If you or your friends or family have no need whatsoever for a remarkably 
cheap and good value test meter then press delete now.

But, if, for under $NZ9 you may occasionally want to test fuses (car or 
house), see if a plug is live, a bulb really blown, a torch or transistor 
battery dead or alive etc - then read on.

DSE have a remarkably well priced multimeter on special until May 14th (next 
Sunday).
Q1467 for $8.96 retail incl GST (in NZ).

    http://www.dse.co.nz/cgi-bin/dse.storefront/44607880057348e02740c0a87f99071c/Product/View/Q1467

It seems a very credible meter for the money (or even for slightly over 
double the price - usually $17.94)
If you want a spare meter or two for the car, workshop, boat or around the 
house or as a "stocking filler" this seems to be a good buy. An excellent 
present for a teenager who is starting out in things electrical and hasn't 
got a meter.

In quick comparison tests with several meters costing up to ten or twenty 
times as much I found that accuracy was commendably good, entirely good 
enough for everyday use and well up to what would be expected for the money.

I won't go into full detail but the following is what helps make it a good 
enough meter compared to some other dearer bottom end offerings:

  - 10 Amp DC range.

  - Hold button to allow holding readings for later reading. (eg under car 
use etc).(Having 3 arms always helps)

  - Plug in test leads (not fixed like some el-cheapos).

  - Very safe test leads with shrouds at meter end and removable safety 
shields at measuring end. (I remove and lose such things promptly but they 
are great for people who care).

  - Reasonably well built. Larger than some 'toy' meters. Switch action 
feels good (famous last words). Tasteful gold finish [:-)] rather than usual 
yellow or red.

  - 200 uA range with 0.1 uA resolution, transistor tester and diode tester 
(more for techies)

Main shortcomings:

  No continuity beeper on low ohms (a sad loss ;-) ). Still OK for 
continuity measurements (fuses, wiring, bulbs, power cables (disconnected!) 
etc BUT you have to watch the display rather than just listen for the beep. 
Only a problem for extended use.

  No AC amps.

  MAY fail catastrophically on mains measurements if large fault voltage 
spikes are present. This is true of most cheap meters. I have used many 
extensively on mains measurements over many years without problems.It can 
happen, but the dangers from making mains measurements are far higher than 
any risk from the meter.



          Russell
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