SDG #143 Well priced 4.5 and 5.5 Digit EastTester DMMs - ET3240 and ET3255

Bench multimeters from the big Western brands still command serious money, so the EastTester range is worth attention for anyone building a home lab on a budget. This review covers two siblings, the 4.5 digit ET3240 and the 5.5 digit ET3255, and looks at what the extra digit and extra outlay actually buy you in practice.

Both meters share the same physical platform and general feature set: the usual DC and AC volts and current, two and four wire resistance, capacitance, frequency, continuity and diode test, plus temperature sensing. The interesting question with any cheap bench DMM is whether the specification sheet survives contact with reality, so the assessment concentrates on displayed resolution versus genuinely usable digits, noise and stability on the lower ranges, how the AC measurement behaves away from mains frequency, and whether the four wire resistance mode is trustworthy enough for low value shunt and contact resistance work.

Just as important for day to day use is the interface. Menu structure, how much button pressing it takes to change a setting, the quality of the display and viewing angle, and the presence of secondary display and maths functions all shape whether a meter earns a permanent spot on the bench or gets pushed to the back of a shelf. Connectivity and logging options matter too if you plan to capture data rather than just read a number.

The practical takeaway: the ET3240 is the sensible pick if you mainly want a stable, readable bench display alongside a handheld, while the ET3255 makes sense when you need the extra resolution for comparing components or characterising references. Neither replaces a calibrated 6.5 digit instrument, but for hobby and repair work the value proposition is strong.