PassMark Inline PSU Tester

[crmaris]

The PassMark Inline PSU tester lets you perform in-depth testing of power supplies, beyond what a simple multimeter can do. It's also compact enough to carry with you in the field. We cross-verified its readings against our professional lab equipment with surprisingly good results.

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[_UV_]

only suitable for low power/office pc, and 590 way too much, 100 would be adequate price, also i suppose in half a year we will see "equipment" with same quality and features from china for 59.

 

[EarthDog]

Who is this product for? Other psu testers/reviewers? $600 for a device that shuts down after a minute of use? Not accurate or accurate 'enough' and cannot calibrate?

Innovative... I guess...its a psu tester though. What is actually innovative? Why this is recommended for the masses not a clue. Yikes...

 

[crmaris]

It shuts down because it is not meant to work in standalone mode for a long period, which is meaningless. Still I had to mention that.

In through-line mode it can work for hours without a prob.

Calibration, I was just informed that tomorrow they will release a new firmware update that will allow it.

It is innovative because it is the first time I see such an affordable tester offering all those features and I know a thing on this subject Only a good multimeter can cost more than this tool.

Everything has to do with support and not only hardware. Surely a Chinese factory can make it less affordable if they produce thousands of these. But what about the software? Will be usable and above all, will be updated regularly. I see the folks at PassMark trying hard to make this work and I liked their work so far. Many of the issues that I found can be solved with firmware updates and I am expecting to see the final result.

 

[EarthDog]

Who is this even for though? Pros...a dozen readers? Very few, even enthusiasts, would touch this thing at the $600 price point. I can buy five psus to just drop in and still come out $100 ahead (and save time from testing).

Thus looks like a product for a small business or website to inhouse test their units...not for enthusiasts.

Anyway, I guess it's cool, but... this is for the pros really at that price, not us.

 

[crmaris]

it is not for the average Joe yes, it is for brands that want quick and easy testing, for technicians, for shops with a service line, for enthusiast users that want to know more on PSUs and for production lines possibly that want something to quickly check the PSUs before they pass them to Sunmoons.

For in the field failure analysis this is a neat tool also. An average user won't even bother to buy a plain PSU tester that costs 10 bucks.

 

[EarthDog]

it is not for the average Joe yes, it is for brands that want quick and easy testing, for technicians, for shops with a service line, for enthusiast users that want to know more on PSUs and for production lines possibly that want something to quickly check the PSUs before they pass them to Sunmoons.

For in the field failure analysis this is a neat tool also. An average user won't even bother to buy a plain PSU tester that costs 10 bucks.

I had no idea TPU was expanding into the commercial space...

Thanks for taking the time to write this up, regardless if it isnt for 99 percent if readers, lol

 

[R-T-B]

only suitable for low power/office pc, and 590 way too much, 100 would be adequate price, also i suppose in half a year we will see "equipment" with same quality and features from china for 59.

600Ws on the 12V is a lot more than an office PC.

Anyways, it is for sure a niche product. I'm not going to lie though, I'd love to play with one (if given, I'd never buy one, lol).

 

[_UV_]

600Ws on the 12V is a lot more than an office PC.

only if it can handle it for a few hours for testing and troubleshooting, otherwise it is a marketing BS

 

[neatfeatguy]

I find it humorous when folks say the cost of a product costs too much and list some ridiculous lower price. If you feel it costs too much, then you're welcome to devote time and resources to make something similar. Then feel free to price it low. But don't forget what it takes to get a new product off the ground; overall costs to design, code, produce working prototypes, test, tweak and retest, finalize a finished form, manufacture, promote, ship and sell. A lot does go into getting a new product off the ground, especially for a company that doesn't already have past experience or their own facilities to use.

The way I look at it - it costs $600. That's out of my price range and in all honesty, if I owned one, I probably would have found less than a half dozen times I would have needed to use it for a few possible power issues I've come across building computers and helping folks troubleshoot broken computers over the past 10 or so years. So, would the $600 price justify my purchasing of one? Absolutely not. I'm just an above average computer knowledgeable person that enjoys working with them when I can.

I know a couple people that do a lot of work on computers for their normal work life - they may find it justifiable to spend $600 on a device like this.

I won't be picking up any tool like this unless I come across a lot of money I have nothing better to do with, but I did enjoy reading through the review. As @R-T-B said, I wouldn't mind playing with one because it does pique my interest, but I wouldn't buy one.

 

[_UV_]

I find it humorous when folks say the cost of a product costs too much

The way I look at it - it costs $600.

Rigol oscilloscope + Brymen DMM cost 600$ both, not this cheap device

I know a couple people that do a lot of work on computers for their normal work life - they may find it justifiable to spend $600 on a device like this.

good try, sory for them to be so stupid

 

[R-T-B]

only if it can handle it for a few hours for testing and troubleshooting, otherwise it is a marketing BS

You did read the review, right?

This can hold up for about an hour like that. It's not meant to do more.

 

[Ferrum Master]

Amperage readings

At my uni I would got hit with a book by the teacher If I would have used such a term and give me instantly a bad mark. It is current and only... there is no real term as amperage, like there are no Faradage, Teslage, Pascalage, it is bush language, slang, it is widely used with English speakers, even some dictionaries reside it, but the term is inappropriate, not totally wrong though, but rarely who understands it. And if you understand don't spread it further. Aris, you should know that.

 

[_UV_]

You did read the review, right?

This can hold up for about an hour like that. It's not meant to do more.

Partialy, teardown + conclusion, just because price is listed on last page, for 600$ it must be as good as Fluke DMM but with different purpose, but it doesn't. If they price it for 60-100 i will have no reason to comment in any way.

 

[R-T-B]

Partialy, teardown + conclusion, just because price is listed on last page, for 600$ it must be as good as Fluke DMM but with different purpose, but it doesn't. If they price it for 60-100 i will have no reason to comment in any way.

...Fluke DMM won't test the things this tests. Ripple in particular (even if this did poorly at it).

At my uni I would got hit with a book by the teacher If I would have used such a term and give me instantly a bad mark. It is current and only... there is no real term as amperage, like there are no Faradage, Teslage, Pascalage, it is bush language, slang, it is widely used with English speakers, even some dictionaries reside it, but the term is inappropriate, not totally wrong though, but rarely who understands it. And if you understand don't spread it further. Aris, you should know that.

What's wrong with the term amperage? We are an english publication you realize.

 

[Frick]

Rigol oscilloscope + Brymen DMM cost 600$ both, not this cheap device

Doesn't fit in your pocket.

Also, this is simpler than an oscilloscope setup.

At my uni I would got hit with a book by the teacher If I would have used such a term and give me instantly a bad mark. It is current and only... there is no real term as amperage, like there are no Faradage, Teslage, Pascalage, it is bush language, slang, it is widely used with English speakers, even some dictionaries reside it, but the term is inappropriate, not totally wrong though, but rarely who understands it. And if you understand don't spread it further. Aris, you should know that.

Languages changes. vOv

 

[Ferrum Master]

Languages changes. vOv

It is a slang. It is a physics law, that's carved like in stone. It is tought in schools like that with no changes. This a electronics tech article not a car mechanic discussion about fuse ratings, where we can forgive slang usage.

"Ohm's law states that the current through a conductor between two points is directly proportional to the voltage across the two points. "

 

[Berfs1]

At my uni I would got hit with a book by the teacher If I would have used such a term and give me instantly a bad mark. It is current and only... there is no real term as amperage, like there are no Faradage, Teslage, Pascalage, it is bush language, slang, it is widely used with English speakers, even some dictionaries reside it, but the term is inappropriate, not totally wrong though, but rarely who understands it. And if you understand don't spread it further. Aris, you should know that.

"Current" can have two meanings in a single sentence. Such as: "The current speed of the processor is x". Current could have meant "amps" or "at this time". For that reason, I almost always refer to "current" as "amps" if talking about the power properties, but if I am talking about "in this time", I like to use "in this time" instead of "current", just to prevent potential confusion.

At my uni I would got hit with a book by the teacher If I would have used such a term and give me instantly a bad mark. It is current and only... there is no real term as amperage, like there are no Faradage, Teslage, Pascalage, it is bush language, slang, it is widely used with English speakers, even some dictionaries reside it, but the term is inappropriate, not totally wrong though, but rarely who understands it. And if you understand don't spread it further. Aris, you should know that.

There is a term called amperage, it is defined as "the strength of an electrical current in amperes". And I am posting a screenshot of this quote in text editor to show you how I know the term exists in more than one way. "Amperage" is not underlined in red, so it is a word, and not some obscure word or proper noun.

If anything, we could say the same thing about how you said "uni" because that can mean universal, unisex, or university. All three have different meanings. And no, not a lot of people say "uni" in reference to universities. Also, just to add to the toxicity, the term "Ampere"; oh yea, that's gonna be NVIDIA's next GPU architecture. Maybe because it's an actual word.

 

[Ferrum Master]

"Current" can have two meanings in a single sentence.

There is no problem with that. It is the same meaning actually. Like the speed in MHz for the PC, also the current in Amperes is used the same, but through some circuit. It is a slang, get over it.

Aris does use word current correctly in the first page of Technical Specification. The ending remark came out of nowhere.

 

[Berfs1]

There is no problem with that. It is the same meaning actually. Like the speed in MHz for the PC, also the current in Amperes is used the same, but through some circuit. It is a slang, get over it.

Aris does use word current correctly in the first page of Technical Specification. The ending remark came out of nowhere.

I don't mind when someone else uses the word "current", I was referring to why I use the term amperage instead of current, depending on the context of the sentence. Current is correct, but amperage and amps just makes more sense to me, since I deal with a lot of overclocking, so I always read the 12V as 12 volts, and the 120A as 120 amps. But yes, both (current and amps) mean the same thing in this context, however I was not the one with a huge problem with the term, and I was just explaining how it can get confusing sometimes depending on the context of the sentence..

 

[crmaris]

Guys no need to stick on details and only see the trees but not the forest. Amps, Amperes, whatever it is the same for me from the moment you understand it. This is not an IEEE publication, after all, but TPU, which has users that prefer some slang over the precise terms.

In any case, thank you though for the comment(s), I always take all criticism seriously. This is the only way to get improved.

 

[gamefoo21]

Amps are Amperage ohhh it passes the automatic spelling correct test!

Anyway back on topic...

How much and it can only run for a minute before it thermally overloads? The connector options are pathetic... Missing tests from vital rails, wildly inaccurate at times...

Are you sure it's not a $100 ThermalTake PSU tester?

 

[Prince Valiant]

It shuts down because it is not meant to work in standalone mode for a long period, which is meaningless. Still I had to mention that.

In through-line mode it can work for hours without a prob.

Calibration, I was just informed that tomorrow they will release a new firmware update that will allow it.

It is innovative because it is the first time I see such an affordable tester offering all those features and I know a thing on this subject Only a good multimeter can cost more than this tool.

Everything has to do with support and not only hardware. Surely a Chinese factory can make it less affordable if they produce thousands of these. But what about the software? Will be usable and above all, will be updated regularly. I see the folks at PassMark trying hard to make this work and I liked their work so far. Many of the issues that I found can be solved with firmware updates and I am expecting to see the final result.

Thanks for the review; I might not buy one but it's always interesting to see how lower cost alternatives stack up against high end and ToTL test equipment.

 

[toyo]

I can buy 2 new premium PSUs from 590$, instead of just seeing if one is functional enough.
No thank you for sure, unless you make a living out of repairing PCs which often come with blown PSUs.
And even then, it's still cheaper to replace with a working PSU see if the PC starts working.
Nice review, weird product at this price though.

 

[ipo3nk]

it is not for the average Joe yes, it is for brands that want quick and easy testing, for technicians, for shops with a service line, for enthusiast users that want to know more on PSUs and for production lines possibly that want something to quickly check the PSUs before they pass them to Sunmoons.

For in the field failure analysis this is a neat tool also. An average user won't even bother to buy a plain PSU tester that costs 10 bucks.

agree. i was a technicians and wish had something like this.. a few times, good psu getting replaced because sometimes hard to check in the field.