New Zoyi multimeter+oscilloscopes - ZT-70xS, up to 50MHz/250MSps (nov 2022)

[Payne]

If you want to avoid changing the charge protection IC, and you want to protect the battery, you can also just avoid charging the battery fully by keeping an eye on the charge current with a USB charge monitor, and stop the charging when the current starts dropping in the CV phase

I can tell you that it will not work. We usually connect the usb cable and go to do some other things, and forget about charging, so it will charge to full in 99% of all charges. The only thing why I don't replace the charge controller is that this device is several years on the market and nobody reported any fire issue or battery degradation yet, so the internal battery protection works fine. It's true that the charging voltage is too high for this type of the li-ion battery and the led blinks at the end, but I don't see any issues after 1 year of use, the battery still works as it should, so I think the replacement of the charging controller is not required unless someone replaces the original battery with some other one, that may not manage the higher charging voltage the same way as the original one does. It's more about the feeling to be on the safe side, I think. Maybe I will also replace the charging controller some day, but not sooner than I want to replace the original battery Or maybe I will replace the whole device with something better and throw it away until the day when the original battery becomes completely unusable

You are probably right...

I have built myself an HA Esphome ESP32 controller circuit with current sensor, MOSFET switch and USB connections for the same purpose - can and are also used for other products that I don't want to be fully charged

[tol]

I have built myself an HA Esphome ESP32 controller circuit with current sensor, MOSFET switch and USB connections for the same purpose - can and are also used for other products that I don't want to be fully charged

It's a good idea if you want to prolong the life of some really expensive devices. But most people don't bother about the life time of cheap devices. For example, I still keep a HP IPAQ h2210 Pocket PC on Windows Mobile 2003, it's 12 years old and it still works with the original li-ion battery (not too long though). It was really cool at those days. Do I need it now? NO! Do I use it now? NO! So the idea is that there always appears something better before the original battery of the device dies completely! Zoyi 703 with all it's oscilloscope bugs is surely not what you want to use in the year of 2035! yes, it has a fine working multimeter, but I bet you will replace it with something more cool in 3-5 years for sure, so I don't see any reason to try to prolong it's battery life by all means... I already ordered some other pocket oscilloscope and this buggy Zoyi seems to become an ordinary DMM for me in the future.

[Skander]

A device rated at 50MHz should be usable at that frequency, no? Even of the fast mode this struggles beyond 47~MHz and 50 is outright unusable.

There are lots of weird trigger bugs and just general trigger issues. Trigger missing the signal instead of the rising edge being centered. CH1 not centering even when CH2 is off.
The amplitude of signals are sometimes completely off between triggers (halved, or worse)? Then they're correct again on another random trigger.

Firmware v1.64, apparently the latest.

Do I have a lemon or is this the general experience? I'm leaning towards initiating a return while I can because for actual use, this is worthless at the current state. It's a toy.

No issues with the DMM but this isn't worth it as an 80$ DMM with a broken OSC.

[Payne]

A device rated at 50MHz should be usable at that frequency, no? Even of the fast mode this struggles beyond 47~MHz and 50 is outright unusable.

There are lots of weird trigger bugs and just general trigger issues. Trigger missing the signal instead of the rising edge being centered. CH1 not centering even when CH2 is off.
The amplitude of signals are sometimes completely off between triggers (halved, or worse)? Then they're correct again on another random trigger.

Firmware v1.64, apparently the latest.

Do I have a lemon or is this the general experience? I'm leaning towards initiating a return while I can because for actual use, this is worthless at the current state. It's a toy.

No issues with the DMM but this isn't worth it as an 80$ DMM with a broken OSC.

Agree with all you are writing - however I find v1.4.2 the best version, I have tried.

The oscilloscope IS usable, I think, but you have to know its limitations for now - and hope ZOYI are reading all what comes up in this forum for releasing a much better "final" FW.

It certainly have its trigger issues, but the way I work with it is to avoid triggering below 500nsec - instead I trigger at 500nsec, "Hold" the signal and zoom in to 250-10nsec and  "Move" the signal to what I want to look at.

From 25usec timebase and all the way down to 10nsec, the scope will sample at 5nsec intervals (200MHz sample rate), so no data are lost by triggering at 500nsec - and the full sample window is about 600usec in total from 25usec to 10nsec.

The best part is the portability and battery powered and free from relating to ground. But you can also get this from other small scopes

If you come across a scope that is below 100€ and better performance and more "final" firmware, it would be really interesting to hear about

[Skander]

A device rated at 50MHz should be usable at that frequency, no? Even of the fast mode this struggles beyond 47~MHz and 50 is outright unusable.

There are lots of weird trigger bugs and just general trigger issues. Trigger missing the signal instead of the rising edge being centered. CH1 not centering even when CH2 is off.
The amplitude of signals are sometimes completely off between triggers (halved, or worse)? Then they're correct again on another random trigger.

Firmware v1.64, apparently the latest.

Do I have a lemon or is this the general experience? I'm leaning towards initiating a return while I can because for actual use, this is worthless at the current state. It's a toy.

No issues with the DMM but this isn't worth it as an 80$ DMM with a broken OSC.

Agree with all you are writing - however I find v1.4.2 the best version, I have tried.

The oscilloscope IS usable, I think, but you have to know its limitations for now - and hope ZOYI are reading all what comes up in this forum for releasing a much better "final" FW.

It certainly have its trigger issues, but the way I work with it is to avoid triggering below 500nsec - instead I trigger at 500nsec, "Hold" the signal and zoom in to 250-10nsec and  "Move" the signal to what I want to look at.

From 25usec timebase and all the way down to 10nsec, the scope will sample at 5nsec intervals (200MHz sample rate), so no data are lost by triggering at 500nsec - and the full sample window is about 600usec in total from 25usec to 10nsec.

The best part is the portability and battery powered and free from relating to ground. But you can also get this from other small scopes

If you come across a scope that is below 100€ and better performance and more "final" firmware, it would be really interesting to hear about

Thanks for the tips.

The DSO3D12 is 95USD VAT included, it honestly might be a much better option from what I can find online, but obviously I do not have one to validate that. It seems portable enough even if it isn't technically a handheld. It's battery powered and small enough to fit in your hand.

I'm going to wait until the end of my return window, and see if a new firmware comes out that fixes these issues. Though I doubt it given the presence of some of these issues for months now..

[tol]

I'm going to wait until the end of my return window, and see if a new firmware comes out that fixes these issues. Though I doubt it given the presence of some of these issues for months now..

If you still have time to return it, better do it. Unfortunately, Zoyi cannot make good firmware for it. As for DSO3D12, the positive side of it is that its firmware was disassembled and now anyone can improve it, there is already alternative firmware with better UI design and new features, so this device has some future even if the producers abandon its development some day. The funny thing is that it seems that there are no bugs to fix, as they only add new features that the developer couldn't implement in the original firmware, this means that the device is reliable from the box even with the original firmware. Unfortunately, it's not the case with 703, as only the producer can edit the firmware, and we are only allowed to choose between many versions, and all of them have various bugs. As it was already mentioned here, v1.4.2 is probably one of the most usable, at least because it doesn't slow down the oscilloscope as the latest 1.5.x versions do. But it also has trigger bugs and other issues. This device was promising 1 year ago because it had good hardware for its price, but now we all see that Zoyi failed in the firmware development, and IMHO it's not worth spending money on it today. Evidently, to make this device reliable, they need to hire professional programmers to write new firmware from the beginning or make the current firmware opensource to allow other users find and fix the bugs, but it feels that they will not take a chance with any of these options

[tol]

I'm going to wait until the end of my return window, and see if a new firmware comes out that fixes these issues. Though I doubt it given the presence of some of these issues for months now..

I've just received DSO3D12 from China. My first impression: it is better than Zoyi in everything except DMM. The DMM works fine but is not convenient IMHO, it's longer and more difficult to switch the measuring modes than in a typical multimeter, so if you switch between Resistance and Voltage too often, you will hate it. I've heard they made a faster switch in the latest firmware but I still need to try it. The oscilloscope is surely better that Zoyi's, but some buttons look like they were placed randomly without any logic, so you will need time to get used to where the required buttons are and what they do. The trigger always works good in all time scales that I tested and the Auto button is very fast (~ 1 second). Zeeweii is faster than Zoyi both in GUI and when working with the signal. There are more features for measuring. Separate buttons for time and voltage are more convenient than switching those in Zoiy's menu. The only annoying thing is the waving in the beginning and in the end of the signal at high frequencies, kind of the Bart Simpson effect, but this may be typical for cheap oscilloscopes, I don't know. I wanted to compare both with the same signal in different time scales, but Zoyi's trigger doesn't work with many signals, so I cannot do it.  Here is just a simple comparison (the same probe P6100 was used): the first pair of photos is 2Mhz internal DSO3D12 generator, and the second pair of photos is 10Mhz ESP32 generator at 2 bits resolution using ledcWrite(), so don't expect super quality. I don't have professional generators for comparison.

[Skander]

I'm going to wait until the end of my return window, and see if a new firmware comes out that fixes these issues. Though I doubt it given the presence of some of these issues for months now..

I've just received DSO3D12 from China. My first impression: it is better than Zoyi in everything except DMM. The DMM works fine but is not convenient IMHO, it's longer and more difficult to switch the measuring modes than in a typical multimeter, so if you switch between Resistance and Voltage too often, you will hate it. I've heard they made a faster switch in the latest firmware but I still need to try it. The oscilloscope is surely better that Zoyi's, but some buttons look like they were placed randomly without any logic, so you will need time to get used to where the required buttons are and what they do. The trigger always works good in all time scales that I tested and the Auto button is very fast (~ 1 second). Zeeweii is faster than Zoyi both in GUI and when working with the signal. There are more features for measuring. Separate buttons for time and voltage are more convenient than switching those in Zoiy's menu. The only annoying thing is the waving in the beginning and in the end of the signal at high frequencies, kind of the Bart Simpson effect, but this may be typical for cheap oscilloscopes, I don't know. I wanted to compare both with the same signal in different time scales, but Zoyi's trigger doesn't work with many signals, so I cannot do it.  Here is just a simple comparison (the same probe P6100 was used): the first pair of photos is 2Mhz internal DSO3D12 generator, and the second pair of photos is 10Mhz ESP32 generator at 2 bits resolution using ledcWrite(), so don't expect super quality. I don't have professional generators for comparison.
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This is incredibly helpful, thank you!

I have to say, the fit and finish of the DSO3D12 seems quite meh, and from teardowns it doesn't inspire much confidence. The UI does feel clunky from reviews as well, along with some weird priorities (voice control?)
I think I wouldn't be satisfied with either of these devices. It's a shame we can't get something the size/finish of the Zoyi with a functional firmware and perhaps slightly more capable hardware.

I am going to simply return the Zoyi as the end of the return window approaches. 

[tol]

I have to say, the fit and finish of the DSO3D12 seems quite meh, and from teardowns it doesn't inspire much confidence. The UI does feel clunky from reviews as well, along with some weird priorities (voice control?)
I think I wouldn't be satisfied with either of these devices.

Well, I don't say anything about its appearance (it's a working device for me but not a sculpture) but at least it does its job. What I like in it is fast and properly working Auto button and stable and correct trigger (BTW, it is automatic by default, so you don't need to bother with its setting like in Zoyi in many cases). Now I can catch the signals that I couldn't see with Zoyi, this is what I wanted when I paid money for it. If you need more for a higher price, check out DS4T252/DS4T1012, they have slightly better screen resolution, touch screen and advanced features - many users are happy and don't say anything bad about them. The price is not above the clouds but it is close to a desktop hantek with much better quality and features, this is one of the reasons why I finally bought Zeeweii - yes it's a toy in comparison with desktop oscilloscopes, but it's a cheap and working toy
As far as Zoyi is concerned, I'd also return it if I could, but it's more than 1 year old already, so it's stays as DMM for me, as its DMM satisfies my needs completely, I wouldn't recommend it as an oscilloscope for even simple needs though. Now when I have 2 devices at hand, I completely understand how much time I wasted with Zoyi trying to do the things that are really fast and simple with Zeeweii...

[indman]

Now when I have 2 devices at hand, I completely understand how much time I wasted with Zoyi trying to do the things that are really fast and simple with Zeeweii...

Everything is learned in comparison! When I bought the ZT703, I was primarily hoping to get a working DMM without any problems, and it fulfilled my expectations.
I didn't have much hope for the oscilloscope, so I wasn't too disappointed either.

[tol]

I didn't have much hope for the oscilloscope, so I wasn't too disappointed either.

And I hoped that the oscilloscope would work well because I already had several DMMs when I decided to buy Zoyi. There are much cheaper DMMs that work not worse than Zoyi's, so I think people who buy 703 are mostly interested to get a pocket oscilloscope in the first place, and the DMM is a kind of bonus

[IC_Toaster]

I didn't have much hope for the oscilloscope, so I wasn't too disappointed either.

And I hoped that the oscilloscope would work well because I already had several DMMs when I decided to buy Zoyi. There are much cheaper DMMs that work not worse than Zoyi's, so I think people who buy 703 are mostly interested to get a pocket oscilloscope in the first place, and the DMM is a kind of bonus

When I bought this Zoyi, I did it because I thought this was a cheap way to have a basic oscilloscope plus a DMM. As you said, there are a lot of DMMs that are cheaper and more accurate.

[mebel]

End of 703s?

https://imgur.com/a/3pnaK7n

They write something here, but you need an invitation to register on the forum

https://www.mydigit.cn/thread-459243-1-1.html

[Skander]

End of 703s?

https://imgur.com/a/3pnaK7n

They write something here, but you need an invitation to register on the forum

https://www.mydigit.cn/thread-459243-1-1.html

Meh, so there goes any hope of them fixing stuff once the new shiny toy is out...  . Return it is then.
I doubt this 706s will come out anytime soon though given that the forum post is from 2024. But who knows.

It's also present in their "happy 2026" poster on the website as well if you pay attention. Not with the 702/703 in the middle - but to the upper left.

[mebel]

I think it will be soon released because it is on new years video on zotek web page.

[xfint34]

Maybe they hired the dude who was working on the new firmware for the zt703.

[Skander]

An image from the Chinese forum that I was able to obtain;

Seems like the 706S will also be 50MHz, signal gen will apparently go up to 10MHz, and will have "VFC" (?) - this attached image is from 2024 so it might change. But the "VFC" marking on the one showcased in the new year video matches this early leak so it's probably the case.

Seems like it won't be a worthwhile upgrade vs 703S if the bandwidth is still 50MHz.

[tol]

Seems like it won't be a worthwhile upgrade vs 703S if the bandwidth is still 50MHz.

If it had 100Mhz, will you buy it when you know how the firmware of 703 is made and supported? ;-)

[wilfred]

When I bought this Zoyi, I did it because I thought this was a cheap way to have a basic oscilloscope plus a DMM. As you said, there are a lot of DMMs that are cheaper and more accurate.

I bought one basically because Dave said it was OK for the money. I've only had it a few months and so far it has gotten the job done. I think it was a bit under AU$100.

[mebel]

VFC is probably voltage frequency converter.

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/vfc-on-a-multmeter/

[IC_Toaster]

VFC is probably voltage frequency converter.

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/vfc-on-a-multmeter/

I think it is Variable Frecuency Converter.

[xKertx]

I don't understand why are they wasting time and energy to develop this crappy sig-gen and all the other bells and whistles when instead they should focus on getting the basics (the scope) working properly.

[IC_Toaster]

I don't understand why are they wasting time and energy to develop this crappy sig-gen and all the other bells and whistles when instead they should focus on getting the basics (the scope) working properly.

I understand this is not a waste of energy. It allow them selling more.
Many people don't have enough knowledge to know if that is a crappy sig-en or not, but they know what a sig-gen is, and that device has it.
I agree with you, but our interest is different from manufacturers interest.

[xKertx]

Well obviously I don’t know much about the business side or marketing and i don't run a company.
I would think they’d sell more if they made products that are simpler but actually work and focused on building their brand. And maybe someone could even recommend their products to new users.
But by releasing half-baked, buggy products and adding all the unneccesary bells and whistles, they’re ruining their reputation (if there even was one). Once word gets out online about bad products, it’ll be tough to sell new stuff—unless they start a whole new company with new name.

[Skander]

Seems like it won't be a worthwhile upgrade vs 703S if the bandwidth is still 50MHz.

If it had 100Mhz, will you buy it when you know how the firmware of 703 is made and supported? ;-)

Maybe? Unsure. It does give a couple years of more software support so there is a small chance they get their sh*t together eventually and fix the bugs 
I wouldn't spend more than 60 USD on this toy though given their record. Thankfully my 703s is on its way back. Will report here later how the Ali return process goes.