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Solid Digital Multimeter

5.0

This meter is an excellent value. Been using a yellow meter for 20 years, not anymore. Display shows magnitude and frequency at the same time. Leads that come with it are soft, even in extreme cold and are quality. Refresh rate is quick, mode selection is simple and positive. Display is outstanding. My only critical comment about these Hioki meters is that the built in spot to connect a lanyard or magnet is kind of an odd size. A generic meter magnet won't fit. The Hioki magnet is outstanding, but a bit expensive for what it is.

Excellent value on May 30, 2021 I found this helpful (2)

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Hioki's DT425 Series Brought To Its Full Potential

5.0

I have been a big fan of the "classic" three Hioki DT425x[1,2,3] meters as really great value sub-$200 meters. Rock solid 0.3% DCBA, responsive and sensitivity continuity function, precise and huge dynamic range cap and resistance measurements, good frequency test, and solid auto ranging and filtering, overall responsiveness and reputability, and a unique high quality and easy to use case[really stable kickstand makes me shocked by other implementations] really make these stand out, all with a great design and reputation for safety, at CAT IV no less, perhaps unlike some popular yellow meters.

The problems with this series have pretty much been that it seemed like Hioki really wanted power users to move up to the bigger full featured DT428x to get key features. But you are talking about a meter which is much larger and more than twice the price. This fixed the number one problem with the DT4252 I had, which was the lack of a high precision ammeter range. Moreover, the integration of the new ammeter ranges is backed by the fact the implementation was really fantastic having only one test plug for all 5 ranges, with a single 10A fuse. I really love the ingenious idea of the contact-less AC line voltage detect built in, it is a huge safety and convenience win and I hope this becomes a standard feature of all major brand multi-meters in the future. There are also some subtle improvements like the fact the auto range function of the DC voltage function now can extend/starts down to the mV range which the DT4252 didn't do, offering instead a clunky second function, which is really nice.

One remaining problem with the DT425x series which might make the DT428x the only option for some users remains in this update, which is the diode function. It is still limited to 1.5V, and doesn't visibly "light" even red LEDs up. This is a common theme in sub-$300 meters and none of the DT425x series peers really solve it, but it stops this from being a clear option for everyone. I do like that the diode test is fairly transparent as an instrument, in that the analog bar display works, and shows you that it is using the DC 6V range test function, which is pretty cool. I think almost any meter could do this but few choose to expose what the instrument is actually doing.
Overall, this is definitely my favorite meter and you see me grabbing it over my 87V or Metrahit Energy for any task I'd want to do in the field away from my bench-top meter.

Verified Purchase David on Aug 06, 2015 I found this helpful (13)