Here’s an interesting new product—the iDVM Multimeter—a product the company claims is the first digital phone-enabled multimeter. As you can see, the instrument itself has no display or controls. All display and control is done through an iPhone or iPad app.
The connection to the iPhone or iPad is a Bluetooth link. The app allows users to acquire, visualize, and share electrical measurement data on their Apple devices. Data can also be exported and e-mailed for further analysis.
The kicker is that the instrument won’t ship until June, and it will cost $220! A Fluke 177 multimeter costs only $240, and undoubtedly has much better analog specs. (The “Technical Specs” page on the Redfish website is currently not available.) It does do some things that the Fluke doesn’t do, such as speak the measurements and use a rechargeable battery, but I’m not sure those features are worth the price.
I like the iDVM concept a lot, but I’m afraid that they’re going to have to reduce the cost of this thing by at least 50% to be successful.
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