Compact DVB-T2 tuner
16-04-2019, 13:47
It’s no secret that television is gradually switching to digital broadcasting. Actually, no—it switched over a long time ago, and for at least the past 4 years they’ve been promising that they’ll “switch off” analog broadcasting any day now. But sooner or later, it will happen, and some owners of older TVs will be left, as they say, “up the creek without a paddle.” The TV itself will be like a suitcase without a handle: no use to you, but too good to throw away. But if you’re still happy with your old TV, you can add digital TV support with a small set-top box, which is what I’ll be talking about today.
Universal battery holder with four-wire connection
14-04-2019, 00:26
Lately, I’ve been getting more and more different batteries to test, so I decided to pick up a couple of simpler holders to complement my powerful universal holder. Today I’m reviewing two of these simpler—and therefore less expensive—holders.
Ammeter-voltmeter with a VFD display and power measurement
13-04-2019, 10:50
Continuing the topic of devices with VFD displays, I want to tell you about a rather interesting product: a fairly accurate ammeter-voltmeter that could come in handy for a hobbyist.
ZH-YU ZB206+ Battery Capacity Tester and How It Measures Internal Resistance
6-04-2019, 12:10
Some time ago, while discussing another batch of “test subjects”—batteries—the topic of measuring internal resistance came up. Since the well-known YR1030 (and 1035) are relatively expensive, one commenter said there was a good, inexpensive little tester called the ZH-YU ZB206+. But a few caveats also came to light, so to set the record straight, I bought one of these testers to try out.
Digital Clock with an “Analog” VFD Display
4-04-2019, 15:14
I first saw this clock—or rather, this display—more than a year ago. It caught my interest so much that I kept checking back from time to time and watching the clock evolve around it. Finally, the price dropped to a relatively affordable level, so I bought one for myself. As always, here’s the full review.
Desk clock with a large VFD display and Wi-Fi time synchronization
3-04-2019, 17:05
My second clock from Taobao. Unlike the first one, this one has a simpler display, but it's much larger—and that's what I liked most about it, aside from the automatic time synchronization and its simply pleasant appearance.
4 7290
A pair of almost nameless Chinese protected batteries
4 7290
I happened to get my hands on these unknown batteries. A friend brought them over and asked me to check them, measure them, give them a sniff and a taste—which is exactly what I did.
Desk Clock with a VFD Display and Wi-Fi
31-03-2019, 21:47
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.
Review and test of batteries from nkon.nl, Sony/Murata VTC6
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.
Cycle life test of a Chinese battery, updated 29.03, 450 cycles, test complete
29-03-2019, 13:32
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.
Review and test of batteries from nkon.nl, Sony/Murata VTC5A
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.
MECOOL-KIII-PRO, a decent TV box with a built-in T2 tuner
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.
Review and test of batteries from nkon.nl: Samsung INR21700-50E
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.
Review and test of batteries from nkon.nl: Samsung INR18650-35E
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.
Scishion Ai SE: a powerful TV box based on the Rockchip RK3399
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.
Review and test of batteries from nkon.nl: Samsung INR18650-30Q
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.

19 99713
Links to various products I often bought/buy, Part 2

19 99713
20-03-2019, 14:27
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.
Good price on the MESTEK IR01C infrared thermometer
17-03-2019, 21:13
One of the blog's regular readers tipped me off that an infrared thermometer is available at a decent price on Banggood.









