I used the Senior 3G, Platinum and Xcell while I Was at school. I didn’t bother with the Junior or Cleo, having felt that the features of the Senior were the minimum I could go with as a professional.
My impression at the time, was that the Senior does an adequate job, but I preferred the Platinum over it. The Xcell I felt was more of a gimmick, largely because Silhouet-Tone came out with a machine with a touch screen, and the school (which is also a Dectro vendor) told us there wasn’t much reason to get an Xcell over the Platinum and that they hadn’t sold any yet at that time. I also really disliked the slow start up delay on the Xcell and flat out hated the touch screen interface.
I had wanted to go with the Platinum, but when I was forced to self finance my business startup, at nearly half the cost, I went with the Senior. Much as my assessment was back then, it is certainly adequate for what I do, but I do feel its limitations at times. My business has grown to the point where I’m going to be forced to expand soon and I’ll buy a Platinum for myself, give the Senior to my apprentice to use and eventually, once I pay off the cost of expanding, will likely get another Platinum for her, relegating the Senior to my backup machine. I’d go for an Xcell for the extra features, but I can’t get over the interface - I find it totally cumbersome and unbearable, particularly if you’re going to tweak your settings instead of using the defaults. Maybe I didn’t give it enough time, but I hate smartphones for similar reasons - the tool gets in my way.
As far as probes go, they’re another tool… sometimes insulated probes are better, sometimes, stainless ones are. Sometimes, I like a 2 piece, sometimes, I like a 1 piece. I like having a lot of different tools, so I can use the treatment that I feel is most appropriate for my current needs.