I WILL get one. But I'll wait
for Dave to sort out some EU-based resale thing. Too much hassle importing at my own costs.
By the way @Dave, how will we know when the EU resale arrangement is up?
There will certainly be import duties to get it inside the EU and then you get VAT.
The thing is that the VAT and duties are calculated on the price of the device including the shipping charges so it will get expensive real fast.
Great effort Dave, I ordered mine yesterday out of the the second batch due in March.
When in the Hold, does the beep sound when it reads higher value? Handy feature when probing around a circuit looking for voltage.
Geoff
Dave
On the Amp Hour you mention you wanted to make a last minute hardware change (albeit fairly minor), but was faced with the fact that 2000 boards had already been printed, and a cost that could not be absorbed. For this reason you were going to hold back, and maybe amend the board in a subsequent board spin. Are you planning to do this between the first Dec batch, and the April batch, using the delay as a chance to make the change? On the same note, what happens if/when there is a hardware change, and there are potentially different board revisions, with regards to firmware updates. Will updates need to be board revision specific?
I've asked that a few times in various threads and I saw other's asking similar questions during the live feed. For what ever the reason, they have gone unanswered. Personally, I am not sure why it was brought up in the first place if discussing it was off limits.
I did not see those comments in the live thread.
Not trying to hide anything, I just thought of a feature we could maybe add at the last minute but it was too far gone. No big deal.
Are they planning to change the circuit board after the 2000 are used up regardless of how the initial units fair? Or are they only going to change it if there are problems found with the hardware that can not be corrected with firmware? Thanks for any information you can provide.
Dave already answered that the board isn't going to change. There isn't a problem with the current board, it was a nice to have change but not that important.
Isn't DHL Express charging additional 18€ for declaration at the customs office?
Normal DHL delivery this week, they offered a 28,5€ fee for doing customs handling for me as receiver, but they charge you at the door for whatever customs wanted also.
But i got another question regarding the 121GW:
Is there a (configurable) auto-off/standby and if so, is the power drain on the batteries significantly lower then or will it beep before going into standby?edit: found answer in manual p. 52 after finding the manual... it is there and configurable.
Normal DHL delivery this week, they offered a 28,5€ fee for doing customs handling for me as receiver
That was the case in Finland too, they even wanted similar amount if you did the customs processing yourself. After recently gotten so much feedback from the customers and officials they now allow the recipient to handle the importing themself with no fees (except VAT and possible duties). You just need to request all the needed information from DHL.
Note that some countries exempt test equipment from certain fees and taxes.
Small request.. can we have a better photo of the case? I can't tell if the side pocket is more secure than the last one.
Most probably the closed-source firmware is not to hide IP or dirty code...
Its just an attempt of Dave to prevent people to make this thing to an IoT device.
... but look at all this:
https://github.com/shmuelzon/ble2mqttPerhaps it's even possible with an esp32.
I cannot wait to map the multimeters bargraph to the garage door opener ... (of my neighbor). This makes up a nice big high-contrast display.
By the way @Dave, how will we know when the EU resale arrangement is up?
When it goes on sale there, after the Kickstarter.
Seems unlikely that firmware on a product like this could affect EMC performance, and radio stuff is all in the BLE module so that shouldn't be an issue.
The BLE module can be set in a non-compliant state, although a bit tricky it can be done from the Cortex M3, on the other hand, the BLE module itself can also be reprogrammed.
In the US and Canada, the FCC/IC do not like BLE module modifications and its firmware should be excluded from hacking. (For it to be sold, what the end user does is a completely different story)
Europe is much more relaxed than the US. As long as the firmware revisions of the Cortex M3 and the BLE module firmware are mentioned on the DoC, the meter can be legally sold as fully hackable (even if this means it might operate non-compliant).
I can imagine UEI/David waits with releasing the DoC, as the firmware revision will probably change until the last moment, also the RED harmonized standard are in constant flux. They unfortunately have yet changed again two weeks ago.
Dave, could you create a specific section somewhere in the forum for the meter? this thread is enough for now, but when people start getting and playing with them this will become a mess. I can already see the thread "Dremeling the back cover for easy SD card access"
.
Sorry if this was mentioned somewhere, does the meter come with batteries (2nd batch Kickstarter)? if so, are they installed? one of my freight forwarders doesn't allow loose batteries of any type.
Thanks.
edit: forum terminology
Hi Dave,
I have few questions:
1. How long does the backlight stay on? I have troubles with my BM829 - It goes off before I can measure anything. If I had a choice I would like it to be changeable in setup to something like 2, 5, 10 or 30 minutes. Yes, 30 - that's the one I'll leave it on.
2. You mentioned cut off voltage. What's the maximum operating voltage (not the absolute maximum, but safe operation)? You say that battery life is good, but I'll put rechargeables anyway - bluetooth, backlight, logging ... etc. I just wonder if I can put Li-Ion or LiFePo4 (two of them with connector batteries).I'll probably use NiMH, but I'm just curious.
Edit: I forgot one: You mention shipping to EU using EU company. Do you have any news on it? Will I be able to get mine shipped from EU if I back you on kickstarter or you'll have separate sale for the EU (so I don't pay tax)?
Dave, could you create a specific section somewhere in the forum for the meter?
Is it time for an "EEVBLOG Products" forum section ?
Edit: I forgot one: You mention shipping to EU using EU company. Do you have any news on it? Will I be able to get mine shipped from EU if I back you on kickstarter or you'll have separate sale for the EU (so I don't pay tax)?
You will have to pay taxes in any case. It does not matter if it is imported through someone else.
You will have to pay taxes in any case. It does not matter if it is imported through someone else.
But it can be lower if the import is into a EU country with a low sale tax. This would also mean only one tax processing fee, not one for each individual order.
But it can be lower if the import is into a EU country with a low sale tax. This would also mean only one tax processing fee, not one for each individual order.
While this may be true, it absolutely depends on the amount of exports the chosen re-seller makes in a year. There is a threshold under which the reseller is allowed to charge the local VAT on intra EU sales but this varies from country to country. See here for more details:
>>Click me<<Also, it is only true for business to customer sales. Then, the importer is also liable for handling guarantee issues and so on and so forth.
The only way I think it might work would be a private person from Luxembourg importing the meters and doing private sales to the community without telling anyone officially because by law it would no longer be a private sale with the amount of meters that person would be selling all over Europe.
The whole VAT issue is also just relevant for private persons.
Well, europe always gets all the electronics at a higher price. Even if it's made in EU it's either Germany or England or other country that has higher prices, so it is even more expensive than imports. Whatever... I just accept it and move on.
The more interesting is the backlight timer and battery voltage. Will 121GW withstand 2x3.6V or even 2x4.2V batteries.
Also, it is only true for business to customer sales. Then, the importer is also liable for handling guarantee issues and so on and so forth.
The only way I think it might work would be a private person from Luxembourg importing the meters and doing private sales to the community without telling anyone officially because by law it would no longer be a private sale with the amount of meters that person would be selling all over Europe.
The whole VAT issue is also just relevant for private persons.
Given that it's a Kickstarter, technically the meters are "gifts"
Given that it's a Kickstarter, technically the meters are "gifts"
If you are registered as a business it cannot be a gift (Definition by our customs office) .
Given that it's a Kickstarter, technically the meters are "gifts"
No, the gift status can only be applied to items of estimated value below ~30€ and the shipment can only be a single item.