I have not used it, but having seen the prices of instruments in labs and in the scientific catalogs, I'd say that a price of around $194 for the Hanna is not exactly out of line (even for a handheld). Although, personally, for that money I'd expect something more than +/- .2 pH accuracy and manual calibration (although the lack of both certainly do NOT make this meter useless).
Although I'm not a big Hanna fan and prefer Milwaukee/Martini instruments myself, that is in large part personal choice combined with favorable past experience with the M/M products. Many of Hanna's products are of great quality and some of them (usually $,$$$, lol) can be found in many professional labs.
I like the "pen" style products over handhelds and benchtops (although I've used each type), but like having a brand of choice, this is personal preference. I have occasionally proven clumsy and although it would be unlikely that I'd drop both the probe and the meter - since they would be in separate hands - I've done worse, lol; and not all handheld - and few benchtop - meters are waterproof other than the probes (not sure about the Hanna as I didn't peruse its manual that closely). Mine floats, as I have personally verified. I can and do travel with my meter (at present I have only a pH/temperature one - a Milwaukee/Martini pH56) and find the pen types to take up less space.
I don't require constant monitoring, but do require more portability than a 6.6' cord from the meter to the probe would provide. Were I to seriously consider a benchtop meter at this point, I would still need a pen or at least a handheld. And if I decided that I did need constant monitoring, I would go with a product that had a USB or at least an RS-232 (old computers are cheap, lol) port so that I could connect it to a computer for data-logging (etc.) purposes. I don't believe that the Hanna model in question has such a feature (although I could be wrong); it would probably increase the price by $100 or so at a guess.
Another reason that I like the pen style meters is that for the price of even a basic multi-function benchtop such as the Hanna, I can have two separate meters. Which means that if one "function" breaks or just needs a new probe, I still have the other "function" (meter).
Again, most of that is personal preference. I have not read any bad reports about the Hanna model and assume it to be a decent entry level benchtop meter at an inexpensive price (for the product type).
I glanced at the Bluelab model and it looks to have slightly more features - including a calibration sequence that does not involve using a screwdriver, better accuracy at +/- .1 pH, ability to read TDS using either a 500 or a 700 conversion-factor, and the option of displaying EC directly. For the price, I guess I'd consider it a better value than the Hanna even at $75-$100 more. But I do not believe it has the ability to interface with a computer (again, I could be wrong) either which would exclude data-logging and the possibility for computer control of pH and/or nutrient strength.
Whatever you end up getting, please come back and let us know how you like it.
