?

Our lab has a 16-gigahertz scope and the 64-gigahertz scope. We have some other test equipment in our labs. We have an area of equipment in the lab that we use for high-speed measurements.

We use them for high-speed compliance measurements: electrical measurements of all the external interfaces, such as USB, display port HDMI, etc., which enable you to use your pen drives or connect your display. 

I personally run less of the measurement side now, I do more simulations, but we always correlate simulations with measurements and we need to get an accurate measurement and an accurate simulation to verify if our design works. Otherwise, all of these devices we build won't actually work in the customer's hand. Keysight is the main test equipment vendor, in our lab. We do have some other vendors but we almost exclusively run on Keysight these days.

Regarding the bandwidth, some of the scopes, like the 64, have a higher bandwidth than what we need with our current data rates, but otherwise, we typically use most of the bandwidth.

How has it helped my organization?

Every product that we sell goes through a regular set of testing. Keysight is our main test vendor so we're using all of their equipment for all high-speed measurements. We rely on the data and we make our design calls, risk-assessment, all based on the measurements that we take with the Keysight equipment. Those need to be accurate, otherwise our design decisions would vary from what the end customer would see in reality.

What is most valuable?

Obviously, it needs to be able to handle accuracy of measurements.

Good customer support is very important, especially when there are new versions of the applications that run on these scopes and we have questions. The specifications of all these interfaces keep changing on a monthly or a yearly basis and we have to also keep up when we're designing our devices, so we'll have a lot of questions: Why is your scope testing it in a certain way? Why am I not seeing what I expect? Why is it looking the way it's looking? We need to be able to get an answer from Keysight: How did you design your application and how can we match with what I am simulating or what I am expecting, if there are any discrepancies. Customer support is very important. Otherwise, I believe all these scopes do standard measurements across the board pretty accurately.

What needs improvement?

They have some software applications but their GUI is not the best. They need to improve on that. I think their software team needs to put in a little bit more work on how they are presenting the application on the scope. They can do all the measurements but if it's cumbersome to navigate through the system, then it makes life a little bit harder. They have to keep fiddling around with their app to get it to meet some visual acuity. Otherwise, it's fine. Once you can work through the app, it actually tests properly. We're not seeing many issues.

The user interface is clunky at times. You might see the box move to one side and you can't minimize it, you can't move it out of screen, and you have to minimize the whole screen and open up the scope screen. It doesn't flow. We do work through that. They need to do a little bit better job in making the UI more user-friendly. They have the stuff built-in, it's just the way it pops up on the screen might not necessarily look nice or it might just move to one corner and you're not able to close it, which is a waste of time.

I would also like to see a more detailed change-notice from version to version, what changed. If they had a more detailed description of what is changing and the reason for it, rather than just releasing, that would be good for us so we know whether or not to upgrade. They release software and we find out something might not match what we were expecting, and then we have to go back to them and they say, "Okay, we'll fix this." If they make any design changes, especially in the app or the way it's tested, they need to inform us as customers of what's changing through some engineering change-notice.

For how long have I used the solution?

More than five years.

How are customer service and technical support?

I evaluate technical support on the promptness in which they reply back, the detail. I would expect the application engineer to know what he's talking about have a background on what he's trying to explain to us and also support that with actual facts or specifications. If he is making a claim or statement, I'd like that to be supported with the actual specification and for him to say, "Because it's written this way, this is what we have exactly implemented and this is why you are seeing xyz." 

The speed in which they respond back is very important, especially when all the projects are time critical and we need to have quick turnarounds. I judge them based on how fast and how correct they are and if they can answer all my questions. I like them to try to help me out, work through my problem to an end solution.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We typically get demos. Keysight personnel will come down and show us some new stuff they might be working on or what we might be interested in. They sometimes loan us some of the equipment so that we can try it out before we buy it.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

I don't see the price lists, but our company does get some discounts. I don't think we buy it for the full price. Depending on your relationship with the company, I think Keysight does have different pricing models. I don't know how it is with respect to any other company or any other team, but they're not cheap. They need to be that effective for our use case.

What other advice do I have?

Make sure you know what speeds you are trying to test. Ask them for a demo. Ask them for some correlation data, some other products that they have measured. Ask for good pricing. Don't go for the highest-bandwidth scope if you don't need it because it's going to cost you more and it really doesn't make any difference in your measurements. You need to see what you are trying to test and buy accordingly.

In terms of a learning curve, I've been using smaller scopes for ten to 15 years so it is not an issue for me. As long as you have a basic understanding of what you are trying to see, what you expect when you try to make measurements, then you can learn the knobs pretty fast. 

You can go really advanced, but you have to understand what you are trying to do, what changes you are trying to make on the scope. Otherwise, you'll get garbage; garbage in garbage out. If you don't have the right inputs you will see something and you will think it's wrong. It's equal parts them doing the right stuff, but also us trying to use the equipment correctly. 

If you know how to design, or what you expect to see on the scope, then mostly if your design works properly on your product, you should be seeing the right things. Then, the ramp-up time is not too long.

As for the solution being field-upgradable, there are some things that we can switch out.

I'd give the product a seven out of ten. They can make it a little bit more user-friendly through the GUI. Otherwise, it's fine.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Keysight Oscilloscopes
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about Keysight Oscilloscopes. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
831,265 professionals have used our research since 2012.
SrSystem4083 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior System Design Engineer at Xilinx
Real User
I can use it to easily measure frequency, time, and other complex measurements
Pros and Cons
  • "The user interface is simple and straightforward, so I can easily measure frequency, time, and other complex measurements."
  • "The user interface has a load of features that come with it, which is why it is an eight out of ten."

What is our primary use case?

We use it to debug our system designs and see the signals on the physical side, especially on Internet IPs.

We're using the 1 GHz oscilloscope.

It's a high-speed serial design. We are using it to debug the signals of the high speed serial. It is throwing it around 25 gigs. We also use it to measure all of our reference clock frequencies.

We are using all board differential and single-ended channels to send signals. The product is used in data center applications.

How has it helped my organization?

We measure the skewing of the design and system with a simple click of the button.

What is most valuable?

  • Its ease of use.
  • The user interface is simple and straightforward, so I can easily measure frequency, time, and other complex measurements. 
  • It's pretty easy to go around the system.

What needs improvement?

The user interface has a load of features that come with it, which is why it is an eight out of ten.

For how long have I used the solution?

Less than one year.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We are not using the full bandwidth, as we are just using the basic features of the product. We hopefully will explore more of the product in the future.

The solution is field upgradeable. It has the software updates. Though, as of now, we have just started using the product.

How are customer service and technical support?

We have not had a chance to use the tech support, as of now. They have a pretty good relationship with our team to help us out in case we have any problems though.

What other advice do I have?

This is a very good product to do your basic signal integrity tests and check your signals in the systems. I would recommend using this product.

It took us 30 to 40 minutes to get acclimated to the solution.

The user interface is good and neat, with not much clutter. It's straightforward to use, so anybody can quickly understand the product and use it.

For what we need, we get that with the features on the current design.

We are not using it to support connect devices nor are we planning to going forward.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Electric4b40 - PeerSpot reviewer
Electrical Principal Engineer at a tech company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Facilitates compliance measurements that correlate with the product specs
Pros and Cons
  • "It breaks down all the parameters that we need to look at."
  • "In terms of additional capabilities, I would like to see more touchscreen and a larger screen. That would help."
  • "There is room for improvement with some of the features of the scope. I would like them to make it a bit more simplistic... For example, if I want to look at what the total jitter is, they should make it simpler to find that, with different tabs."

What is our primary use case?

I'm currently using the 86100D and I've used the 86100C as well. The "D" is the most recent one so I'm using that right now.

We use it for test and validation. We want to verify measurements in our lab to make sure for our current products that everything looks optimal, as per the specs. We make sure that whatever we're looking at, the scope can give us all the features to validate that product. We use it for Tx jitter measurements, compliance measurements for ten-gig SFP+, QSFP28, and QSFP+. That's where it really is helpful, to do compliance measurements that actually correlate with the spec.

We are utilizing the full bandwidth. We use it for all speeds greater than ten gig.

How has it helped my organization?

There was a case where I was running a simulation of a channel, the transmit channel from the switch to the connector. In simulation, my eye measurement looked great. I wanted to see what it looked like in measurement. That's when I used the Keysight tool and a host compliance board, where I plug it into the device, using cables that plug into the scope. I measured the eye diagram to see how it correlated with my simulation. That correlation was very close. That's where it helps me really understand, whatever I’m working on in design, I can manipulate that in testing as well. It's great, it correlates there.

What is most valuable?

What I do like is the customer service, and the ability for the product to give a very clear indication of what we're trying to look at it. It breaks down all the parameters that we need to look at.

What needs improvement?

The user interface is great right now. I think they could improve it slightly, make it a bit more user-friendly. Although it is user-friendly, a bit more would make it even better.

In terms of additional capabilities, I would like to see more touchscreen and a larger screen. That would help. The current scope has a decent screen size, but at times what happens is, when I'm looking at it I need to have an extra monitor. If they could somehow improve that design with a bigger screen but not make it too heavy, that would be ideal. Some products do have a bigger screen but they're heavier. Maybe they can balance that out: Make it less heavy and provide a better screen resolution, a bigger size. That would help a lot.

There is room for improvement with some of the features of the scope. I would like them to make it a bit more simplistic. It's a very good tool overall, but if they could improve those issues slightly, that would help a lot. For example, if I want to look at what the total jitter is, they should make it simpler to find that, with different tabs. 

Their de-embedding feature is a very good feature, I like what it does, I think it's better than their competitors'. If they could improve that slightly too that would be nice.

For how long have I used the solution?

More than five years.

How are customer service and technical support?

On a scale of one to ten, I would give technical support a nine-and-a-half. They have very good technical support. They've been very responsive. Every time there has been an issue they've been very quick, giving speedy feedback.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We talked with the vendor regarding PAN4 applications, regarding the new technologies that have been coming out. They suggested what we could do to improve and what we need. The good thing was, based on the support, we were able to get everything we needed and just go from there. The traction with the scope vendor and checking what the application needs in advance and doing our own research on it helped us and provided us with our needs.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Pricing can be improved a bit. They try to make the pricing competitive but I think there are times that the competitors have good pricing. If Keysight can work on the pricing a bit more, that would help us to consider them completely, rather than the other ones.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Tektronix and LeCroy were on our shortlist. The reason we chose Keysight is that they are the most widely-used tools out there and we've been using them for a long time. And their customer service is a bit more responsive than the other vendors.

We did trials before purchasing and what we learned is that they all have regular tools, but in looking at the overall customer experience and features, Keysight was better.

What other advice do I have?

Study what you're looking at. Analyze. See if the tool is applicable to what you are trying to measure. You have to do your own research and see if the solution matches the application you're looking for and what the requirements are. Of course, there's always a price budget so that's something that you have to look at. But I would highly recommend this product. It's a good product performance-wise.

I've used the product for more than seven years. I've used it at different companies as well, not just my current company. We used sampling oscilloscopes and real-time scopes to make eye diagram measurements. You're taking signals from your device on the test and looking at what it looks like; how clean the signal generator is from the transmitter. In the past I've also used it to look at the receiver eye too where you can actually drive a signal or a backplane and then look at it on the receiver end, using the scopes.

In terms of a learning curve, when I started my career with this product it took about a year to get really familiar with the tools. After that, it was complete repetition that makes you an expert. You keep learning more things about it as time goes on with the same product and there are new features with different specs. It took at least a year to get familiar with the product but every time you learn new things, it's under six months or so.

We have no plans to use it to support IoT. It's more for networking switches.

The current solution we have in the lab is upgradable. Keysight has done a good job there where they have given us a solution where they can actually upgrade it. At the moment what we have is the latest upgrade. All it required was buying the license and upgrading the scope.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Engineer III Electrical & RF at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
The PLTS and network analyzer software meet our needs but the solution is expensive
Pros and Cons
  • "It does everything that I need it to with the PLTS software and the network analyzer software."
  • "The user interface can be buggy at times. But I'm an engineer, I figure out how to get around them pretty easily so that's not that much of a concern."
  • "I would like to see better post-processing data utility tools like a de-embedding."

What is our primary use case?

We're using the N5227A 67-gigahertz analyzer for signal integrity applications, the passive components.

The solution is targeting the high-speed application space for us. Since we design components, primarily connectors, it needs to be high-speed to meet all the demands a standard connector company would need to meet, like a Tyco or Amphenol.

We are measuring standard step signals, full signals. We are utilizing the full bandwidth of the product.

How has it helped my organization?

It does everything that's fundamental for SI design in general. I'm not really sure how to explain how it improved anything other than that it does exactly what I need it to do. I don't really need to add or subtract anything from what's already available.

What is most valuable?

It does everything: 

  • frequency
  • applications
  • time domain
  • transformation. 

It does everything that I need it to with the PLTS software and the network analyzer software.

What needs improvement?

The user interface can be buggy at times. But I'm an engineer, I figure out how to get around them pretty easily so that's not that much of a concern. It allows me to do everything I need to do.

I would like to see better post-processing data utility tools like a de-embedding.

For how long have I used the solution?

One to three years.

How are customer service and technical support?

Technical support is pretty responsive, pretty decent.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We didn't have a previous solution.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

It's very expensive.

What other advice do I have?

Be aware that there are other solutions out there that are cheaper. And if you're willing to put in the extra work to make up for the disparity between the products, I think it can be done.

There was a learning curve, but only in so far as I needed to be more familiar with signal integrity design in general. They do offer a lot of resources available to budding SI engineers. As soon as you get the basics down, you get the gist of how to use their equipment.

Our solution is field-upgradable. We plan on upgrading it, probably within the next five to ten years.

I would rank the product at seven out of ten. It does everything I need it to do, but it is really expensive and I think there are alternatives out there that I could choose that would be cheaper. But we already have the product.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Distingu796a - PeerSpot reviewer
Director of Data Storage System Architecture at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Real User
The user interface is good and easy to use
Pros and Cons
  • "Before silicon came back, our customers' performance was affected. Using these tools, we are able to deliver performance to our customers."
  • "If the simulation runs for a long time, it will suddenly crash. If they can debug that, the product would be better."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case is the IBIS-AMI Model.

We are using the Advanced Design System (ADS). We are doing the IBIS model for our customers. We develop our service, then our customer will evaluate it and comeback after checking whether our service has good correlation.

The application space that we target is high-speed serial, like PCIe, SAS, or SATA, which are all the industry standard. We develop it and deliver it to our customer.

How has it helped my organization?

Before silicon came back, our customers' performance was affected. Using these tools, we are able to deliver performance to our customers. 

What is most valuable?

The user interface is pretty good.

What needs improvement?

There is definitely a learning curve. It is a more advance software, which not everyone can use just by looking at it.

It should be easier to debug.

For how long have I used the solution?

More than five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

If the simulation runs for a long time, it will suddenly crash. If they can debug that, the product would be better.

The solution feels does feel upgradable, but we have any plans to take advantage of this yet.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We are using the full bandwidth of the product.

How are customer service and technical support?

I would normally call technical support, if needed. They would respond with an email or come to our site.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Keysight is more advanced as a solution. That's why we switched.

We got a demo before purchasing it. We learned what type of interface it had and how easy it is to use it.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing is always high.

What other advice do I have?

It is a good tool to use. If they had a debug feature, it would be helpful.

We use the tool to measure some waveforms, which we normally give to our customers for use in data center applications.

We are not using this product to support connected devices, like IoT development, nor do we have plans to do so going forward.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Technoloaa75 - PeerSpot reviewer
Technologist at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Provides us with a one-stop solution, ease of use, and good support
Pros and Cons
  • "It's a one-stop solution. It does everything we need. The combined functionality is the biggest benefit."
  • "There is room for improvement in the upgradeability of the products. When we buy a platform, we would like that platform to survive two or three generations, because it is very expensive. If they could provide a more modular type of design, so if we want to upgrade one functionality then we could upgrade that module, rather than all the equipment, that would be helpful. That modularity is something we would like to see."

What is our primary use case?

We use them for experimental measurements.

What is most valuable?

Since this equipment does a lot of different things, it's hard to say what is most valuable. It's a one-stop solution. It does everything we need. The combined functionality is the biggest benefit.

Regarding the user interface, since we are so familiar with it, it's easy to work with.

What needs improvement?

The biggest challenge for us is getting to higher frequencies, higher data rates. The higher-data product is always more expensive so if it could be cheaper for high-frequency measurement, that is what we would ideally want.

There is room for improvement in the upgradability of the products. When we buy a platform, we would like that platform to survive two or three generations, because it is very expensive. If they could provide a more modular type of design, so if we want to upgrade one functionality then we could upgrade that module, rather than all the equipment, that would be helpful. That modularity is something we would like to see.

For how long have I used the solution?

More than five years.

How are customer service and technical support?

Keysight has been very helpful, their technical support is great.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We did not switch to this product from something else. Some equipment works up to 30 gigahertz. When we started developing the newer product, which has higher frequencies, obviously we needed to buy the newer generation. When we made those changes we evaluated different vendors.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

We are looking at $600,000 and it's obviously expensive, but compared to others, everybody is in the same ballpark.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

It is between Tektronix, Keysight, and LeCroy. Those are the three we look at.

We did trials and learned about the features, how easy to use the products are, how consistent the data measurements are, and things like that.

What other advice do I have?

My advice would be to evaluate the Keysight product.

In our company we have been using the Keysight equipment for at least 15 years. We use many different versions so I do not remember specific model numbers but we use a lot of the scopes, as well as PPD.

Technology advances in this field so we are always in a learning curve because there is always new technology, new products, new features come out.

I would rate this product at eight out of ten because of the features, ease of use, and the support.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Technolo06ac - PeerSpot reviewer
Technologist at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Real User
It improves the functionality of our products and the products that I design
Pros and Cons
  • "Its 4 port has true differential with quite a few de-embedding features. It goes up to 40 GHz with high performance."
  • "The user interface is not that good. It's not very intuitive. It's functional, but it's not designed for ease of operation. It's designed for functionality."

What is our primary use case?

We are using Keysight for characterization.

The signals that I'm evaluating are basic analog signals for hard disk drives.

How has it helped my organization?

It improves the functionality of our products and the products that I design. It does this every day. I use it for characterization every day, and it directly helps.

What is most valuable?

Its 4 port has true differential with quite a few de-embedding features. It goes up to 40 GHz with high performance.

What needs improvement?

There was a long learning curve. It's a bit difficult to get used to, so it took about six months to really fully get up to speed with it.

The user interface is not that good. It's not very intuitive. It's functional, but it's not designed for ease of operation. It's designed for functionality. Interface could be improved a bit. It could be a bit easier to use. 

For how long have I used the solution?

Three to five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

One thing that should be improved is how reliable the product is. I have found it to be very unreliable. It breaks down a lot. That is one feature I'm definitely not happy about.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I am utilizing the full bandwidth of the product.

It will become upgradable if the hardware becomes more reliable, then I would take advantage of it. While I can't think of any other functionality that they can add, as it's pretty good as is, the reliability is the main thing for me.

How are customer service and technical support?

I have contacts within Keysight. They usually give us evaluation hardware. They're pretty good about it.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We were using a previous solution. It was bulky. It did not have good de-embedding features, so we found out about a newer solution, and there was enough value to switch.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The pricing is on the high side.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also looked at LeCroy and Anritsu. However, Keysight was overall an excellent package.

We did demo Keysight before choosing it and learned it was functional.

What other advice do I have?

The functionality is excellent, but the reliability is poor.

The application space that the solution is targeting is PC components: hard disk drives.

We are not using this product to support connected devices.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Keysight Oscilloscopes Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: January 2025
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Oscilloscopes
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Keysight Oscilloscopes Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.