epMotion® 96 by Eppendorf

"I am very conflicted about the epMotion; it has been of huge help in preparing a large number of 96-well plates each day, which saves us a ton of time. It pipettes accurately and consistently, and having all of the same adjustable features you expect in an electronic multichannel in a 96-well format great. However, the product has two major flaws. First, the stage that holds the plate and fluid reservoir is held in place with a small knob, which seems to use friction to hold the plate up to the pipette tips while it is dispensing or aspirating. Because it uses friction and not an actual locking mechanism, the part seems to have worn out quickly. After less than a year of use the stage will now fall down without warning, or refuse to be fastened in place at all. This just seems like a poorly-thought out design. We have requested that the machine be serviced, but having these parts degrade so quickly is disappointing. Second, the epMotion is controlled via an iPod embedded in the front of the machine. The unit produces its own wifi signal, which the embedded iPod must be connected to in order to control it. If it disconnects, the machine will stop pipetting and must be restarted. The app is extremely buggy and/or the wifi signal generated by the unit is very spotty; it tends to disconnect regularly during use, requiring the machine to be restarted (sometimes on the order of every 5th or 6th plate). The epMotion iPod app has its own cadre of bugs, regularly freezing, entering "simulation mode" for no discernible reason, telling the user that they must use the "blow-out" function before selecting a pipetting mode - when the blow-out function is only available after selecting said pipetting mode! It's just a mess."