This new model has a larger centrifuge rotor so there is less of a difference in force from edge to middle of the plate and they added a disposable plate cover to help reduce the chance of cross contamination during evacuation. There is actually no drum around the rotor now. Downside is that it is really big.
We purchased an IDOT L about 6 months ago and it’s a long ways from perfect. It’s correct to say it’s an alternative to an Echo, but overall the Echo is a better product. If the Echo were the same price as the IDOT the IDOT wouldn’t even exist. I think the Echos are easily worth double the price of the Echo just purely from reliability and function standpoint. But 5X the price? No, I can’t justify purchasing an Echo over an IDOT.
What are some of the issues you have observed with the IDOT? I am currently looking into getting one and would like to know more if you have any insights
The issues we come across the most is loading of the wells. This might be better if you don’t get the I.DOT L (the larger of the two source plates). The I.DOT L has a Goldilocks volume range when you load samples.
If you load more than the software expects the instrument will be dispensing more for each drop is dispenses and you’ll run out before your last well. If you load less, well… you won’t have enough volume to make all the dispenses.
If you have bubbles in the liquid you’re screwed.
You cannot centrifuge the plates (they have holes in the bottom of the wells afterall).
Overall I don’t believe this instrument is a great option for full automation. Even the source stage is very tight and your teach points have 0 room for wiggle. The source plate needs to be slightly pressed into place, it’s not just set on the stage. You may actually fair better when loading the wells with an automated liquid handler, but you will spend days getting those dispenses perfect to make sure you’re right at the bottom of the well and you don’t introduce bubbles.
I think over time I will become most accustomed to working with the I.DOT and my opinion may change slightly, but my experience over the past 6 months is mostly aggravation, but successful aggravation.
1 Like
I had the same issue initially but switched to their new “automation trays” and loading of the source and target plates is much better. When we encounter bubbles in our liquids we just use the “redispense missed droplets” function and it seems to work well. My understanding is that the IDOT L does indeed need to know what volume you load as opposed to the S that does not.
I have not had good experiences in the past with the Echo so spending 1/4 the price on the IDOT was a no brainer for us and we have been very happy with the decision.
3 Likes
The Echo has it’s peculiarities as well but my experience with them was once you nailed down a process they were workhorses. We had a very early Echo (2005 serial number) and it was still running like day 1 in 2015.
The problems we had were very similar actually, but less finicky. The Echo source plates have very defined volume range. If you go above or below that you will get dispense errors/non-dispenses. If you’re working with DMSO there was the added complexity that over time the DMSO absorbs water and your 45uL becomes 53uL and the Echo won’t dispense it. 
We also needed to watch our spin down rates on the centrifuge. If you decelerated the centrifuge too fast it would move the liquid’s meniscus to the side and you could get odd dispenses. But all centrifuges have variable decel rates, no big deal, just need to determine the one that works.
2 Likes
Hi @jnecr, I’m sorry to hear that you haven’t been satisfied with your I.DOT user experience. I’d love to connect with you to improve it. Check your DMs! 
Super glad that the automation-friendly source tray and the new re-dispense missed droplets function is working well for you, @BenchMonkey!