EEVblog 1646 - iFixIt FixHub Portable USB Soldering Station REVIEW - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 20, 2024, 07:28:45 am
content: FixHub portable soldering station REVIEWhttps://www.ifixit.com/products/fixhub-power-series-portable-soldering-stationJust the iron:https://www.ifixit.com/products/fixhub-power-series-smart-soldering-ironSchematic:https://www.ifixit.com/Document/MeQmLlLKT2LSSKFY/Portable-Power-Station-Electrical-Schematics.pdfRepair Guide:https://www.ifixit.com/Device/FixHub_Portable_Power_Station3D Model:https://www.printables.com/model/1018125-fixhub-power-series-portable-power-station/How intercreate designed the FixHub:https://www.intercreate.io/case-stories/ifixit-soldering-iron-and-smart-hub00:00 - iFixIt FixHub Portable Soldering Station01:26 - iFixit Screwdriver set + unboxing02:41 - The smart iron03:41 - The Portable Power hub05:04 - The smart iron in detail06:51 - Auto setup & motion detection08:43 - Just the Tip11:18 - You can buy the smart iron on it's own11:49 - The hate screens and buttons on iron handles12:49 - Designed for repairability - Teardown Time14:51 - Schematics!15:16 - Concern about the battery terminal spacing16:01 - Designed by Intercreate16:47 - Complete bare PCB18:01 - Dum Arse Dave got the battery to go sparky-spark18:59 - It was DEAD out of the box!, repair time!20:47 - Testing the iron from an external USB-C battery bank22:06 - Testing the TS-80 tips22:23 - Power meter water test23:46 - Same power meter test with the JBC iron24:53 - Same power meter test with the TS80P iron25:13 - The temperature display is suspiciously consistant25:52 - Power up timer and temperature comparison test27:17 - Power up timer test on solder28:06 - Basic copper clad ground plane soldering test29:06 - Large package soldering test29:40 - Small package soldering test29:57 - Repetative ground plane solder test30:28 - JBC reference test on large package31:06 - Temperature accuracy test31:46 - External USB device powering featurign the µSupply32:02 - The magnetic stand34:04 - Trying the computer connection and command line serial port35:39 - Back to the water test with external power meter36:54 - Conclusion

author: Chainsaw_
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 20, 2024, 01:44:17 pm
content: The Pinecil fanboys are not happy in the YT comments.

author: AmericanLocomotive
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 20, 2024, 04:12:19 pm
content: Quote from: Chainsaw_ on October 20, 2024, 01:44:17 pmI mean they're not wrong, though. This product has:Poor thermal design, unable to transfer heat effectively from the heater to the cartridge bodyLying temperature displayMisleading/Lying Power OutputThe thing was barely able to achieve 50w - HALF of its advertised and rated power while dunked in water. iFixit told Dave that "not all tips can reach the full power output", despite ALL of the advertising on the website saying 100w, and the tip in his iron having "100W" printed right on it! It's straight up false advertising. Not to mention it uses the almost-but-not-quite the same cartridges as the TS80 for no discernible reason other than to force you to buy tips from iFixit.The whole "slightly not compatible cartridge" thing should have been a major ding against it. The temperature display, and complete inability to hit its rated power output should have put it firmly in the "thumbs down" zone. I get that it's built well, it's repairable, there are schematics and that iFixit is generally a good company - but this product has some fairly major problems and flat out does not perform as advertised.

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 20, 2024, 06:41:10 pm
content: https://www.intercreate.io/case-stories/ifixit-soldering-iron-and-smart-hubThis is the firm that did the actual design and manufacturing. It's a marketing thing, but it does go through some of the process.Note: I see Dave's link now. gg

author: Helio_Centra
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 20, 2024, 08:59:56 pm
content: Quote from: Chainsaw_ on October 20, 2024, 01:44:17 pmPinecil doesn't come with a battery, or stand, or even power cable. You can set one up for cheap and run it off a power tool battery you already have or wired off an old laptop charger. (3D printing adapters) But most people end up spending $100 or more setting their up just the way they like it.iFixit is just making a more professional feeling hobbyist iron. So it isn't exactly the same customer base.

author: SiliconWizard
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 12:34:26 am
content: I don't find it particularly good, judging from these tests. The live temperature display looks suspiciously stable and only drops very little when soldering with a large thermal mass, or the tip dipped into water.We can't really know whether they are just making the displaying itself overly optimistic (to make it look "better" than it is), or if it's the actual temperature reading they pass to the PID, which would explain the regulation behavior, which doesn't look very good. There's probably poor thermal coupling between the thermocouple and the tip itself. But they may also have added too much filtering in hardware and/or software.Build quality otherwise looks fine, and I guess it's usable, but I personally wouldn't give it a thumbs up.What's interesting, for those not in that particular business, is that it's actually much harder to design a proper soldering iron/station than it may look, be it for the tips or for the controller itself.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 01:14:46 am
content: Quote from: SiliconWizard on October 21, 2024, 12:34:26 amI just shot an entire 2nd channel video explaining this. I actually don't know if it going to help though

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 01:17:23 am
content: Quote from: AmericanLocomotive on October 20, 2024, 04:12:19 pmI have literally just done an entire video responding to your comment on the video.Yes, their marketing is lying, I totally agree.QuoteThen by all means do your review video and give it a thumbs down.I still like it and I'm going to personaly use it, so overall I gave it a thumbs up. You don't have to like that, and that's ok.There is nothing new here, I can remeber having to do an exact same repsonse video when I gave a Agilent meter a thumbs up 14 years ago, way back in the early days.A "thumbs up" doesn't mean you should blindly go out and buy it, I went to a lot of effort to demonstrate the flaws, muliple time, taking maybe 1/4 the video to do so in fact. Make up your own mind, this wasn't a shootout video it was a review video.There are countless other examples where a product has not met the spec, or even delivered a feature at all, yet no one complains when I point out that stuff in the review and otherwise like it and give it a thumbs up.Soldering irons seems special, and they seem to attract a special kind of rabid fanboy. I once did a TS100 review back in the early days and I was so inundated with hate comments and email that I had to remove it and never comment on the TS100 again. people were upset that I didn't call it the best soldering iron in existance and that it should be worshipped

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 02:20:33 am
content: I suspect this video won't matter at all. Some people will have just made up their mind that I'm wrong, or I'm a shill, or whatever.

author: SiliconWizard
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 06:09:20 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on October 21, 2024, 01:14:46 amThat's fine, and you explain it well enough.For sure the final decision is mostly a matter of opinion and nothing wrong with that. Seeing its shortcomings, I was personally a bit disappointed, but I can certainly see why it can still be liked.The strong points are IMO the simple & effective UI, the battery, build quality and the fact it was custom-designed in a US company rather than cheaply bought in China and just rebranded.As I mentioned, designing a *good* soldering iron is not an easy task, and if said company had no previous experience with that (which I don't know, but is possible), I'm not too surprised with the shortcomings, but apart from the tips (which they most certainly haven't designed themselves), the rest is probably nothing that can't be fixed either in firmware or hardware for future versions.

author: Nominal Animal
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 09:02:19 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on October 21, 2024, 02:20:33 amBecause Chainsaw_ said "Pinecil fanboys", I took a look at the Youtube comments.Holy shit, that's harsh. I absolutely could not handle that kind of a shitstorm myself.I absolutely agree with you on the handle. Having the buttons and display on it is not a good user interface for me at all.That said, Pinecilisthe closest competitor. The schematics and part datasheets are on thePine64 Wiki, and there is separate wiki page fortest, repair, and issues. Standard TS100 tips work in it, but they also have their own shorter versions for close work. The firmware is open sourcewith a few options to choose from, with the official one being Ben Brown'sIronOS. Pine64 will even sell you replacement shells and tip contacts at basically manufacturing price. And, you can modify it to perform the way you said you wanted a portable iron to do (just plug it in and not dick around with buttons), but it won't do so right out of the package.To me, that should fully explain the comparisons to Pinecil. I'm personally not interested in which one is "better", though;anycompetition is welcome in my opinion, as it is the pressure that pushes for better products.(I would be interested in seeing a comparison between the thermal capacity of Pinecil v2 and iFixIt FixHub, but that's it.)As I mentioned in that other thread, I got a Pinecil because I knew I can change whatever I don't like on it, from the firmware to the handle, and with both custom and standard TS100 tips, I knew I could find some that would work for me. A completely separate small BLE-based LED digit display with a rotary encoder to change the temp, that I can put wherever it best suits me, is very attractive too.. I'm even considering getting one of the Olimex ESP32's with Li batteries and USB charging, just for playing with that. And replacing the iron shell with a no-display one, although I might have to buy some high-temp glass fiber reinforced 3D printer filament, like PPA-CF that Clough42 recently tested.I also thought about a USB-C pass-through device, that uses whatever voltage is present on VBUS (maybe a wide-input switcher?), and only grabs the USB 2.0 D+ and D- lines to control the iron. Basically, it would be a separate "fascia plate" foranyUSB PD powerbank, for controlling the iron. Or, instead of a pass-through, a PD supply with CH32X035 (50-cent RISC-V with USB PD support), using a suitable (no-high-spike) 20-volt laptop power brick or a Mean Well power supply, for hobbyist "bench" work (assuming one already has a suitable supply, you see, with minimal budget).In view of this, USD $170 for the power bank and control unit is just too much, as is $80 for the handle that is nice but only supports their own tips.My own criteria is much more weighted on bang-for-buck, so my conclusions differ from yours, Dave, but your reasoning here was crystal clear for me, and I have no issue with it. And youknowI would say so if I had. If this matters, that is!

author: abeyer
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 09:26:44 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on October 21, 2024, 02:20:33 amNow it just makes me want that shootout video.Has anyone even done a good feature/spec matrix of all the new portable options?

author: tszaboo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 09:40:44 am
content: Quote from: Chainsaw_ on October 20, 2024, 01:44:17 pmWell this thing has:Custom USB cable which I guess is silicone, probably even heat resistant.Custom connector on the USB cable.Molded parts. Injection molds are not cheap.Heat resistant cap (very nice and useful for a portable iron)Battery pack, quite big. 6x2600mAh cells by the looks of itComparing it to the Pinecil is a bit strange. It probably also works with larger profit margin, because ifixit is an established brand with good reputation and a lot of sponsor segments on large Youtube channels.It's like the LTT screwdriver. It's nice. And you can compare it with a 2 EUR screwdriver and say it's a bad price. Or you can even compare it to a Wera kraftform, which will be the same price, and quality. Still it's going to sell.

author: .RC.
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 09:45:23 am
content: Well as a Carry On movie fan I thoroughly enjoyed the review. It has made my day, or evening as it is at the moment. This soldering iron is not for me as I am just a very low rank amateur. I built my own portable one with a t12 clone and 3D printed a case that connects to a Ryobi battery. But I quite enjoyed the review.Thanks.

author: ComfyChair
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 10:10:20 am
content: QuoteHei Dave, it's dishearthening to me that you had to withstand such a shitstorm. I remembre seing your ts100 review and wanted to watch it again to comapre the two soldering irons but sadly I could not find it. Now I get it.Keep up with the good work and don't be deterred by the internet cargo culting! Even though you strive for unbiasedness everyone has his/her preferences at the end of the day and you clearly stated those within the video.

author: ksio89
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 04:16:35 pm
content: $250 and they couldn't even include a proper finger guard on the handle, a proper stand and a simple sponge/brass wool holder, unbelievable! I've watched another review (Tito from Macho Nacho Productions), and the magnet on the stand was too strong to the point of snagging when he pulled out the iron, unless he did it in a specific way, which nobody is going to do in practice.Not only this soldering station is overpriced and does not meet its specs, but it's dangerous as well.

author: Ohmy
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 04:36:00 pm
content: For this price I would prefer if the "station" was built around using JBC T245 irons or something. A T245-A can be had for a few dollars less than what they sell the a iFixit iron for (Without station) and it would mean getting access to a vast amount of high quality tips, so I just think that would have been better for me personally.

author: Ranayna
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 04:48:42 pm
content: One thing that stood out to me during the review:When you connected it to your computer to configure it and to check for updates, it apparently heated up.I would hope this can be disabled?First i would not really expect to heat up. If it's lying around on the desk this can be quite nasty. Also, doesn't this put the USB port, that likely is not designed to deliver much current, under significant stress?

author: beenai2018
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 05:18:54 pm
content: Quote from: Ranayna on October 21, 2024, 04:48:42 pmThey are probably not distinguishing the upstream USB equipment correctly .. Power delivery vs data etc. They don't have buttons or screen on the handle ,so when some usb source is connected , they think you want to solder( not update firmware). This is probably true to 99% of cases .USB ports were limited to 5V ,500mA previously but ,with type-c data plus PD ports that limitation is removed . This is how monitors etc can be connected to a laptop with a single usb-c cable . and supplying 30w (heh!) should not be a big deal .

author: GuidoK
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 05:21:38 pm
content: Quote from: AmericanLocomotive on October 20, 2024, 04:12:19 pmExpensive tips$20/€20 for a tip for a portable soldering iron is not cheap. A TS100 style tip costs $5-10 on aliexpress delivered. And most people who are into these things, probably have some lying around...I just did that same test with dipping the soldering iron tip in water as Dave did with my TS100 iron at 24V on my bench power supply (it never came up to me to do this as a test), and the current stayed constantly between 2,85A and 3,09A (I logged it), so that is between 68W and 74W. So it even delivers more than the advertized 65W@24V. And this was not a big tip, it was the standard supplied small conical tip.So the TS100 tip system is in that sense way both superior and cheaper than this new bespoke tip system of theirs.Why they didn't go with a proven tip system (albeit TS100, or JBC or hakko or whatever) instead of this new, expensive, mediocre working tip system is beyond me.The build quality of this kit looks very nice and it's nice that it's a complete kit (although it misses the cleaning sponge, that's a stupid oversight, although commercial thinking as they are it'll probably be a future extra you canbuy.....), but at €270 it's way too expensive for something that performs mediocre compared to cheaper and more available systems.A €50 pinecil and a €70 powerbank probably does way better in that same watertest, is twice as cheap and has a widely used tip system that is up to 3-4 times as cheap.I also don't really see the advantage of having this station use USB-C.Yes a portable soldering iron on USB-C can be handy as you can use it with a powerbank. Although this iron not so handy as it then needs a computer and online tool or terminal style communication to set simple things like temperature. That's why USB-C irons tend to have that display and buttons.Yes this soldering iron as a station has it functioning as a USB-C powerbank.However, it's only 5000mAh, so it's pretty much empty when you charge a phone, and most people will have a normal generic powerbank. Pretty much all PD usb-C powerbanks I see have a capacity of 20.000mAh or more. So the implementation of the loose iron working on USB-C is mediocre, and the implementation of the base station working as a USB-C powerbank is mediocre. So what's the benefit here?Only the build quality in the sense that they use a lot of aluminium stands out here as a real positive compared to the competition. The rest is just not that good imo.

author: Ranayna
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 06:38:14 pm
content: Quote from: beenai2018 on October 21, 2024, 05:18:54 pmOn desktop computers USB-C Ports are still somewhat rare, and ports that can act as USB-PD output are even rarer.

author: SiliconWizard
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 07:46:38 pm
content: Quote from: Ohmy on October 21, 2024, 04:36:00 pmThere are some chinese "clones" that do this, but that's China where they don't care much about IP outside of China. I have some doubts any US company could sell a soldering station that would come with JBC handles and tips without express authorization from JBC, which they would never give.

author: Chainsaw_
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 08:43:12 pm
content: Indeed, you'd have to call it a FNIRSI or something. (Even the colour scheme is the same...)

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 21, 2024, 09:42:59 pm
content: Quote from: tszaboo on October 21, 2024, 09:40:44 amI totally wouldn't disagree IF the performance weren't so terrible.It would be like LTT releasing a screwdriver with a super weak magnetic bit holding and the bits kept falling out. They'd rightly be called out for it.Quote from: SiliconWizard on October 21, 2024, 07:46:38 pmThe main issue is the patent, which presumably has long expired for T245.They could have used the aluminum handle design and had JBC "inspired" tip that is compatible, it wouldn't be an issue as long as they don't brand it as such. See Thermaltronics (they specifically state the Metcal part number they've copied).https://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/when-including-a-compatibility-claim-for-another-s-5784721.htmlhttps://patents.justia.com/assignee/jbc-soldering-s-lhttps://patents.google.com/patent/EP1086772A2/en

author: AmericanLocomotive
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2024, 08:14:55 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on October 21, 2024, 01:17:23 amI don't have any dog in this fight. I still do my soldering with an old beat up 40 watt Weller with a chisel tip. My issue with the iFixit iron isn't really even the iron itself, or its shortcomings. No product is perfect. My issue is 100% with iFixit's anti-consumer behavior about this iron.- Their marketing everywhere rants and raves about this being a 100w iron, except apparently some tips (which ones?) can't deliver anywhere close to the advertised power. This is false advertising and anti-consumer.- They copied the TS80 tip design (or copied it from whoever copied it for the TS80), but made it slightly incompatible for no apparent reason. They told you it's because not all tips of that form factor can handle the 100w the iron can output, which is fair enough except that their own freaking tip it comes with can't handle the power either. So apparently it's a non-issue, and the iron won't try and cram 100w down a tip that can't handle it. They clearly made it non-compatible so you'd have to buy their tips. This is anti-consumer.The second issue is more of an annoyance, but the first issue is utterly unacceptable for a "pro-consumer's-rights" company like iFixit. Well it's unacceptable for any company, legally, but it's especially egregious coming from iFixit. iFixit is not some fly-by-night faceless AliExpress company. They're very well known and very reputable, and should be held to a high standard.If you recommend a product that comes no where near its advertised specs, you are saying "I think this product, it's marketing and the company that sells it are okay even though they are lying right to your face". Lying in your marketing is very heavily anti-consumer - it's taking advantage of people who don't know, or do not have the means to exhaustively characterize all of the products they buy. A responsible reviewer, especially a pro-consumer's-rights and right-to-repair activist like eevblog should NEVER recommend an expensive, premium product, from a legitimate company that's using such deceptive and false advertising.It's super easy to say "I personally really like this product for X,Y,Z reasons, but cannot recommend it until iFixit clarifies in their marketing about its actual power output" is a responsible conclusion for a reviewer to make. You're acknowledging the product has a lot of good features, and also acknowledging that the company did something bad, and that you can't in good conscience support companies abusing their customers.Like, imagine if Louis Rossman reviewed a new Apple laptop and said "Well all of the marketing and the spec sheet and box claims it comes with 32GB of RAM, it actually only comes with 16GB, but the rest of the laptop is pretty sweet so I give it a thumbs up". You can't even imagine that. You know he would ruthlessly tear them to shreds for having the gall to ship a product with half the RAM it was supposed to, and he would tell you that you should never support a company that does such deceptive marketing.Yet you're over here with this iron saying "It's pretty sweet, buy it if you don't mind it only comes with half the power it should!". Like come on, you have a responsibility as a reviewer to hold big companies to ethical standards.

author: electr_peter
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 22, 2024, 08:22:30 pm
content: At first glance iFixit soldering iron seemed interesting, but price is high and thermal performance seems to be lacking. At least it is usable.IMO there is small issue with this station being "portable". Having USB cable attached to base station is limiting movement/workspace setup somewhat, meaning you need relatively big flat surface for soldering setup. Semi-portable - sure; portable - maybe, depends.Besides many USB-C powered irons, I would consider MiniWare TS1C a potential (semi)portable alternative for less cost (just need to add powerbank for the cost difference). TS1C advantages - it is wireless (better usability in most cases) and has selection of tips (fits TS80/TS80P iron).

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2024, 09:25:40 pm
content: Quote from: electr_peter on October 22, 2024, 08:22:30 pmIts just a trade off, either have a base station, or have a fat heavy handle. Some people don't like the latter.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 23, 2024, 12:21:01 am
content: FYI, I have been discussing this with the head designer of the iron at iFixit, and with regard to the 100W tip rating, they have shared some test data that shows it does indeed output the claimed 100W.The problem of course is into a load, where tip design, thermocouple and feedback plays a role.New firmware is in the works.I've encouraged them to share the data on their site or post here.As for the 100W marking on the tip, they said this:Quote

author: showman
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2024, 03:02:22 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on October 23, 2024, 12:21:01 amThere's no need for secret "test data". Output of what into what? If the power bank can output 100 W, but none of the current tips actually take that, i.e. their resistance is significantly more than (17 V)^2/100W = 2.9 ohm, I can see why people would be angry (ignoring the fact that according to a youtube commenter the datasheet recommended output voltage of the buck regulator supposedly goes up to 13 V instead of 17 V. I checked the datasheet of the part that the commenter gave and it was indeed 13 V, but not if/where it is used in the station). If the resistances are lower than 2.9 ohms when the tips are cold, there should be no issue. Several people have asked for it in the youtube comments, but I did not see any responses.That said, in my opinion it is kind of irrelevant what either the marketing or the actual power is as long as people can use it for whatever their use cases are. And in a similar way the price or bang per buck are irrelevant. Who wants it will buy it and who does not, will not. I first bought an expensive JBC station with a bunch of expensive tips and later some cheap Chinese T12 stations which cost like tenth or less of the JBC and honestly, I can work with and like all of those for different reasons.Of course if the design or manufacturing of the tips is for some reason fundamentally flawed, for example the thermocouple is too far/decoupled from the surface of the tip, they'll have to fix that. Depending on the problem it may or may not be fixable by firmware alone.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 23, 2024, 03:22:43 am
content: Quote from: showman on October 23, 2024, 03:02:22 amThey told me the tip is 3 ohms.And that the control algorithm is optimized for small-to-medium thermal loads.

author: showman
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2024, 03:44:11 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on October 23, 2024, 03:22:43 amSo given 3 ohms, it is close to 100 W max into the tip. When it heats up, depending on the heater/thermocouple metals (not sure of the exact tip construction), the resistance will go up and power down correspondigly by some amount. Also, given the optimization for small tips, it also makes sense that the measured power is less than 100 W since too much power would overheat the tip. And of course the larger the thermal mass and the further the measurement is from the surface, the harder the control becomes, especially when you want to do it well for both small and large tips. But I'm sure they will fix/improve it one way or another.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 23, 2024, 04:53:20 am
content: Quote from: showman on October 23, 2024, 03:44:11 amYes, that's basically what they have told me. I have seen data where they disabled the thermocouple feedback and got a constant 82-85W into water.So what it looks like happened, it's possible to get 100W into no/small load and they had to mark the tip with that maximum figure for some UL requirement, and then of course marketing ran with the 100W figure and plastered it everywhere else.And their current firmware is optimised for the intended market of small/mid loads (hence also the tips), so it doesn't do well on the water test or other big loads.With a firmware tweak they will be able to improve this, but I suspect that barring a tip redesign, they won't ever get the full 100W into a big load.

author: SteveyG
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 23, 2024, 08:02:49 pm
content: I'm not surprised there's some difficulties giving the 'true' 100W performance. We see the same thing from various manufacturers which is why the JBC clones have become so popular.In all my discussions with Metcal, good cartridge/tip design is a real art and a trade-off between thermal mass, response time, and position of thermocouple and heater. They introduced the variable temperature stations which introduced huge capital expenditure for the new topology to get the performance customers expect. What hope do smaller companies really have?

author: Greg J
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: November 17, 2024, 07:48:29 pm
content: So I preordered it, was told I'll get it next year - but it arrived about 3 weeks ago.I was very excited, I need and tend to use a lot of USB-C power banks that can do higher voltage output. Main one I use all the time Sherpa 100PD . Was hoping that on top of being battery powered - actually usable around soldering iron, I can use this as a generic USB-C power bank. Boy, was up in for a rideLet me get one thing out of the way. It's an excellent battery powered soldering iron. Better than any I've used before.For some reason I couldn't upgrade to firmware version 1.0.4 - dunno why, 1.0.5 works. Having to use a web-browser , of the "horrible" kind (chrome based) - not ideal, but let's not get distracted.I started testing it with random USB-C powered devices, higher power (voltage) required devices. In the end, I wanted to discharge it fully, so I plugged in an Ikea (so not cheap chinese crap) USB-C powered, with all PD negotiation circuitry inside Air Quality monitor. Boy, I've never seen so much smoke coming out of a device! Cracking noises and smoke. This iFix IT power bank just basically obliterated it.To say that I don't trust it, would be an understatement.I have no problems with battery powered devices. Being driving an EV for 8+ years, know lots of people working in the industry, I even run a podcast about EVs (take-it-ev podcast). But iFix it - don't trust them anymore.Device came with firmware 1.0.3, so I tried upgrading to 1.0.4. That bricked it. I had to force it into DFU and downgrade to 1.0.3.Contacted support, they told me they would accept a return, but otherwise can't send me a replacement due to high demand (gulp).Now, given their attitude towards fruity company - imagine apple released this device, and I had this experience. Or better yet, someone working for iFix It had that experience ..Honestly, I feel like I can't trust them anymore..

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 18, 2024, 09:55:06 pm
content: Shame they can't send preproduction units to Dave and others, well ahead of production, to work out these issues.Quote from: Greg J on November 17, 2024, 07:48:29 pmDo you have a USB C tester or meter that can measure the voltage out of this thing while its plugged in?That is insane if it negotiated the wrong voltage. Feel like they should refund you the cost of the air quality monitor and hold production until they figure out what went wrong here.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: November 18, 2024, 10:01:15 pm
content: Quote from: thm_w on November 18, 2024, 09:55:06 pmReviewers aren't a free design review service!I do actually get this quite a lot, companies will contact me and say they have a product in development and want me to help them iron out the design. "Let's work together!", "Let's schedule a conference call with the design team!" etc as if it's worth my time to help them design their product that I'm nto going to make a cent from.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 18, 2024, 11:55:20 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on November 18, 2024, 10:01:15 pmAbsolutely. But you'll do it anyway to a degree, if its interesting enough to take a brief look at.If they want true engineering feedback, then they should pay up. But no one seems to care to that point.There is a mechanical engineer that reviews chinese bike parts and constantly complains about the same thing (peak torque). But he gets free shit and it makes for interesting content, so I don't expect it to ever end.

author: Ranayna
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 19, 2024, 11:22:59 am
content: My assumption would be that the companies, if they really want you to do a critique on a pre-production unit, that you need to sign an NDA.So you can't make a video about it, maybe even can't talk about it at all.If you get sent a device for review/teardowns, especially if you buy it yourself, all bets are off and theres nothing stopping you from making a video.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 19, 2024, 10:09:07 pm
content: Quote from: Ranayna on November 19, 2024, 11:22:59 amWestern companies, yes, this is a big deal if you pre-empt their official release. And if the initial product run has major flaws, they'll fix them but only 6-12 months later and give it a different model number.Chinese companies, they dgaf, they'll send out preproduction units with the full branding on them to reviewers, or sell within china only to start. If there is a major flaw with the initial batch, which is often, they might fix it a month later and just continue to sell it under the same model number.

author: SuperSVGA
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: November 19, 2024, 11:54:36 pm
content: Quote from: Greg J on November 17, 2024, 07:48:29 pmYou had better luck than me it seems, I pre-ordered on September 13th, it said it would start shipping October 15th, and here I am still waiting for any sign of it even shipping...I already have far too many soldering irons so it's not like I'm stuck without it, but I was hoping to have a hands on experience with it if only to form my own opinion of it.

author: Greg J
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: January 23, 2025, 10:38:30 am
content: Quote from: thm_w on November 18, 2024, 09:55:06 pmThey sent me a replacement unit now - I am scared to test it. I don't have fancy USB-C testers, just little cheap Chinese ones. I still got another two of those Ikea sensors - so I will add extra protection inside and try again at some point.But yeah, either Dave and other reviewers didn't stress test this device - or I truly got a lemon

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 23, 2025, 11:34:17 pm
content: Quote from: thm_w on November 18, 2024, 11:55:20 pmSometimes, if it interests me, because I'm a nerd and I can't help myself.But when they start scheduling conference calls with design teams, I'm out, that's paid work.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 23, 2025, 11:41:27 pm
content: Quote from: Ranayna on November 19, 2024, 11:22:59 amIt's usually just a professional trust arrangement, no legal NDA used. They'll send us a pre-production unit and we'll promise not to do a video until release.And if we do find something wrong pre-release we tell them about it and let them fix it, and often won't even mention it happened. Because as engineers ourselves we understand "shit happens".Of course if it's something funny like say Agilent's new pre-release scope blowing up and releasing the magic smoke, that's gonna make the final video cut because it too funny not to share.