Budget-Friendly Electronic DC Load

[xKertx]

Hi,

I’m looking to buy my first DC electronic load for hobby use, and I’d like to hear your opinions on which model I should choose, or whether there’s another model I might not even be aware of.

Since I would only be using it occasionally, I’m not planning to invest a lot of money, and I’m mainly looking at devices in the sub-250€ price range.
I don’t have any specific application in mind that would define the exact requirements. The use would be quite varied — for example, testing smaller power supplies and batteries, or whatever else a hobbyist might come up with from time to time.
But I probably won’t need more than 200 W of power or voltages above 100 V.

At first, I was looking at the Korad KEL102 (150 W / 120 V / 30 A), which costs around €250. It has been on the market for years, so I would assume most of its bugs have already been fixed. The only thing that really bothers me about it is that adjusting the parameters of more complex programs using the numeric display could be rather cumbersome.

But then I noticed the Owon OEL1530T DC load, which offers 300 W / 150 V / 30 A, yet is much more compact and costs around €200. This makes me wonder if it’s too good to be true.
I can’t seem to find any YouTube videos or reviews of it.
Is its user interface as awkward to use as the one on the Korad?
Since it’s much smaller but more powerful, I assume it’s probably also considerably louder? On the other hand, since I would only be using it occasionally, the noise might not be much of an issue. And perhaps the fan could be replaced with a quieter one.
I’m also wondering about the small banana terminals on the front panel. Almost every other DC electronic load seems to have much larger and heavier-duty terminals.

How good is Owon as a brand in general, and can its specifications be trusted?
I know they are both budget brands, but Korad has been on the market for a longer time and I own a Korad power supply that I’m happy with. And Korad looks more like a robust tool.
Between these two, which one would be the more reliable tool if I don’t want to constantly question whether the readings on the display are actually accurate?
Are there any other brands or models I should consider in this price range?

Thanks!

[indeterminate]

I have a Korad and it works fine
you can always use one of its coms interfaces to drive it

https://github.com/radiohyperactivity/KEL100-Series-Load-Tool