Debate: did that $500 thermal camera save my repair shop or just waste my money?

I dropped $500 on a Flir thermal camera for diagnosing circuit board shorts and it found a bad cap in 5 minutes that I'd been chasing for hours. But my buddy swears by his $30 multimeter and says the camera just collects dust on his shelf. Do you think expensive diagnostic tools like this are worth it for the small repair shop owner?

3 comments

3 Comments

faith68419d ago

Doesn't it feel awesome when you finally find that hidden short in under 5 minutes? @christopher_wells4 is exactly right, that camera pays for itself every time it saves you a whole afternoon of headaches.

christopher_wells419d ago

The $30 multimeter guy probably hasn't chased a hairline crack in a ceramic cap for two hours before. That thermal camera pays for itself every time it saves you an afternoon of frustration.

riley_taylor2d agoMost Upvoted

Haven't we all been there, staring at a board for hours wondering where that phantom short is hiding? That thermal camera turns a frustrating guessing game into a simple visual check, it's honestly a game changer for stuff like hairline cap cracks. Once you've used one to find a problem in minutes instead of hours, it's real hard to go back to just poking around with a meter alone.