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PRODUCT SHOWCASE New Fluke multimeters: rugged & affordable Philips has released two new rugged, reliable and affordable digital multimeters from Fluke, designed for the Asia-Pacific electronics market. Apart from the usual voltage-current-resistance-diode ranges, the Fluke Model 17 and 19 DMMs offer several of the most-wanted features for the electronics technician such as Min/Max/Average Record that captures the lowest and highest readings for recording power supply drift, line voltage changes or circuit performance while parameters are being changed. The DMMs have a wide AC voltage input bandwidth of 100kHz for accurate measurement of audio, video, monitors, and switching power supplies. They also feature autoranging, a frequency counter (0.5Hz-200kHz) and duty cycle measurement. Both meters are supplied with Fluke TL-19 test leads, a 9V battery and a User’s Manual. The new DMMs are designed and manufactured to the latest safety standards of IEC 61010-1, 1000V Overvolt-age Category I, 600V Overvoltage Category II. The Fluke 17 and 19 have been submitted for independent testing and certification to CSA and UL standards. For more information, contact Philips Test & Measurement, 34 Waterloo Rd, North Ryde, NSW, 2113. Phone (02) 9805 4486; fax (02) 9805 4170; E-mail TMI_Inquiry<at>philips.com.au You can also visit Fluke’s website at http://www.fluke.com Keep those cords tidy! Over the years many methods have been tried to contain messy cords. Most have failed. Now a new Australian product – Clipaway – claims to provide an easy and convenient solution to the problem. Clipaway clips come in a variety of sizes to suit all types of cord (even rope) up to 12mm dia-meter. They're available from Woolworths/Big W, BBC/Hardwarehouse and other leading retailers. Hybrid panel meters from Yokogawa This analog/ digital hybrid LCD meter from Yokogawa Australia features a bargraph consisting of 31 segments for representing 0-100% of full scale plus a 31/2 digit, 8mm 7-segment digital readout. Accuracy is 0.25% of indication, plus one digit. The display, model no 2302, is housed in a standard 96mm DIN package with a depth of only 48mm. It is backlit by a 12V halogen bulb for long life, uniform colour and brightness. Models are available as DC and AC voltmeters and ammeters, measuring mV to kV and mA to kA and a variety of other units. Special models are available on order. For more information contact Yokogawa Australia, phone (02) 9805 0699; fax (02) 9888 1844; email measurement<at>yokogawa.com.au Duratech soldering station from Jaycar This 60W Duratech Soldering Station, now available from Jaycar Electronics, has an adjustable temperature range of 150-450oC + 3 oC. For process applications the temperature dial can be locked in place with the Allen key supplied. The soldering pencil is of lightweight construction with a ceramic heater and has an extremely flexible silicone rubber cord. The robust case includes a stainless steel tray for storing spare tips (seven tips are supplied). It sells for $189 and comes with a 12-month warranty. For further details contact any Jaycar Electronics store or call the head office at 8-10 Leeds St, Rhodes, NSW 2138. Phone: (02) 9743 5222 fax: (02) 9743 2066 Radio frequency counter This lowcost 10MHz3GHz counter has no connections. All the operator needs to do is extend the telescopic antenna of the Aceco FC1001 and the 8-digit LCD shows the frequency of any transmitter in range with 100Hz resolution. Enquiries to Computronics Corp Ltd, Locked Bag 20, Bentley Business Centre, WA 6983. Phone (08) 9479 1177, fax (08) 9470 2844. January 1999  43 21-inch professional monitors from Hitachi Intended for high-end applications such as DTP, imaging, CAD and engineering is the new range of CM81X high-accuracy monitors from Hitachi. With up to 1856 x 1392 resolution, they offer Windows PnP setup. For further information contact Hitachi Australia Ltd, 13-15 Lyonpark Rd, North Ryde, NSW 2113. Phone (02) 9888 4100, fax (02) 9888 4188 NATA directory The National Association of Testing Laboratories (NATA) has released its 1998/99 Annual Directory of laboratories for companies wishing to test, calibrate, inspect or measure their materials, products or equipment. Almost 2500 NATA-accredited labs are listed. NATA accreditation is recognised worldwide. The A4-sized publication is priced at $140 and is available from NATA, 7 Leeds St, Rhodes, NSW 2138. Phone (02) 9736 8222, fax (02) 9743 5311. Fluke T2 Electrical Tester Safety Recall Philips Test & Measurement is recalling some Fluke T2 Electrical Testers to repair a potential product malfunction which may present a safety hazard to users. The malfunction is caused by corrosion of the battery contact to the PC board inside the Tester which can lead to intermittent operation. If the malfunction occurs, users may believe that no voltage is present when the reverse is true. This represents a safety hazard. Only Fluke T2 units with serial numbers less than 70524051 are affected and only then if they do not have the letter “R” stamped after the serial number. Those units have already been repaired. Customers with affected units should return them to the service/ calibration centre at Philips Test & Measurement (phone 02 9805 4486 for shipping arrangements). A sealant will be applied to the battery contact to prevent corrosion and the “R” will be stamped after the serial number. Philips Test & Measurement urges all owners to return their Fluke T2 instruments as soon as possible, even if they have not experienced any malfunction. For further information, contact Philips Test & Measurement Business Electronics Service Centre, 2 Green-hills Ave, Moorebank, NSW 2170. Phone (02) 9805 4486. Central Coast Amateur Radio Field Day One of the most-anticipated annual events in the radio and communication area, the Central Coast Field Day, is on again next month, on Sunday, February 28 at Wyong Race Course, Howarth Street, Wyong. Wyong is approximately one hour from Sydney via the Newcastle freeway with free off-street parking, or an electric train from Sydney stops only 5 minutes walk from the site. Admission is $10 or $5 concession. Organised by the Central Coast Amateur Radio Club Inc, the Field Day is Australia’s largest, with new and used radio and communications equipment for sale. The flea market and disposals areas are always popular, with bargains from both traders and other amateur enthusiasts. Many commercial communications organisations arrange special displays for the field day and there are also displays from clubs and groups with special interests ranging from vintage radio to satellite communications. For further information, contact the Central Coast Amateur Radio Club’s website, www.ccarc.org.au, or call the club on (02) 4340 2500. Upgrade Your Analog Phone to Digital For Minus $1.00 Dick Smith Electronics have come up with a pretty compelling argument for those who have not yet upgraded their analog mobile phone to digital. They will upgrade your analog phone to a new Philips ‘Twist’ digital, charge no connection fee, keep you on a $10 per month plan if you wish, automatically divert calls from your old analog number . . . and give you a dollar! It’s all part of a move designed to get existing analog users to upgrade to digital before the analog network is scrapped on January 1, 2000. According to DSE, there are more 44  Silicon Chip than 1.8 million analog phones still in use and even though extensive publicity has been given to the close-down, the changeover to digital needs a boost. In conjunction with Telstra's Budget 10 plan, Dick Smith Electronics will give $50 trade-in on a working analog phone. And with phone prices under this deal starting at $49 you could actually walk away with a new phone and a dollar in your hand! Other models available under the plan include a Motorola Jazz for $59, Panasonic G450 or Ericsson GA628 for $79 and a Nokia 5110 for $129 – all less the $50 trade-in. The most important feature of this plan, though, is the $10 monthly charge. It’s the first time digital phone users have had access to this low fee. Apparently this has been one of the main reasons low-usage analog phone owners have not converted to digital. To take advantage of this offer, contact any Dick Smith Electronics store. Users must stay connected to Telstra Mobilenet for a minimum of 24 months. Some other conditions apply to this offer. Further information is available at any Dick Smith Electronics store.