[s-cars] VAG COM and other electronic diagnostics

[Manuel Sanchez]

Fellow S-Heads,

I admittedly don't know diddly about VAG COM or other electronic  
diagnostics, so I'd like to ask a few simple newbie questions:

If you were going to buy some sort of electronic vehicle diagnostic  
tool today, should you buy one that is "new" on the market that would  
need or be able to talk to OBD 1 and OBD 2 cars or would you buy VAG  
COM?

Can VAG COM read items that a run of the mill current electronic  
diagnostic tool can't?

I ask because I have 2 VAG products;  one is OBD 1 and the other OBD 2.

I also have a non VAG product (OBD II).

In an ideal world I would get one device that talks to all of them in  
the best possible way (but I'm guessing this does not exist at Shade  
Tree Mechanic pricing).

Thanks.

Manny