I bought one of these about 9 months ago and it worked just fine when I tested it. About 6 months later, when my tire pressure warning light came on in my car, the gauge was dead. I pulled the battery and measured it over the course of the next 2 months. It went from 2.9v at 6 months to 0.6v at 8 months. The product info says there's a lifetime battery but realistically, what does that mean? If I send this back, I'll just get another unit that may die within a few months. If I go out and buy a new battery to replace myself, it'll cost me about as much as getting an old fashioned mechanical gauge that's guaranteed to work. So in the end, I tossed the gauge and bought a mechanical unit. This thing is cheaply made and it showed.
Looking back, I should have known better. Seldom used battery powered devices in a car just don't make sense. LCD displays don't last and often fail in wide temperature ranges in a car (how many have seen LCD clocks or car stereos with bad displays?). But most importantly, this is not a device you use often so you don't see the failure coming... until you need to use it at which point it's too late to have taken preventative action by replacing the battery. It's also the kind of tool that you want to be working when you suddenly need it. I can see how a digital unit would be useful for the professional who handles cars very often. But this little pencil unit makes no sense to the average consumer. Go mechanical - they're cheap and work very well.Get more detail about Accutire MS-4800 Pencil Digital Tire Gauge with Tire and Tread Finder.
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