This thing blows my old fluke tester out of the water, as well as another no name chinese one I've had for about 10 years. As a PC technician, I wish I'd upgraded to one like this years ago. Though, maybe these weren't around back then, at this price?For starters, it can do the basics like length and wire pair testing, but it can also do much higher end tests like ensuring the crimps made a good connection. I honestly thought this was only available on fluke probes that START at about quadruple this cost.The ability to test optical cables like SPDIF/Toslink is also wonderful, and it turns out you can use it to check if a wire is hot too, which is above and beyond what I even expected here.Oh, speaking of unexpected niceities, this thing can strobe or flash the port on the far end if you're trying to figure out where in a sea of switch ports something goes. By connecting the tester to a cable, it causes the corresponding LED on a network switch to flash every few seconds. Again, my old tested did not do this. Nor does the old fluke I have that STILL costs arms and legs more than this. It also has PoE voltage measurement, and that's just what I've used so far.If you're doing a lot of cabling at home, this will pay for itself, and you should strongly consider it. If you're in the tech industry and have to do cabling regularly, you'd be out of your mind to NOT get this thing like YESTERDAY. I am kicking myself for not upgrading sooner. I don't even want to think about how many dozens of hours a year this could have saved me.

I recently used this network cable tester while doing some home network rewiring. I'm really impressed with how much functionality is packed into this device.For basic cable testing, it does a fantastic job checking RJ45 connections and proper crimping. The LCD screen is bright and easy to read, showing you exactly which pins might have issues. The cable length measurement feature works well enough - it's not perfect, but it gives you a good ballpark estimate that's helpful when planning installations. I did notice that you really have to keep the cable straightened out while measuring. Not always easy as network cables tend to be wonky from being tightly bundled.What really sets this tester apart are all the extra features. The wire tracker function is super handy for identifying which cable goes where, especially in a mess of unlabeled wiring. The PoE testing helps confirm if your switches are delivering power correctly. There's even a port flash feature that makes the LED blink on your switch, making it easy to identify the right port.One feature I didn't expect but really appreciate is the non-contact voltage testing. Being able to check if a circuit is live without touching it is a great safety feature, though I noticed the sensitivity levels (only three available) could use some fine-tuning.The optical cable testing capability was a nice surprise, just something that I don't have a need for yet. The build quality feels solid. Everything comes in a decent carrying case that keeps all the accessories organized. The USB-C charging is convenient too.If I had to nitpick, the multimeter functions are a bit slow to respond compared to standalone multimeters. However, having all these extra functions baked into the unit is still awesome. I thought the probe cables were of higher quality than I've received with other meters. Maybe the PoE readout could be more detailed - it would be nice to know exactly which PoE standard you're dealing with.For anyone doing network installations or home rewiring projects, this tester will likely pay for itself pretty quickly just by preventing mistakes before walls get closed up. While it's clearly aimed at professionals, it's straightforward enough that even a hobbyist can figure out the basic functions pretty easily. I was initially going to complain that none of the ports for network cables to plug in to were labeled. They are all unmarked. After trying the tester, I noticed that it actually indicates on the screen which ports need connected. Really helpful.I tried the "Remote ID" test with the three boxes. I really didn't understand what it was trying to test, and it didn't seem to be detecting any of the boxes. I didn't understand the instructions for that part, either. Duh!

This network cable tester is worth its weight in gold.I can't say enough good things about this tester. In fact, I would give it 6 stars if I could. (And of all my reviews on Amazon, this is the first time I wish I could give a product a higher rating!)We are building a new house, and this tool is invaluable for checking out wiring, networking, optical connections, etc. (If you are building a new house, this is a tool you will want.)I got this tester for testing the RJ45 connections, but then I found out this tool could do a LOT more than just that (and I'm still finding new functions to help me).Let's start with the basics... For RJ45 cables, this tester can tell you if cables are good and if the cables are wired connected correctly to the connectors. And yes, this device found errors that our network installer messed up. Just fixing the cables before the drywall went on saved us the cost of this tester alone!!!But this test checked for proper crimping. It was nice getting conformation that the connectors are good.But then I used the tester to test my optical audio runs (they were good).And then I found out this tester could do NCV testing (That is, it can tell if a circuit is live without contact). When you are checking wiring in new construction, it is really good knowing if the power is on or not! VERY handy!The tester can measure the lengths of different types of cables (8 wire Ethernet, 4 wire Ethernet, telephone and coax). I played with this, and it worked. This would be very useful for an installer as this tester also has an 'accounting' feature to help an installer determine installation costs.The 'wire tracker' feature was very handy as well. When trying to figure out which cable at the home run went to which room, it made it very easy to locate the cable. A very handy function when running cables in a new house. (It even has a 'red laser' for identifying optical cables.)"Port flash" - I did not know this was even something a tester could do. I can connect the tester to a cable and set it to port flash, and on the network switch the LED will flash about every 3 seconds (very easy to tell from other traffic on the switch).I even used the PoE measurement to confirm that the power was being supplied by my Switch with PoE support. Everything was good for me, but if there was a problem this would have instantly found it.(There is even a version of this tester with a MultiMeter built-in. I did not get that unit, but now I kind of wish I had.)I'm still finding new features this tester can do. It is an awesome tool. A great tool is one that you keep finding new uses for, and I'm sure I will be using this tool for a long time.While this tester is targeted at installers and technicians, it is a wonderful tool for a new homeowner to use to checkout home wiring.I definitely recommend this tool to others (especially anyone building a house, remodeling a house, buying a new house or anyone just wanting to check the wiring in their existing house). This tool is a workhorse. I'm very impressed with the tester as it has already saved me more than the cost of the tool itself.👍👍👍