Florin "VoltLog" C. Offers a Surprisingly Quick-and-Easy Wi-Fi Upgrade Trick for Rigol DHO800 Scopes
With a USB hub, keyboard, and a particular model of Wi-Fi dongle, you too can have a wirelessly-accessible Rigol DHO800-series DSO.
Florin "VoltLog" C. has come up with a clever upgrade for Rigol DHO800-series digital storage oscilloscopes, adding Wi-Fi capabilities by taking advantage of the fact the device runs Google's Android mobile software under the hood.
"A common concern from my Rigol DHO800 series oscilloscope review [was] the lack of built-in Wi-Fi," Florin explains by way of introduction to his latest video. "Credit goes to the knowledgeable community over at the EEVBlog forum for discovering that the Rigol's Android operating system already contains drivers for the Realtek RTL8188 chipset found in the TP-Link adapter. This makes the upgrade essentially a plug-and-play experience!"
The Rigol DHO800 series is a feature-packed digital storage oscilloscope, offering everything you'd expect — but with a few odd corners cut, including a lack of Wi-Fi network connectivity and an inability to change the display brightness. Both, thankfully, can be worked around, thanks to Rigol opting to build the device atop Google's Android platform rather than to roll its own operating system.
Solving the lack of Wi-Fi connectivity is a little trickier than simply plugging a USB Wi-Fi dongle in and expecting it to work. "The process involves accessing the Android OS settings through keyboard shortcuts," Florin explains, "connecting to your preferred Wi-Fi network, and then tweaking a few settings." As a result, you'll need a USB hub so you can connect both the USB dongle and the keyboard at the same time.
"Keep in mind that this isn't officially supported by Rigol, so there might be quirks," Florin warns. "The GUI [Graphical User Interface] won't show Wi-Fi connectivity accurately, [but] despite these minor inconveniences, once set up, the scope will automatically connect to Wi-Fi upon every power-up."
The brightness, meanwhile? "With the keyboard shortcuts, specifically Windows + N, you can access the Android global brightness settings," Florin adds, "enhancing your viewing experience on the glossy screen."
More information is available in Florin's video, embedded above and on the VoltLog YouTube channel.