Looking for recommendations in EU area, Im currently looking models ERSA icon-1 325€ or icon nano around 200€, those seem to be easily available, JBC starts from 500€ and pace I didnt really even find.
Pace on their website links this distributor but it should be carried by most Pace distributors in Europe or they can at least get it in for you. I believe list is 325€ as well.
http://www.prodi.fi/node/30
I'm biased obviously as I knew about the Esra stations but went with the new Pace stations when they came out. But anyway here are my thoughts on it:
The Pico is not ESD safe and has a pretty average stand so take a good look at it before buying. The Nano has an antistatic design and better stand. Both are similar performance according to Esra (68W according to the manual).
They are about half the weight and size of the Pace ADS200 in fact the ADS200s transformer looks too large to fit inside an Esra case. Aside from 120W power the ADS200 has several features those two Esra stations are missing the biggies are no calibration required, aluminum iron, shorter tip to work distance, quick tip swapping. The Pace, Metcal and JBC equivalents are cartridge based irons they all take about 5 seconds to do a tip swap. Pace includes the best tool for the job in my opinion.
Looking at the Esra handle the tip distance it seems longer, there is extra plastic taken up by the collar that is used to secure the tip to the iron. You might also want to check the prices on those tips compared to Paces cartridges. The only other thing that strikes me with those two Esras is the temp set digits look super tiny and you might want to check if it has an LCD backlight.
If you do decide to get a Pace ADS200, for a little more you can get the instant setback version this has a cable that connects to the station to allow a configurable triggered low temp mode. So good if you are only doing intermittent soldering and want to keep the station on and save power. Ensure you also order some cartridge tips.
Ersa, not Esra. And they were comparing the i-CON 1 and the nano, not the pico and the nano.
I have the i-CON Nano. The distance from the edge of the grip to the tip of the included 1.6mm chisel is 52mm (ADS200 page states 48mm). Ersa tips are very inexpensive, under €10 for normal types. As long as you also buy an extra ferrule for each tip, changing tips is easily done with no tools, even while hot.
The Nano (and pico) LCD is not backlit, which is annoying IMHO. (I modded mine with LED sidelights.) The i-CON 1 and bigger all have backlit graphical LCDs.
The Nano (and pico) uses idle-time based setback, with wake up determined by sudden temp plunge from touching the brass wool. Works well most of the time, but when it's in a cooldown phase (e.g. cooling from working temp->setback, or setback->standby), it's expecting a temp drop and won't wake automatically. (Pressing any button wakes it.) The i-CON 1 and bigger use an accelerometer in the handle for setback.
Ersa's specs are maddening, in terms of wattages. The nano and pico are both rated 68W, or 80W, depending on where you look. (Is the 80W peak??) The i-CON 1 is rated at 80W — or 150W. The 1 and nano share the same heater module, which is rated 150W. (The pico uses a cheaper plastic-bodied heater.)
Ersa is a bit more affordable in Europe, thanks to being a European brand. But it looks like the ADS200 is probably a bit better. For sure, as of right now, Ersa is more readily available in Europe.