i owned a ds1054z and it took me years to learn: the scope is slow when using the knobs, however it is really powerful (although i have not tested personally) with its scripting / automation capability. so to me the 1054z is all about connecting it via usb or ethernet and using it via python or whatever. i would probably not use it as a general use scope. only for scripting (which it seems to excel at). (as an aside, if you look at some products, they also seem to fall into this unspoken realm of 'good for automation, not good for general use'. i.e. the digital calipers you can get online or at harbor freight. i don't like the idea of the battery dying on me after a couple years, so i prefer analog calipers. BUT, if you consider using them in some form of automation, then digital calipers are perfect. then it makes sense, why they are everywhere.) electronics_projects test ideas with 1054z scope ===================== strictly logging: solar panel, test battery, solar levels, measure voltage differentials or resistance of meat as it is ageing (would need to be in a fridge). as a vna: characterize RC or other filter performance see: https://github.com/jp3141/Vector-Network-Analyzer not really something you'd automate over time i don't think. take a signal you see, output waveform to csv reoutput on a signal gen possibly i could enable all measurements https://nathankjer.com/ds1054z/ and then record all these values. deep dive into timing errors with a micro: https://elexperiment.nl/2019/05/automating-measurements-with-the-rigol-ds1054z/ can measure fft as well, see nathankjer link. can do 'mask testing' or give alert if signal goes out of a specified range. there's probably some other stuff, watch the eevblog video which goes over the features. as another option the analog discovery might do some of the above as well. no idea which is better / easier. would have to use both and do a review.