Log4.USB USB Power Datalogger - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: LukeW
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 09, 2017, 12:05:32 pm
content: This is a really nice little bit of kit.USB3 compatible.Nice display. Long battery life.Nice firmware and features.USB/Serial comms or micro-SD card datalogging. Or read off the screen alone, I suppose.Isolated.A couple of Phoenix screw terminals for general-purpose connections - so it's really a general-purpose power/current datalogger for low-power DC applications, not just for USB.Really nicely made. Really solid industrial design, feels really nice in your hand.I just plugged in the source, plugged in the sink, pushed the button - and look, right away it's taking data. There you go, right there on the screen. Nice and convenient.I could have installed the PC software, but it's nice to be able to say "CBF" and get quick win with the out-of-the-box standalone capabilities.Don't turn it on, take it apart - right? Well kind of obligatory, I guess I have to or somebody else will. We have a SAM D21 running the show, and various other silicon like the voltage regulator, battery charger for the internal Li-Po cell, full galvanic isolation of the PC interface, acquisition of the current shunt signal, and a FT230XQ for the USB virtual UART, as well as the nice display. A photo under the bonnet is included.It's a kind of elegant minimalism. Not trying to do too much, but not too little. It's a "just right" product, from concept to features to engineering.It is a joy to take apart, which speaks to really nice design and well integrated electronic design and plastics/industrial design rather than everyone in individual silos.No tape. No glue. No double-sided sticky shit. No hot snot. No miles of wire flopping around that doesn't really need to be there. No super-short stressed wires that should have been a little longer.No fragile little moulded plastic tabs or clips. Just pop the screws out, and everything comes apart neatly, and everything goes back together perfectly easily.In fact there are only two wires in the whole system, and they are the ones coming out of the flat-pack lithium cell.The plastics are machined from solid Delrin, not injection as far as I can tell, but they're really nicely made. Maybe I just got an early one.And the graceful, minimalist, sleek curves of the plastic design feels really nice. Not too round, not too square. It's hard to explain but I just really like it.And of course socket-head cap screws, because they're simply what screws are supposed to be.All designed and engineered and assembled in Australia.Firmware, hardware, SMD assembly, plastics, the cardboard packaging - the whole stack engineered and assembled locally.(Not the individual electronic components obviously, and probably not the PCB fab.)This was originally a Kickstarter project from Tekt Industries in Melbourne.I'm not shilling it, but I backed it, I took the punt, and I'm really impressed with the result.https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tekt/tektyte-logit-specialised-circuit-testers

author: JonM
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 09, 2017, 04:17:34 pm
content: It looks like a nice device, but the Tektyte Web site says that they are unavailable.Last night, before seeing this post, I ordered a "Colour TFT Dual USB Power Monitor YZXstudio ZY1270 QC 3.0 Auto Fast Charge" from Franky's ebay store (US$43) which should meet my immediate needs for USB power measurement. He has only one left if anyone is interested. I might have gone for the Tektyte (apparently US$161 plus shipping) after more consideration.