Received my Agilent U1251A last night, U1253A to arrive today (hopefully)

[Excavatoree]

First, I made a mistake and ordered the U1251A instead of the U1252A to go with the U1253A (OLED).   I'm not concerned enough about it to take the U1251A back.  I wanted the OLED version, and an LCD version.

These are, believe it or not, the first new meters I've ever purchased.  I did buy a "new," "in the box"  Fluke 87-V, a 189-2, and an some old 70 series, but technically they were used.  (The 87-5 box was old and ratty, but the meter inside looked good.  The 189-ii was government surplus, but was apparently new in a plain, white box)

Dave did a review on the U1253A, so there's no need to do a repeat on this series.  I was impressed with the case - it has a separate compartment for leads that is on the side, not next to the meter as it is on many Fluke cases. (leads can scratch the meter LCD window.)

These don't have holsters, and the holsterless meter is larger than an 87, and about the same size as a 187/189. (also without a holster)  

The switch seems lightly better than the Fluke, but, probably not as nice as the Gossen.  I doubt I'll ever see one of those on a clearance sale.

Overall, I'm very happy, mostly due to the low clearance price.  

EDIT - spelling, changed detail about buying in the box, as new 70 series, as I can't remember exactly how many or what models.

[saturation]

I think its still worth reviewing, E.  I got my 1252A in the afternoon yesterday too, after I ordered it Friday pm.  That was fast.

Overall, price being equal, the Fluke 87V wins, IMHO, despite some extra features and the speed of this 1252a, I wouldn't get the Agilent, price being equal.  But with the 1252A being $140, well, it wins as bang for buck, hands down!

DC Accuracy: same.  Compared to a 10.000 0 standard, they are both within 0.02%.

Ergonomics: Fluke 87V is better, simpler, KISS design.  1252a is busy.  Less cluttered LCD on the Fluke is easier to see with big bold letters.

Continuity beeper: Fluke is louder and faster.

Rotary knob: edge to Agilent, its rubberized and has a good feel, but about par.

Leads: par, both are silicone.  Banana inserts are very sure feeling and solid, with the Agilent a slight better being so much tighter.

1252a has no rubber protector like Fluke, but the entire case has strategically located rubberized coating, giving it a solid grip.

More later.  I have the 9v rechargeable battery, but the 1252a can use alkaline too, so you get best of both.  The charger is rather large, but it uses silicone shrouded banana jacks, very nice solid feel. Charging is fast, although set for ~4 hours, it will terminate charge dV/dt, so my batteries were full at 30 min or so.

The unit is made in Taiwan, the accessories China.  The box states production date is 11/2007, the calibration certificate 3/09, so its been in inventory for a while. Given the cal certificate is good for 3 years, and the cost of cal is about $100, the discount on the unit is close to the value of a cal, if you need one.

[Rutger]

I have ordered the U1253A from Grainger for $146.25 and that is the only one still available here in the US (as of March 29, 2011). I have called the local stores and they have told me that the U1251A & U1252A are gone nationwide.  Hope to get it soon as well. So if you still want one get it quick!

My only concern is with the battery life like Dave pointed out, but I am wondering if I am going to use it for bench work only (low voltage) if there is a hack to add a external adapter to bypass the battery, in other words could you add a little jack for a charger.  The only problem I see is that if the meter is getting charged you can't use if for anything else! So you would have to either bypass the battery or something making the meter think it is getting a perfect 9V.

Rutger

PS: Here is the link: Agilent 1253A

[saturation]

You'll love it Rutger, its shortcomings are short, its otherwise a superior DMM. The OLED display is great for lab work, its like the LED displays I have on my PSU and bench DMM.  I gave that some thought too.  I ended up choosing an LCD version with a charger because I can use the nice backlight and still have decent power consumption; I thought the 8 hour battery life just a touch short, given it takes 4 hours to charge a depleted battery.  My typical project time is about 4-6 hours nonstop, so the meter could work for my benchtime, but as the battery ages, it will definitely become too short.

I don't know if the battery cover has a cover sensor to kill the DMM if its not on, if there is none, you can easily power the unit from an external power supply, just alligator clip to the 9V leads.  The charger circuit disables the whole DMM during charging.

I have ordered the U1253A from Grainger for $146.25 and that is the only one still available here in the US (as of March 29, 2011). I have called the local stores and they have told me that the U1251A & U1252A are gone nationwide.  Hope to get it soon as well. So if you still want one get it quick!

My only concern is with the battery life like Dave pointed out, but I am wondering if I am going to use it for bench work only (low voltage) if there is a mod to add a external adapter to bypass the battery, in other words could you add a little jack for a charger.  The only problem I see is that if the meter is getting charged you can't use if for anything else! So you would have to either bypass the battery or something making the meter think it is getting a perfect 9V.

Rutger

PS: Here is the link: Agilent 1253A

[Rutger]

Thanks for the encouragement saturation! I was also looking at the Fluke 87V but hey for $ 140 it is hard to passover.

Could a hack be made to add a small jack with a 3-way switch (I haven't looked if they exists) that would enable to normal operation of the unit and at the same time have drip charge the battery? I don't know if there is a single 'charger' chip out there that would do this. Then you get one of those many discarded chargers and use it to power the meter.

Rutger

[saturation]

All you need to do is put the battery in parallel with the charger and the DMM power input, and it will charge and power the DMM.  However, the real issue is safety; a DMM is made to be fully isolated from the test circuit, so its probes float relative to ground.  Many PSU, particularly those small wall wart switchers, have their negative terminals referenced to ground, so that ground has to be considered as it could ruin your day, and your device under test.

A proper lab grade PSU however, does have floating power inputs, and a separate earth ground input.  If you disconnect the negative terminal from earth ground, in this case the green and black terminals often have a shorting bar on the screw terminal, it would be safer to use the lab grade PSU to power the DMM and recharge the battery.

Thanks for the encouragement saturation! I was also looking at the Fluke 87V but hey for $ 140 it is hard to passover.

Could a hack be made to add a small jack with a 3-way switch (I haven't looked if they exists) that would enable to normal operation of the unit and at the same time have drip charge the battery? I don't know if there is a single 'charger' chip out there that would do this. Then you get one of those many discarded chargers and use it to power the meter.

Rutger

[EEVblog]

You'll love it Rutger, its shortcomings are short, its otherwise a superior DMM. The OLED display is great for lab work, its like the LED displays I have on my PSU and bench DMM.  I gave that some thought too.  I ended up choosing an LCD version with a charger because I can use the nice backlight and still have decent power consumption; I thought the 8 hour battery life just a touch short, given it takes 4 hours to charge a depleted battery.  My typical project time is about 4-6 hours nonstop, so the meter could work for my benchtime, but as the battery ages, it will definitely become too short.

I don't know if the battery cover has a cover sensor to kill the DMM if its not on, if there is none, you can easily power the unit from an external power supply, just alligator clip to the 9V leads.  The charger circuit disables the whole DMM during charging.

My only concern is with the battery life like Dave pointed out, but I am wondering if I am going to use it for bench work only (low voltage) if there is a mod to add a external adapter to bypass the battery, in other words could you add a little jack for a charger.  The only problem I see is that if the meter is getting charged you can't use if for anything else! So you would have to either bypass the battery or something making the meter think it is getting a perfect 9V.

I still remember taking a real hammering for that review, giving it the thumbs up.
Strange that I've never heard anyone who has actually owned it giving it the thumbs down 
Yes, the only major downside is the battery life (and outdoor visibility) on the OLED version, that's the price you pay. I'd personally prefer the LCD version because of that.
If you only use the meter occasionally for precision work then an Alkaline or Lithium battery would work quite well (but may become expensive in time).

Bypassing meter protection to add an external supply is just asking for trouble.

Dave.

[alm]

A proper lab grade PSU however, does have floating power inputs, and a separate earth ground input.  If you disconnect the negative terminal from earth ground, in this case the green and black terminals often have a shorting bar on the screw terminal, it would be safer to use the lab grade PSU to power the DMM and recharge the battery.

How many lab power supplies are there with outputs rated for CAT III 1000V / CAT IV 600V? Adding external power to a DMM that was not designed for it is a stupid idea, bench meters use an isolated topology (floating input circuit, anything close to the user is grounded), and are usually not even rated for CAT III.

[grenert]

Some things I noticed about the 1251A after opening it up and checking it out:

* It was nice that Agilent includes lots of accessories that Fluke don't: Carrying case (with nice pockets as mentioned above), test leads with many attachments.  Also, the USB cable doesn't cost as much as a mid-range DMM (Yes, Fluke, I'm talking to YOU!  ).  That said, while the test leads with attachments are versatile, they feel a little chintzy compared to Fluke/Pomona leads.  Something about the plastic (and the attachment insulation such as on the alligator clips) seems, er, light and plasticky.  Fluke leads feel more substantial.

* The display update is out of this world!  I actually wouldn't mind slowing it down a bit.  I'm not sure the fast update really is providing me any benefit.

* I haven't tried data logging, but I know that with the Fluke 289 I always use the trend plot function, so I think that logging without graphics will be a letdown.  It's a nice size for a logging meter; the Fluke is a brick.

* The display is a little bit cluttered, but not too bad, and I much prefer the 7-segment LCD for routine readings to the "smooth" digits of the 289.  I don't know why Fluke doesn't have an option to simulate a 7-segment display for doing basic measurements...

* I like that the meter turns on with the rotary knob, rather than a power button.  I know others feel differently.  Power-on is very quick.  The 289 is a dog on startup.  One great feature is that there is a OFF position on both ends of the dial.  Very clever!  The switch has an excellent feel to it.

* Continuity test is painfully slow; the trick of using the diode setting is a good one, Dave!  Also, the beep is on the intermittent side.  I am not sure it's latched.  Even my old Fluke 8060A is far better for continuity.

* On the other hand: Voltage readings are lightning quick!

* A real calibration record included!  Mine was sitting around a long time: Calibration was in November 2008, only good until April 2009.  On the positive side, the actual data is very impressive.  Most of the readings were 3-4X better than spec, some even 10X better than spec!

* No Golden Power battery    No battery rattling, either.

As many others have said, at it's original price, I think you'd do better with a Fluke 87V unless you needed logging.  It was shown elsewhere on EEVblog that this is a rebadged Escort.  Anyone know what that Escort used to cost?  At the giveaway price that Grainger had, it is definitely worth the money.

[alexwhittemore]

I just got two in the mail, one for me and one for a student group. I bought the 1252 for myself based on battery life, but they were out by the second order, so the group got a 1253a. As it turned out, we decided that the shite outdoor visibility and short battery life made the 1252 a better fit, so I took the 1253 for myself since I mostly do bench work, and have an alright LCD meter myself. As far as the screen, for my use I think I like the OLED more. It's crisp and beautiful, and I had trouble navigating on the LCD. so I'm pleased.

The one thing I did notice, though, is that the test voltages are way higher than my other DMM! My $75 craftsman 82334 has an ohms mode test voltage of ~.23v and a continuity mode voltage of .438v. The 1253 has .935v (okay, higher but not bad) and 3.95v (!) respectively. Short circuit current for the agilely is also 1mA where it's 137uA for the craftsman. There's probably too high an output impedance to do any damage to a chip with that 4v, but I'd still be scared to accidentally drive a pin of a 2.5v IC with the meter in continuity! Also, the shunt resistances were .3ohms in A and 2.4 in mA for the agilent vs .05 and 1.76 for the craftsman. Though I don't think I compensated for the leads so I might not trust those to be exact. The point remains that I don't know why the craftsman is so much lower.

Given that, Im going to have to look more closely at the datasheets for the two to see about those values. They make me a little less confident about the agilent, although it's definitely a step up.

[EEVblog]

* It was nice that Agilent includes lots of accessories that Fluke don't: Carrying case (with nice pockets as mentioned above), test leads with many attachments.  Also, the USB cable doesn't cost as much as a mid-range DMM (Yes, Fluke, I'm talking to YOU!  ).  

I thought Gossen were the masters of USB lead price extortion!
What is it, $450?

Dave.

[EEVblog]

As far as the screen, for my use I think I like the OLED more. It's crisp and beautiful, and I had trouble navigating on the LCD. so I'm pleased.

Yes, the OLED screen is just lovely to look at (flickers like buggery on camera though!). Shame it chews the power and doesn't work outdoors.
I wish you could have the best of both worlds here.

Dave.

[Strube09]

* Continuity test is painfully slow; the trick of using the diode setting is a good one, Dave!  Also, the beep is on the intermittent side.  I am not sure it's latched.  Even my old Fluke 8060A is far better for continuity.

Grenert,

Turn your multimeter to continuity and then hit the scale button until it is in the 500M Range. The continuity is much much faster.

Strube09

[saturation]

For general troubleshooting, the higher output voltage may likely to there to test high power LEDs, as Dave showed in some of his DMM tests; this ranges now from 0.6v, for your basic signal type diodes,  to over 3V for high power colored LEDs.  Higher voltages are also needed when testing much higher ohmage resistors, the 1252/3a  has a scale 10x higher than the Fluke 87V, 500megaohm.

The shunt resistance depends on how the design converts current, so is less a concern compared to its effective burden voltage for the mA setting.

The one thing I did notice, though, is that the test voltages are way higher than my other DMM! My $75 craftsman 82334 has an ohms mode test voltage of ~.23v and a continuity mode voltage of .438v. The 1253 has .935v (okay, higher but not bad) and 3.95v (!) respectively. Short circuit current for the agilely is also 1mA where it's 137uA for the craftsman. There's probably too high an output impedance to do any damage to a chip with that 4v, but I'd still be scared to accidentally drive a pin of a 2.5v IC with the meter in continuity! Also, the shunt resistances were .3ohms in A and 2.4 in mA for the agilent vs .05 and 1.76 for the craftsman. Though I don't think I compensated for the leads so I might not trust those to be exact. The point remains that I don't know why the craftsman is so much lower.

Given that, Im going to have to look more closely at the datasheets for the two to see about those values. They make me a little less confident about the agilent, although it's definitely a step up.

[alexwhittemore]

Actually, I followed Strube09's suggestion to set the range to 500M, it's awesome. Theres a slight (few ms?) lag from contact to buzzer, but the registration happens lightning fast- I can't make it fail to trigger, so you'll never get a false negative if you've made contact.

Also, more test voltage mysteries: 1. This isn't diode mode, so I wouldn't expect it to be a high enough test v to light one. And 1mA short circuit wouldn't light it anyway, just break it down. But more to the point, the voltage is 4v up until the higher Kohms ranges when it DROPS to 1v, still 1mA SC. WHY it's lower in the 500M range than others I don't know, but it makes the continuity range basically perfect!

[saturation]

I share your sentiments, the leads are a bit gummy or thin feeling.  Great quality, I'd use them and trust the name Agilent on them, but I wouldn't buy them compared to the Fluke or Pomona leads.  White test leads are very distinctive for Agilent, but I'd see pros getting these looking dirty very easily; dark colors hide dirt better.

The 1251a knob control is good fix on their part, the other 'off' position is were the signal generator is in the 1252a version, so making it an off switch was better than doing nothing like some of the buttons on the new Agilent widescreen 50,000 wfms/s DSO.

The Grainger sale price still is far lower than what Escort listed, ~€300.  I'm not so sure what entirely was redesigned internally on these but here's the separated at birth chart.  Maybe they are all Escort inside as the labels state they are made in Taiwan instead of Agilent Malaysia factory, were other DMMs are made:

http://www.home.agilent.com/agilent/editorial.jspx?cc=US&lc=eng&ckey=1441000&nid=-536902435.0.00&id=1441000


http://shop.micronplus.ro/view_product.php?product=2085

Some things I noticed about the 1251A after opening it up and checking it out:

* It was nice that Agilent includes lots of accessories that Fluke don't: Carrying case (with nice pockets as mentioned above), test leads with many attachments.  Also, the USB cable doesn't cost as much as a mid-range DMM (Yes, Fluke, I'm talking to YOU!  ).  That said, while the test leads with attachments are versatile, they feel a little chintzy compared to Fluke/Pomona leads.  Something about the plastic (and the attachment insulation such as on the alligator clips) seems, er, light and plasticky.  Fluke leads feel more substantial.

* The display update is out of this world!  I actually wouldn't mind slowing it down a bit.  I'm not sure the fast update really is providing me any benefit.

* I haven't tried data logging, but I know that with the Fluke 289 I always use the trend plot function, so I think that logging without graphics will be a letdown.  It's a nice size for a logging meter; the Fluke is a brick.

* The display is a little bit cluttered, but not too bad, and I much prefer the 7-segment LCD for routine readings to the "smooth" digits of the 289.  I don't know why Fluke doesn't have an option to simulate a 7-segment display for doing basic measurements...

* I like that the meter turns on with the rotary knob, rather than a power button.  I know others feel differently.  Power-on is very quick.  The 289 is a dog on startup.  One great feature is that there is a OFF position on both ends of the dial.  Very clever!  The switch has an excellent feel to it.

* Continuity test is painfully slow; the trick of using the diode setting is a good one, Dave!  Also, the beep is on the intermittent side.  I am not sure it's latched.  Even my old Fluke 8060A is far better for continuity.

* On the other hand: Voltage readings are lightning quick!

* A real calibration record included!  Mine was sitting around a long time: Calibration was in November 2008, only good until April 2009.  On the positive side, the actual data is very impressive.  Most of the readings were 3-4X better than spec, some even 10X better than spec!

* No Golden Power battery    No battery rattling, either.

As many others have said, at it's original price, I think you'd do better with a Fluke 87V unless you needed logging.  It was shown elsewhere on EEVblog that this is a rebadged Escort.  Anyone know what that Escort used to cost?  At the giveaway price that Grainger had, it is definitely worth the money.

[alexwhittemore]

You guys seem to rag on the probes a lot, but I love them! Way nicer than the stock probes from the fluke 17s anyway. They're long, sharp (though not needles) and they don't resist movement. And they feel great in the hand! I'm a huge fan, not to mention the accessories that come with.

[saturation]

They are wonderful probes, its the silicone that makes it so supple and soft.  If you have both Agilent and Fluke or Pomona leads to compare side by side, you'll have a better contrast.  Cheapo leads are typically PCB insulation: stiff, safe, cheap, and ? mildy toxic, and this could have shipped with your Fluke 17.

You guys seem to rag on the probes a lot, but I love them! Way nicer than the stock probes from the fluke 17s anyway. They're long, sharp (though not needles) and they don't resist movement. And they feel great in the hand! I'm a huge fan, not to mention the accessories that come with.

[saturation]

You guys are right, don't use an external power supply on the 9V power jack.

There was a suggestion that usage using an external supply would be limited to 'low' voltage ..

.. My only concern is with the battery life like Dave pointed out, but I am wondering if I am going to use it for bench work only (low voltage) if there is a mod to add a external adapter to bypass the battery, in other words could you add a little jack for a charger.  The only problem I see is that if the meter is getting charged you can't use if for anything else! So you would have to either bypass the battery or something making the meter think it is getting a perfect 9V.
Rutger
PS: Here is the link: Agilent 1253A

which reduces risk for high voltage events, but the whole point of the floating DMM is to be as safe as our technology allows.

Operating the DMM precisely on what its not supposed to be done violates the safety Agilent painstakingly put into the meters, and the subsequent external agency testing and certification, and the cost that went into making it CAT IV 600V.

That said, it can be done, but it has potential consequences and you'd best be aware what they are, to risk it.  In the old days, early portable DMMs, decades before CAT ratings, did have external power supply jacks that were were simply grafted on battery power lines, with a diode to prevent battery charging or without one to charge them.  When CAT ratings were introduced, all non-CAT rated meters were deprecated or retired, and are not to be used for any professional work, at the minimum.

A proper lab grade PSU however, does have floating power inputs, and a separate earth ground input.  If you disconnect the negative terminal from earth ground, in this case the green and black terminals often have a shorting bar on the screw terminal, it would be safer to use the lab grade PSU to power the DMM and recharge the battery.

How many lab power supplies are there with outputs rated for CAT III 1000V / CAT IV 600V? Adding external power to a DMM that was not designed for it is a stupid idea, bench meters use an isolated topology (floating input circuit, anything close to the user is grounded), and are usually not even rated for CAT III.

..

Bypassing meter protection to add an external supply is just asking for trouble.

Dave.

[Excavatoree]

I'd just like to thank Dave for reviewing the OLED meter, user "Russel" for letting us know about the clearance sale, and user "reagle" for letting me know the U1253A was included.

I decided that the U1253A would be my birthday present from my wife - she did great this year.  I should help her out more often!

[Excavatoree]

They are wonderful probes, its the silicone that makes it so supple and soft.  If you have both Agilent and Fluke or Pomona leads to compare side by side, you'll have a better contrast.  Cheapo leads are typically PCB insulation: stiff, safe, cheap, and ? mildy toxic, and this could have shipped with your Fluke 17.

You guys seem to rag on the probes a lot, but I love them! Way nicer than the stock probes from the fluke 17s anyway. They're long, sharp (though not needles) and they don't resist movement. And they feel great in the hand! I'm a huge fan, not to mention the accessories that come with.

Keep in mind there are two common styles of Fluke probe - the Silicone probes, which are the better of the two, and the standard, which are better than most if not all generic, cheap-o probes.   The Agilent silicone probes are about equal to the Fluke silicone, depending on what's important to you, some may say one edges the other.  The Fluke 17 comes with the standard probes, I believe.  The 289 comes with the silicone, I'm not sure about the 87-5, I think it has the standard probes.

[dimlow]

I would really like one of these meters considering the price. I emailed Grainger support and asked why they cant sent to the UK. All i got back was "Export restictions from the manufacturer prevent it". So I was cheeky enough to offer the young lady that replied to my mail a personal bonus of $50 if she could supply me one but she refused

Just noticed Dave has put his one on ebay, but its priced out of my pocket, so i have no chance of buying that one.

Sometimes I wish I lived in the states, you guys have it so lucky there for the price of electrical items. Usually if its $100 in the States its £100 in the UK. UK is a pure rip off.

Rant over!

[alexwhittemore]

Re:wall plug: just.frigging.don't. If you gave a cheapy you don't mind killing, try this. Imagine you have a ground-referenced 12v PSU that you want to measure. Plug the PSU in, and plug the meter in. Both are now tied common to earth. Now, as you might, clip the -lead to +12 on the PSU as if you wanted to reference your measurement to 12v. Maybe nothing happens, but more likely, you've just created a loop shorting 12v across your battery lead. I have lit wires on fire doing this. Literally, a 2 foot test lead caught.fire. In front of me because my PSU was accidentally ground referenced and I was trying to scope it in this way with an earth-referenced scope. 100A through a 22 gague wire will do that. Think what it'll do to your poor meter's PCB, designed to carry mA.

Even if you can isolate the supply with, say, a transformer before regulation (vs a switching reg that's not isolated) you could still have issues. Less likely, but it's the same reason they say not to defeat earth ground in order to float an oscilloscope. 

[Russel]

I'd just like to thank Dave for reviewing the OLED meter, user "Russel" for letting us know about the clearance sale, and user "reagle" for letting me know the U1253A was included.

I decided that the U1253A would be my birthday present from my wife - she did great this year.  I should help her out more often!

Your welcome! I'm glad that you took advantage of the deal.

I don't think I was the first to mention the clearance sale. But, after I saw it, I admit I'm guilty of spreading the word. I didn't need another multimeter, but felt that if I'm not going to take advantage of the price, someone should. In the end...I my willpower fell as I admired the U1251A for $130 and eventually ordered one.

According to UPS tracking, I should receive the U1251A I ordered this afternoon.

[Russel]

The U1251A meter arrived!

Date of certification 24-NOV-2008
Made in Taiwan on the rear label

One of the things I noticed on the U1251A that differs from the U1253A in Dave's review is that when you turn off the continuity beep, the buttons don't beep anymore. I'm glad for that because I don't like the beep when you use the buttons. Of course, that means that if you want to use the continuity beep, you must change the tone from off to the desired frequency in the menu. Also, with the beep off you do get a short beep when you first turn the unit on, but that's it.

I like the test leads. I've got two older Fluke meters, a 85 III and an 863. I don't have any preference between the test leads on the Agilent and the Flukes, they all seem good to me. I do like the little probe tip covers that came with the Agilent test leads. I've drawn blood with the Fluke test leads while stowing them or getting them out of their case. It's nice to have something to cover the sharp points.