Quanta System Discovery Pico Plus

The Discovery Pico Plus is the most complete model in Quanta System's Discovery Pico family. It carries everything in the base Discovery Pico, meaning Nd:YAG output at 1064 nm and 532 nm in picosecond, Q-switched and photothermal modes plus a Twain accessory connector, and adds a 694 nm ruby laser that works in Q-switched and long pulse modes. The Plus first appears by name in FDA clearance K171945, decided on July 28, 2017.

The ruby source carries its own indications. In Q-switched mode, 694 nm is cleared for tattoo removal with blue, sky blue, black, green and violet ink suggested, and for benign pigmented lesions including nevus of Ota and Ito, cafe au lait spots, lentigines and Mongolian spots. In long pulse mode it is cleared for benign dermal and epidermal pigmented lesions and for hair removal on skin types I to IV. Quanta lists repetition rates up to 3 Hz for the ruby in photothermal mode, compared with up to 10 Hz for the Nd:YAG wavelengths. A 2019 clearance added microbeam handpieces for the 694 nm Q-switched output as well.

The 694 nm option is the main way to tell a Plus from a standard Discovery Pico. If the wavelength menu offers 694 nm, the unit is a Plus. The Discovery Pico Derm, by contrast, has no Q-switched sources and no Twain connector. All three share handpiece formats: round spots from 2 to 12 mm, square spots from 2 to 7 mm and 8 or 9 mm fractional and microbeam handpieces.

A Plus has three laser sources, so a buyer will want evidence that each one works and has been maintained. Include the service history for the ruby and Nd:YAG sources, the software version, and a screen photo showing all wavelengths available. Then list each handpiece by shape and size, any microbeam or Twain accessories, and the condition of the articulated arm. Photograph the serial label with the model name.