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EEVBlog 121GW Discussion thread

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J-R:

--- Quote from: JDW on February 26, 2023, 09:34:46 am ---(1) Why does the backlight flash on & off for a split second each and every time I switch on my 121GW?  I see no practical reason for that. It's not like you need to TEST the backlight LEDs each time the meter is switched on.  And while it comes on too briefly to have a negative impact on the alkaline batteries, the fact remains it does draw more current in that brief split second versus the backlight not flashing on/off at all.  Can it be said that is something which should be fixed in firmware?

--- End quote ---
Actually, I had a 121GW where the backlight failed.  It was a small SMD resistor that had cracked in half on the board containing the backlight LEDs (somewhat easy fix).  So having the backlight flash is a good test and that is what made me notice it.  But this may simply be what happens when power initially flows through the board.  Either way, this is just not an issue that needs to be fixed.


--- Quote ---(2) After switching the meter on, I want to know why it takes 3 seconds before I can use it.  Sure, I see it displays the firmware version for 3 seconds.  But does the meter deliberately wait 3 seconds solely for the purpose of displaying the firmware revision?  Or would the meter take that long to become usable even if the firmware version was not displayed?  The reason I ask is because if the meter could become usable faster than 3 seconds after switch-on, that would be beneficial, and perhaps the firmware version could be looked up somewhere in Setup instead of displaying every time the meter is switched on.

--- End quote ---
A lot of DMMs display something before they are usable, for various reasons, most likely the DMM simply needs that long to start up so might as well show something on the screen.  Given how many dozens of different firmware versions the 121GW has gone through, showing it at power on is a good place for it.

J-R:

--- Quote from: JDW on February 26, 2023, 09:43:32 pm ---Why does any of this matter?  Because (1) the 121GW has BlueTooth for some good reason, right?  And (2) it's a bother to remove the blue bumper and unscrew the back case each and every time you want to access data logged to the SD card.  I'm very glad that SD card exists, but disassembly is required to use it.  No disassembly is required to use BlueTooth and a smartphone app, however!  Hence my posts on that topic.

--- End quote ---

Many products have app issues over their lifetime, it is a fact of life now.  Best to just move on.  The 121GW actually has it pretty good, with the official Android and Windows app still available and working, and recently someone put together some code to data log via Linux:
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/121gw-multimeter-command-line-data-logger-for-linux/
https://github.com/chlordk/121gwcli

EEVblog:

--- Quote from: J-R on February 26, 2023, 11:19:56 pm ---
--- Quote from: JDW on February 26, 2023, 09:43:32 pm ---Why does any of this matter?  Because (1) the 121GW has BlueTooth for some good reason, right?  And (2) it's a bother to remove the blue bumper and unscrew the back case each and every time you want to access data logged to the SD card.  I'm very glad that SD card exists, but disassembly is required to use it.  No disassembly is required to use BlueTooth and a smartphone app, however!  Hence my posts on that topic.

--- End quote ---

Many products have app issues over their lifetime, it is a fact of life now.  Best to just move on.  The 121GW actually has it pretty good, with the official Android and Windows app still available and working, and recently someone put together some code to data log via Linux:
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/121gw-multimeter-command-line-data-logger-for-linux/

--- End quote ---
There is also Sigrok support:
http://sigrok.org/wiki/EEVBlog_121GW
https://github.com/chlordk/121gwcli

EEVblog:
BTW, someone just told me the iOS code I uploaded the other day is the KaneTest one instead of the official 121GW app  :palm:
I'll have to check and correct this.

JDW:

--- Quote from: J-R on February 26, 2023, 11:19:56 pm ---
Many products have app issues over their lifetime, it is a fact of life now.  Best to just move on.  The 121GW actually has it pretty good, with the official Android and Windows app still available and working...

--- End quote ---

Once upon a time, most engineering software was exclusive to Windows, and there was a lot of shaming that took place when it came to engineers who preferred Apple hardware, even to the extent that many who embraced Windows called into question the engineering credentials of those who preferred the Mac.  But in recent years Apple product adoption has increased to the level that even Microchip decided to make a MacOS version of MPLAB X.  People in the engineering world are a tiny bit friendlier to Mac users, which is a nice break from the past.  And that has been great for folks like me who are Mac and iOS users exclusively when it comes to machines I used privately at home.  Even at work, I've moved my ProMate 3 from an old WinXP machine to my iMac, since MPLAB is on MacOS now. 

So when I read something is considered "pretty good" ONLY BECAUSE it has "official Android and Windows apps", I am compelled to chuckle and whisper to myself — that doesn't help me! :-)

But like I said, the Meteor app exists for iOS, and that DOES help me; and I will continue to use it, along with the SD card for data logging.  I am merely saying that if Meteor could be improved by way of adding a FREEZE button that freezes the currently logged waveform without frustratingly dimming the screen content, that would be outstanding for iOS users like myself (and I doubt I am the only one).  And, if the release of the official iOS app's source code leads to it coming back to the App store AND offering a different set of features than Meteor, all the better!

I wish to humbly that @EEVblog for having investing the time to reply and make source code publicly available, for those (other than myself) who could possibly make productive use of it, for the good of all 121GW users.

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