Best cheap pocket-size multimeter?

[josr]

Hi

Can someone give me some recommendations for a cheap multimeter?

I think Aneng AN8008 or 9 meets the requirements  below. However I also read some electronica mA ranges are missing? What does this mean? E.g how is10 or 75 mA displayed on this meter?

Requirements:

- Will be used for DC electronics (so less than 12v)
- Auto range
- V / I / Ohm at least
- Pocket size (not bulky)
- Available in Europe (sold there, or relatively cheap to ship eg banggood or ali express)
- Around max 25 - 30 EUR or USD.

Thanks Jos

[cdev]

I would nominate the UNI-T UT-210e because it cost me around $30 (just a bit more, not much) and its the best bang for the buck. Its a clamp meter and its current measurements are accurate and can be accomplished without actually breaking into the current wire. It also has an NCV sensor. So its particularly good for safety. It also measures capacitance but not really low capacitance, but its hella useful, not too large and really in a class by itself for value. I use it a lot- It can measure current very accurately, to 1 ma at low voltages, using its clamp.


 

Hi

Can someone give me some recommendations for a cheap multimeter?

I think Aneng AN8008 or 9 meets the requirements  below. However I also read some electronica mA ranges are missing? What does this mean? E.g how is10 or 75 mA displayed on this meter?

Requirements:

- Will be used for DC electronics (so less than 12v)
- Auto range
- V / I / Ohm at least
- Pocket size (not bulky)
- Available in Europe (sold there, or relatively cheap to ship eg banggood or ali express)
- Around max 25 - 30 EUR or USD.

Thanks Jos

[Nusa]

You can see for yourself how things look, since these meters have been around for years now and are well-reviewed on Youtube. Including by eevblog in the case of the 8008:

[Ian.M]

The UNI-T UT-210e will be useless for measuring low currents typical in many electronic circuits.  Its resolution on its lowest DC range (2A) is +/-1mA and accuracy 2.5%+ 3 counts.    You could of course improve on that by using a large 10 turns coil through the clamp, but that only gets down to 0.1mA and doesn't help the accuracy any.

For general electronics work you really need to be able to measure below 10mA with better than 5% accuracy and at least three digits resolution.   OTOH, pair it with an EEVblog µCurrent and it will be adequate generally and, due to the µCurrent and reasonable accuracy on DCV pretty good for low currents. 

In its favor, its got detachable leads so you can make up custom ones for specific applications.  However, its a little bit chunky for a 'pocket size' form factor.   Maybe if you habitually wear garments with cargo pockets it will work for you.

The form factor is likely to be an issue impeding your search - most slimline pocket multimeters don't do current.

[floobydust]

AN8008 does poorly measuring current as it uses oddball tiny fuses and is only a three-jack multimeter- so missing a proper mA (1 ohm) shunt, only has 10mR and 100R. It reads:
0-99.99uA at the V jack with 100R shunt.
0-999.9uA at the V jack with 100R shunt.
0-999.9mA at the A jack with 0.01R shunt
0-9.999A  at the A jack with 0.01R shunt

Missing is the 9.999mA/99.99mA ranges with 0.99R shunt. So you can only get 0.1mA resolution on mA measurements.

It's also like a bar of soap and flies out of your hand, no silicone holster. The rotary switch is terrible for oxidation and unreliable connections. But it's small, pocket sized and low cost.

[rdl]

For the price the 9999 count AN8008 is hard to beat. The smaller size is great for bench use because it doesn't get in the way like a bigger meter would. I don't think I've used my Fluke since I got the Aneng. The current measurement ranges are not as limiting as you might think. I don't know what some people are expecting at this price point.

[hamster_nz]

I've got both an AN8008 and AN8009, They have their differences but I feel both are pretty good meters given the very price. Would (and do) recommend them as an entry level meter or as a spare for in the tool bag.

Wouldn't use either on anything that involved high energy, but I have no worries using them on anything powered by a bench supply.

For me the only real problem is because they are so light they move around on the bench a bit while in use.