I think, to summarise this energetic thread, that ‘true analog scope’ aka CRO has for some time transitioned to heritage technology. If you are a hobbyist, it depends a bit on what form or direction your hobby takes, but for someone learning modern electronics, a DSO is surely the right proposition if you can get one. There are still compromises at the very bottom end, but if you reach for the Rigol/Siglent/Instek/Micsig arena, the machine will be very functional, modern, with warranty protection.
I thought I would make a comment though about the historic significance of the CROs. Everyone who has used one will have cranked the timebase to maximum time, and watched the bright dot process smoothly across at constant speed, left to right, before flicking back and tracking across again.
But now at fast (but not exceptional) timebase of 20ns/div — get your calculator out to check me — the same beam is tracking horizontally at 500000 m/s, a horizontal line speed of more than 300 miles/second! And the thing that remains astounding for me is that it can repeatedly trigger and track the same groove on the screen, with calibrated speed and mm accuracy. Outside of a physics lab, I’m not sure if anything on earth moves that fast!
This humble vacuum tube ‘etch-a-sketch’ enabled us to see and study things in the natural world that were impossible otherwise. It must surely be one of the most significant inventions of the 20th century, shaping our contemporary world, including the world of computers and, of course, making DSOs possible.
So even if CRO is not for electronics any more, the concept, what was achieved with these machines, still worthy of respect. Might help explain why some of us still hang on to them.