Electronics and technology blog    /    Materials for March 2019 year

I’ve mentioned more than once in my reviews that I like VFDs—or, more precisely, devices that use them. I’ve already reviewed a volume control, a signal level meter, and even a clock. While looking for something interesting on Taobao, I came across a shop with a couple more interesting clock models. The price was reasonable, so I couldn’t resist. Today I’m reviewing the first clock.

The latest review in the “batteries from nkon” series. Today we’re looking at the Murata VTC6, which in my opinion are just as popular as the VTC5A. There’s also a bit of useful information at the end of the review; some of you may already know it, while others may not.

I've often come across comments along the lines of “Chinese batteries die quickly.” I generally agree, but the question caught my interest, so I decided to look into it more closely—in particular, by testing how many cycles the battery can handle. More details in the article.

Another pair of interesting batteries from nkon, and this time they’re Murata VTC5A cells. They don’t have particularly high capacity, but they can deliver a lot of current. Review, tests, and a few oddities.

This is already my third review of a TV box with a built-in TV tuner, but this one has some notable differences from the previous models. In my opinion, this model is well made and could be worth buying. And, of course, as always, I'll take it apart, inspect it, test it, and add it to the summary table.

This is the third battery from the nkon store, and it’s not the familiar 18650 but the newer 21700 form factor. The differences include a capacity of up to 5 Ah and a current of up to 10 A, so I’d classify this battery as a high-capacity cell.

This is the second pair of Samsung batteries from the NKON store. Today we'll be looking at so-called high-capacity batteries, designed to prioritize capacity over discharge current and internal resistance.

The Rockchip RK3399 is hardly a new SoC, and I’ve already reviewed a TV box based on this processor once before. But it turns out it’s still “in the game” and holding up reasonably well—though probably thanks to its noticeably higher performance compared with more common chips. So, a TV box based on the RK3399: review, teardown, tests, and a table, as usual.

It's been a while since I reviewed branded batteries. Thanks to regular reader Vladimir, I now have a subject for this review—or, more precisely, for an entire series of reviews testing branded batteries. And now I also have proper equipment to test them.

Part two of a list of various products I bought on AliExpress. I bought some of them more than once, so I can comment on both the product itself and the store.

One of the blog's regular readers tipped me off that an infrared thermometer is available at a decent price on Banggood.

This review is a sort of continuation of my look at compact modular power supplies, which began with a review of a similar model from Hi-Link. This time, though, I got my hands on a unit from a less well-known company, with a different output voltage but the same 3 W power rating.

The second electronic load from ZKEtech, bought quite recently, and the third device in my collection of measuring instruments. Though in this case, calling it a measuring instrument is a bit of a stretch, and it doesn't quite fit the definition of an “electronic load” either, since it's also partly a battery tester. Anyway, today I'm reviewing the 20 A version.

This isn’t my first review of various thermal interface materials, and today I’m going to try another thermal paste and another thermal pad. They’re useful things for electronics hobbyists, computer enthusiasts, and others, so I decided to test them out of curiosity. There’s also a bonus in this review: a test of three types of thermal adhesive and one more thermal paste.

A very brief review in which I’ll show you a useful accessory that expands the functionality of the electronic load I reviewed recently.

A little over three years ago, I reviewed the ZKE EBC-A10 electronic load. It quickly became one of my main instruments for battery testing, and you’ve probably seen both the load itself and the graphs I included in my battery reviews. The instrument turned out to be genuinely useful. As far as I know, my review was either the first or one of the first, but it’s time for an upgrade. Today, I’ll be taking a look at the new version of this electronic load.