ANENG goes crazy with new meters

[Gandalf_Sr]

(must resist the temptation... )

Nice, readable display, but the AAA batteries is a deal-breaker for me.

You will be assimilated into the Aneng collective precaud, resistance is futile.

[precaud]

You will be assimilated into the Aneng collective precaud, resistance is futile.

Ha! Not tempted in the least! (I do have an 8008, though)

[Gandalf_Sr]

You will be assimilated into the Aneng collective precaud, resistance is futile.

Ha! Not tempted in the least! (I do have an 8008, though)

Not at all tempted eh?  I like my two 8008s (one red one black) but I think the Q10 is nicer.  Having said that, one of my 8008s was < $10 US shipped from China!  The Q1 was $32 and took months to arrive.

[rsjsouza]

Ok, I caved before the expiration date on the Aneng store's order on the SZ18: two days ago I ordered the Bside ZT-Y that was avaliable at Aliexpress with stock in the USA - it arrived today in an Amazon Prime package and it is quite a nice meter.

As for the poor Aneng, I don't think the "Aneng offical store"  shipped it at all, as the tracking did not move past the tracking number creation since November. Well, I have about ten more days to declare it fully lost. If it arrives, I am pretty sure it will sell fast.

[Gandalf_Sr]

Interesting, is the SZ18 the same meter as the Q10 but with a different rainbow legend around the dial?

[rsjsouza]

Yes, they both seem quite the same meter internally and with different graphics outside.

So far it is well built externally, although I worry about how durable is the red rubber insert in the rotary switch. It feels nice to the touch indeed, but I suspect it will start to fall off if put under some abuse.

Ah, the EBTN display is really good - a stark contrast to the RM102Pro and the UT123 that I have tested. Some folks mentioned the UT139S also has a very decent display.

I didn't yet have time to disassemble mine.

[Jan Audio]

I cant find the AN870 for under €20,- delivered, only for 37 dollar + ship, you all talked the price up, they are reading.

[rsjsouza]

Yes, I got my AN870 for about US$30 in total (ship+tax)... They are looking indeed, especially now that Dave does not review multimeters anymore.

BTW, the Bside ZT-Y:

[Fungus]

I cant find the AN870 for under €20,- delivered

Those days are gone. 

only for 37 dollar + ship, you all talked the price up, they are reading.

You can easily get one for less than that.

eg.
https://es.aliexpress.com/item/1005002091475781.html
https://es.aliexpress.com/item/4001265009660.html

[Jan Audio]

I see the 870 now for €30 shipped.
Why do i need 2 meters again ?
I hoped for a 99999 count.

Why dont Dave review Aneng any more ?, to much work all those releases i guess.
Thanks to Daves 8008 review i got into handheld meters and saved me lots of money.

[Fungus]

Why do i need 2 meters again ?

To check them against each other, to measure volts/amps simultaneously, because they're addictive.

I hoped for a 99999 count.

I've never seen a 99999 count meter. There's also this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benford%27s_law

Why dont Dave review Aneng any more ?, to much work all those releases i guess.

Dave doesn't seem to do any meters these days. I guess there's not much point; there's too many new meters being released and hundreds of meter review channels out there who instantly jump all over them as soon as they get released.

I also guess that he's not into collecting $25 meters and that any positive review he does is like promoting/advertising the meter, which is a big no-no.

He's also got his own branded meters to sell, so there's that.

Thanks to Daves 8008 review i got into handheld meters and saved me lots of money.

The 870 is a much higher quality meter than the plasticky 8008.  You'll see for yourself when yours arrives. 

[Jan Audio]

The red version is sold out everywhere.

[rsjsouza]

Try the Bside ZT-Y or the Richmeters RM777

[JonasCz]

I took a quick look at the data the 9002 spits out over BLE (I used Bluetility on a recent mac, there's plenty of android apps that will give the same information too) BLE Service FFF0 -> Characteristic FFF4; heres a few of the hex values:

Code: [Select]

Hex: 1B8470B1592AD97A66FA3A 0.000DCV (auto-range)
Hex: 1B8470B1592AD97A66FA3B 0.000DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1493AD97A66FA3B 00.00DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492AC97A66FA3B 000.0DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492A297B66FA3B 000.1DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492A897C66FA3B 000.2DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492AA97E66FA3B 000.3DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492A697F66FA3B 000.4DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492AE97666FA3B 000.5DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492AC97666FA3B 000.6DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492AA97B66FA3B 000.7DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492AC97E66FA3B 000.8DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1492AE97E66FA3B 000.9DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B149CAC87A66FA3B 001.0DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1496ACF7A66FA3B 002.0DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1494ACD7A66FA3B 003.0DCV (manual)
Hex: 1B8470B1592AD97A6EBA3A 0.000ACV
Hex: 1B8470B1493AD97A66DA3A 00.00mVDC
Hex: 1B8470B1493AD97A6E9A3A 00.00mvDC
Hex: 1B8470B1492AC97A66A83A 000.0ohms
Hex: 1B8470B9492AC97A66A83B 000.0oms (diode/continuity)
Hex: 1B8470B1592AD97A666A3A 0.000DCA
Hex: 1B8470B1592AD97A6E2A3A 0.000ACA
Hex: 1B8470B1493AD97A666A32 00.00DCmA
Hex: 1B8470B1493AD97A6E2A32 00.00DCmA
Hex: 1B8470B1492AC97A666A3E 000.0DCuA
Hex: 1B8470B1492AC97A6E2A3E 000.0ACuA
Hex: 1B8470B149CA783F66AA3B 14 degrees c

Even without reverse engineering the App, it seems like it should be simple enough - with a Sigrok driver it becomes decent cheap meter for data logging or other uses.

The update rate seems pretty fast, around 3-5 / sec or so.

[GrayCat]

Hello!

Anyone here to discover "ANENG 620A"? At last, "Full-screen" multimeter, with control buttons on sides.



Its characteristics are on average for today, but the screen looks amazing!

[Fungus]

Anyone here to discover "ANENG 620A"? At last, "Full-screen" multimeter, with control buttons on sides.

I posted about it here:

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/aneng-takes-the-smartphone-analogy-too-far/

Its characteristics are on average for today, but the screen looks amazing!

Maybe the next one will be touch-screen...

[Bud]

I do not see anything amazing. Elongated characters/digits are hard to read, to switch modes you need to use both hands, and what is the deal with the dicky flimsy acrylic stand ? 

[Fungus]

what is the deal with the dicky flimsy acrylic stand ? 

That's not a standard accessory.

I'm guessing it's just to hold it upright for the video. The leads come out of the bottom so it won't stand up without it.

[GrayCat]

I posted about it here:

But you didn't mention the exact model number, so it is not found by the Search.

[exe]

Anyone here to discover "ANENG 620A"? At last, "Full-screen" multimeter, with control buttons on sides.

How ranges are switched? I don't see any controls...

[Fungus]

Anyone here to discover "ANENG 620A"? At last, "Full-screen" multimeter, with control buttons on sides.

How ranges are switched? I don't see any controls...

They're on the side - in the same place as the volume controls on your smartphone. 

The on/off switch is on the top, too.

[midix]

Excuse me for bringing this up. It's getting a bit confusing to understand which Aneng models are just new&shiny and which ones are actually improved.

Currently, I have a 7$ worth multimeter and I feel it's often slowing me down because it has a manual range switch, no auto off, and no separate inputs for current measurements (oops, accidental shorting of a project is not good).

So, which of all these Anengs is the most appropriate for the following requirements:
- no intention to work with mains; under-12V projects only; occasional hobby-level use
- has auto range with manual range option (many cheaper meters have only one or the other)
- separate input for current
- good continuity check (I've seen from reviews that some Anengs can be worse than others)
- precision - enough with what you usually need for Arduino-type projects
- does not eat batteries too fast
- no all-screen - those just look too fragile to me and are very likely to eat batteries fast
- not exactly a pocket unit but also not unnecessarily huge - every square cm counts on my desk

From the very first search hits, I found AN870 which seems to be very popular still. But Aneng store has made a sneaky move. The price of AN870 is 30 EUR with a nice assortment of all kinds of probes... but the cheapest tracked shipment costs 18 EUR! So, it's 48 EUR (VAT included). And for that price, I can get UNI-T UT139C from a local online store (but with basic probes only).

AN8009 also has higher shipment, so it's 21 + 12 = 33 EUR total. Other Aneng models offer tracked shipment under 10 EUR. Q1 and AN9002 seem to be the bestsellers there. However, if you do more search outside of "Aneng official store", there are actually cheaper options from "Aneng favourable store" and "ANENG01 Store". Go figure, who's the real Aneng there

Is AN870 still worth it or "nothing special" and I can pick Q1, AN8009, AN9002 instead? Or any other model that's even better? I don't care much about Bluetooth on AN9002.

[Fungus]

So, what's the catch here? Is AN870 still worth it.

Yes, but ...

I've got an AN860B+ and an AN870 and I find there's no real difference in practice. The AN870 has another digit on screen, yes, but that's overrated when all your components are 5% tolerance.

I found the screen plastic constantly falls out of my 870 after it took a knock one day. Other people here have said the same thing.

If I had to choose one of them on a budget? I'd get the AN860B+. It's significantly cheaper.

The Aneng 860B+ is hard to find these days but it's just a rebrand of the Zoyi VC17B+ so you might as well get the "original".

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000215450256.html

https://lygte-info.dk/review/DMMAnengAN860B%20UK.html

If you want more counts then maybe the ZT303 is the one to get:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000224226842.html

I think they're hard plastic though, not the nice rubber bumpers of the AN860/AN870/VC17B+

nb. I wouldn't buy any of the fashionable "inverse display" meters, they have the backlight constantly on and are battery hogs.

[rsjsouza]

One thing that is called "the curse of EEVBlog" is that it turned the brand name "Aneng" a very popular one in the electronics community - they are simply capitalizing on this fame.

As Fungus mentioned, if you look behind the brand itself you can find the other brands that sell the same meter - for example, a few years ago I was trying to get a deal on an AN870 and ended up getting it cheaper as a Richmeters RM219 (the OEM for both brands is the Zotek ZT-219) - a similar thing happened with the Bside ZT-Y (instead of the Aneng SZ18).

If you are ok with 6000 counts, I would also take a hard look at the Richmeters RM113D. It is a mechanically well built little meter that checks all the boxes you are looking for, perhaps except for the mA together with V/Ω (but at least uses regular fuses and not tiny ones of the AN8008/8009). I use it extensively as the small meter that fits everywhere.

Good luck!

[ElectricPower]

I have some Aneng meters. Good enough for home use with low voltages. Nobody buy an cheap Aneng meter for probing high voltages. If you'r not stupid then...