[A4] ProDiag vs. VAG-COM

[Richard Hurt]

Ok, since it looks like I've stirred up some interest in this subject, I 
would like to poll everyone to find out which one is "better". 

For the most part I have been leaning toward the VAG-COM simply because it 
seems more user friendly and it may be less expensive in the long run. If 
you have a Windows laptop all you need to purchase is a $250 cable and the 
software is free. This assumes two things; 1) you have a laptop that meets 
the requirements and 2) future versions of the software wont require a new 
cable. This means you get upgrades for free. It also means that it's not 
locked into any particular host machine - as long as you have the cable, 
which acts as a dongle <*shiver*>, you can move the software around as much 
as you like.

The ProDiag has a couple of things going it for it though and a big one is 
portability. Since it runs on a PDA you can drive around for hours watching 
your stats, tweaking settings, etc. It's hard to do this with a laptop. 
Another is that it's pretty compact, again trying to stuff a laptop in the 
glove box is futile. The downside is that you need a PDA and then you have 
to get a cable to fit it. Also, what happens when you need to change PDA's 
or update your ProDiag software? Is there an upgrade fee or is it included?

I think I may still be leaning toward the VAG-COM, just because I don't have 
a PDA and I do have a compatible laptop (although it's really my employers 
machine, they just let me use it :). Any others have a strong opinion one 
way or the other?

Later...
Richard

BTW: I *agree* that it is a worthwhile purchase and $250 is not outrageous 
(and you will get a return very quickly if you need any work done at all) I 
was just looking to save some $$$ where I can. Those new S4s are expensive 
(hell, the A4s are pretty pr icy)!