UNI-T AC/DC Modern Digital Auto Ranging Multimeter (Multitester True RMS)

This is a fantastic meter by any standard; especially for the price. I sunk a lot of time and research into choosing this puppy. I purchased to replace a Fluke 289 I have had for many years (a meter that is still at least 7 times the price of this one). Over my years of usage with the Fluke I came to love it's accuracy and fluidity but loath what I consider the price gouging that goes on with the gold standard in multi meters. When my Fluke started giving issues I decided to dip my foot into the Chinese clone market figuring after 7 years or so of technology advancement somebody should be able to build a decent meter for under $60! I was not disappointed at all with this meter. The physical and electrical build quality is good. Structurally it is about 75% that of the Fluke which is way over engineered (the Fluke is designed for field abuse, day in day out). Electrically (safety wise for high voltage work) I'd say it's also 75% compared to my old Fluke (I'm talking about the contacts inside the case if you were to open [don't do this unless you know what you're doing], blow out separation on the main circuit board, etc). If you're going to be doing very high voltage work (above standard mains power) the Fluke 289 will withstand a "catastrophic failure" better than this meter, however I have used this meter with mains power (110/120v) quite comfortably. I even gave it a little trauma test on mains power (do not do this) due to a rather tricky high voltage frequency measurement. It squealed like a stuck pig (the warning tone) but it didn't even shut down or lock up. When you understand the level of power and energy inside your humble electrical socket you'll understand why this impressed me a whole lot and gave me confidence to do almost any DC work which is low voltage compared to mains power. I've been using this meter almost daily for several hours a day since I got it about a month ago and I have fallen in love with it. I've hit it with 1-2A current analysis at 12V without any issues. Also been current testing in the low mA range without any issues. I like the fact that the meter is paranoid about safety and will give warning tones with rapidly rising current in the sub 500mA range because low amperage ports are only fused to 1A. I think that additional audible alarm on fast rising current can save many a newbie from a blown fuse and even experienced users from carelessness. I'm comparing this meter to a $500 meter and I can honestly say unless you're a field technician working for some sort of utility who will be dropping their meter, bumping it into stuff and subjecting it to much abuse there's no reason to be fleeced anymore by the big boy on the block. Also for the price of this meter you could afford to blow one up and buy another for the price of the lowest priced Fluke available (which is NOT the quality of the 289; which is a "professional" meter). I hope this review helps a person or two. I was really skittish about spitting out the "yellow lemonade" of the big brand for this relatively unknown but I hope the manufacturer keeps this up because they've got a winning combination on their hands with price point vs quality. The accuracy is as good as the Fluke, the speed to update is very slightly less and the leads are plastic not silicone. I've purposefully used the plastic leads instead of the Fluke silicone ones I have just to test the unit "as is" and while less convenient than the silicone leads I can live with them and I'll save my silicone leads for when I need them inside a vertical panel box full of wires and other tangle hazards rather than my lab workbench where I can comfortably route the cables out of the way. Hopefully this baby will keep serving me for a long while. If you do enough experimenting and research you'll subject your meter to electrical abuse eventually. Paying more than the cost of a good oscilloscope just for a multi meter in this day is just down right ridiculous unless you're in very specific lines of work. I'll update this review sometime in the future after more adventures in Mr. Ohm's playground. Hopefully I'll still be as pleased as I am today. PS: I treat my equipment well. Any abuse my equipment suffers is in the line of duty due to the nature of my work. If you are new to meters take the time to study, learn and experiment safely at low voltages and currents before moving up. READ the MANUAL and follow DUTY CYCLE WARNINGS! If you want to "dive right in" buy a $10 meter and expect to blow it up :-) Electronics is a beautiful thing, but electricity is unforgiving. Also you can't buy a new life!

Decent chinese product by a rising brand. At this price range it is a very strong competitor. Sturdy, decent build with nice features. 20000 count is attractive (it worked on me) but be aware that very few devices have the precision and the accuracy to back up that many digits on the readout. They usualy are "precision" desktop devices from major brands (e.g. HP, Agilent, etc.) and cost more than ten times the price of this little Uni-T. Look at the specifications and do the math. And given the unestablished nature of the brand, take the specs with a bit of salt, too. Also, keep in mind that the device is not calibrated formaly, and therefore you can only count of the QC of the manufacturer. All in all, look at the indicated value with a certain indulgence as you should anyway, for any device in this price range! After these caveats, why 5 starts after all? Because the whole package - device plus price, placed in the context of the competition, is a good deal. At 45-50$, it's a decent build with nice features: autoscale that works ok, decent precision (specs are not bad! Do a bit of comparison with other manuf., weigh the brands and still this is a good choice), freq. and capacity measurements, mV and uA scales, relative measurements. Measurement speed (display update speed: ~3Hz I'd say) could be higher, but it works ok. The computer connection is DB9 serial port based, which you can hardly find on current desktops (let alone laptops). Didn't find a partiicular need for it so it doesn;t bother me, but if you plan on using it, think usb/serial adapter or know that you still have a serial port somewhere. At 50$ you can hardly find better.

The meter is functionally top of the line, pricewise the unit is middle of the road. This meter is built very well, it’s not a Fluke but it’s not priced like a Fluke either. The product was packaged and shipped flawlessly; no excessive packaging, environmentally friendly and shipping was spot on with tracking telling me exactly where the product was. This was difficult considering the absolute shutdown of the transportation system during the winter storms. The product shipped with the UNI-T UT61E multimeter and test leads, an instruction booklet along with a micro-CD with software and a USB/serial cable, and a very interesting connector that plugs into the meter allowing easy measurements of electronic components. The meter has a good grip feeling, sturdy and secure, the decaling of the meter is good with easy to read labels and button functions. The range selection knob is well designed with easy to read settings and is somewhat recessed and out of the way. The LCD panel is of good reading size and displays both measurement readings and meter function settings. I have tested each of the meter functions and was pleased with the meter accuracy and ease of operation. You can read the product details to find the meters capabilities which are impressive. I am pleased with the product, pleased with the price, and am looking forward to a very useful tool in my electronics experimentation.

Best meter for the Price. Also came with an adaptar to measure capacitors which wasn't show in the pictures. It's fairly accurate and does a good job. The part I like the dial is simple and has autoranging so you don't have 20 some selections to choose from. The only drawback is the leads... So it doesn't hurt to buy a set of nicer leads to go with it. its the best meter in the 50 $ range

Beware false advertising on this one. Not a bad multimeter but has no MOVs inside so would definitely fail the cat 4 spec. Dodgy stuff, for the cost of $2 in components they could have had a DMM that met specs.

Buenas calidad

This meter offers incredible value. The 22,000 count provides 3 digit resolution up to 22 major units; for example, when measuring DC voltage you can expect 3 digit resolution up to 22.XXX volts. By comparison, a 6,000 count meter - common at this price point - will provide 3 digit resolution only up to 6.XXX volts. As soon as you exceed 6 volts on a 6,000 count meter, the meter will drop a unit of resolution. It's common for electronic hobbyists to be working in the entire range of 0 to 22 volts, so the extra resolution provided by the UT61E meter is a very useful feature. The meter is also equipped to do data logging; that means that it will connect to your computer via an included cable, and take readings at a user selectable rate. These readings are then recorded, and can be reviewed later. This is a great help when trying to capture transient problems in a device. There are a few other meters at this price level that offer such data logging capability; but you must purchase a proprietary cable, which is usually quite expensive. By comparison, the UT61E includes both the cable and some basic data logging software on disk. However... the cable included requires an RS-232 port on your computer. Manufacturers stopped putting RS-232 ports on computers about 10 years ago, so you will have to either purchase an adapter cable ( https://www.amazon.ca/UGREEN-Adapter-Converter-Prolific-Compatible/dp/B06VW2DLMW/ref=cm_cr_srp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8 ) or an RS-232 expansion card ( https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B075CVCY6M/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3TJA36NYNJMMS ) Both sell in the vicinity of $15. I purchased the adapter cable, and can verify that the meter will work as advertised. Also, you should be aware that there is some free data logging software called ultradmm, which offers more flexibility and features than the included software. Google for details. I'm impressed with the solidity of the meter; it feels great in the hand, and is as solid as a brick. The quality of workmanship is excellent, and there's a sturdy foldout prop on the back which holds the meter at about a 45 degree angle on the bench. This makes it much easier to read when sitting on a bench. The UT61E is part of a family of UT61 meters, with an A through E suffix. Don't make the mistake of thinking that just going up the chain provides you with more features; features also disappear. One example is the backlight; the A through D meters have a backlight, but the E doesn't. This has annoyed so many hobbyists that various homegrown solutions are now available across the web; check YouTube or EEVblog for details. Similarly, the E doesn't include a temperature measuring capability, or the ability to check transistors. However, the E is the only meter in the UT61 series to have a 22,000 count resolution range. Moral? Check the specs, and make sure you get the meter with the features you need. For me, the 22,000 count resolution was the clincher. You can spend 3 times the price of this meter, and not get that level of resolution; and you can add a backlight, and calibrate a thermistor probe to provide temperature readings. But you can't add resolution. Some have criticized the meter for the level of protection offered by the internal fusing; basically, it is possible to fry the meter by connecting it incorrectly to a high voltage source (1,000 volts). If you commonly work with such voltages, you might want to choose a different meter intended for that application. The UT61E is an excellent choice for the electronic hobbyist and general home use, and offers excellent protection consonant with its price point. Also, some have criticized the probes for being higher resistance, and offering a poorer connection, than other probes from companies like Probe Master and Fluke. This was true of my probes as well, but I solved it by giving the probes a quick polish using AutoSol metal polish. In the US you can buy the polish quite economically through Amazon; in Canada, I find it readily available at Canadian Tire. This polish is the definitive fix; I cannot vouch for other metal polishes, but this will put a chrome-like mirror finish on a set of probes in about 30 seconds, and drop the combined resistance of the two probes down to 0.06 ohms. They certainly pass Dave's EEVblog 'flick test' with flying colors after a rubdown with AutoSol. The UT61E is also supplied with a plastic adapter which plugs into two of the sockets on the meter, and makes it easy to check diodes and resistors. This is a nice touch, and makes checking the values of small components far easier. Also, the meter is supplied with a truly excellent instruction manual; it's a real manual, written in real English, instead of some photocopied, folded up piece of paper containing a bizarre machine translation from the original Chinese. But one thing I wish the UT61E came with, is a case; there are enough extra cables and pieces that it's easy for them to go missing. Plan on looking for some kind of a bag or case to keep everything together. UPDATE: I found a plastic case at Princess auto for about $5, advertised as an ammunition box. It's extremely similar to this Amazon listing: https://www.amazon.ca/AC30T-11-Caliber-Tall-Forest-Green/dp/B00AU67JAI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1513309681&sr=8-1&keywords=ammo+case . It fits the meter perfectly, and the addition of a bit of foam padding will make it a very nice, water proof, shock resistant home. I like the fact that it has a rubber O ring in the lid to prevent water intrusion. In general, I can highly recommend the UT61E meter. It provides features and capabilities which are more commonly found in meters in the $150 and up range. You can also purchase high end meters with more features and better specifications than the UT61E; but those meters sell in the $400 plus range (check the Brymen meters BM869S; only available in Europe, so you'd be importing it, but it's a heck of a good meter). Most hobbyists would probably be better off to purchase a UT61E, and take the $300 or so savings and put it into a better oscilloscope, or other bench equipment. I can say very confidently that there is no other meter on the market that comes anywhere near this meter on the 'bang for the buck' scale. If you want to purchase a meter in the $50 to $150 price range, then this is the meter for you. There's a lot of value here; you won't be disappointed.

I received the RioRand UT61E digital multimeter in less than 5 days which was a pleasant surprise. RioRand is a great distributor and packages the item very well. I checked other more expensive meters but decided on the UT61E because it is a great bench meter for the electronic hobbyist. No need to have a $400 meter just sitting around collecting dust. The speed of the display is very quick and I am impressed with accuracy when checking volts, current, ohms and capacitance measurements,. This meter does not have auto power off or back light capabilities but that is not a big issue for me. There are sites on the Web that show how to add back light and auto power off capability if so desired. One of the reviews showed that when the meter is set to read low resistance and the meter leads are quickly and repeatedly shorted together, the audible beep does not always sound. My leads did not have this problem. The one feature I liked is the hold feature where you hold down the 'hold' button, make a reading without having to look at the meter and when the meter beeps again, you have captured the reading. So for the price of this meter , $50 USD, I am very satisfied with what it can do.

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