Mitutoyo 500-196-30 Advanced Onsite Sensor (AOS) Absolute Scale Digital Caliper, 0 to 6/0 to 150mm Measuring Range, 0.0005/0.01mm Resolution, LCD

I purchased this for my own home use. The caliper appears to be genuine. There is a small bit of marring on the back of the bar. The fixed jaw has some minor finishing issues as well. The sliding motion is not entirely smooth with noticeable oscillatory variations in resistance when moved at more than a snails pace. The overall quality and attention to detail of this model does not live up to that of my ~60 year old Mitutoyo dial caliper, or the ~20 year old Mitutoyo digital caliper i use at work. Mitutoyo is still really the only brand to consider for high-end, buy once, use forever type calipers. Compared to the older models this caliper is something of a disappointment. Given the market Mitutoyo calipers appeal to it is a shame that the quality/QC has been seemingly compromised to lower the cost or increase profit. Even if getting a new caliper that lived up to the older models cost twice as much as this one did it would be more than worth it.

The calipers are fairly good. The case they come in is fairly poor. THE CASE It may seem superficial but once you remove the papers from the box, there is too much room for the calipers to move inside the case. There is no soft foam or rubber padding to protect the tool from shocks if it is knocked around a bit. You can hear it move too much inside there when grabbing the case. I think Mitutoyo should supply a proper 2-piece case with a proper hinge and some basic padding for the tool, not a one-piece plastic box with no padding and a hinge that will come apart eventually. I actually like the case I got with my fifteen-dollar calipers better, even though that too is made of one piece of plastic with a cheap hinge. I dont feel confident moving the case around with the calipers in there; they jiggle around too much and basically have very little shock protection. If you arent going to be doing anything but storing them on a shelf for when they are needed, then its fine. A better solution is to keep the paperwork inside the case. The case has far less wiggle room this way and its what Im doing now. UNBOXING The unit comes inside the case with a sealed clear plastic that is not easy to open with your hands. It gives you a good indication that you are getting a new unit. The instructions are the big fold-out type with various languages. The SR44 battery packet was stapled to the paperwork in the box. The paperwork talks about the battery: The supplied batteries are used only for the purposes of checking the functions and performance of the caliper, therefore it may not satisfy the specified battery life. Im not sure if this statement is true or false but I know that only one battery was supplied and not batteries like they state. The paperwork suggests wiping off the thin coat of oil that the unit comes with. The oil is barely noticeable and there is a very good feeling of quality when inspecting the tool. There are no overprowering or unpleasant smells either. After installing the SR44 battery & setting the ORIGIN on the calipers and playing around for a few minutes, the unit would eventually return to 0.01 and not 0.00. Had to set the origin again. Mitutoyo makes mention of holding down the ORIGIN switch for more than one second. I guess its splitting hairs but its actually a button, not a switch. You may need a little narrow thing to press it if your fingers cant. The ON/OFF and other buttons are easier to press, for obvious reasons. Anyway, the unit feels good over-all and seems to be working within spec. CONCLUSION I felt that Mitutoyo supplied a cheap case essentially no different to the cheap caliper makers. It felt pretty crude to me and didnt feel like a deserving home for (relatively) expensive calipers. With the battery statement in the instructions, I am reminded of what the printer manufacturers do with new printers (supply less ink or toner with the bundled ink tanks). Im not sure if MItutoyo are supplying a cheaper battery or if the manufacturer simply wants to protect itself in case of returned units with shorter battery life, possibly from units sitting on the shelf too long with shortened battery life. Bottom-line? I like the unit but the cheap supplied case needs some basic padding and a proper hinge. We are paying over 100 dollars for calipers and getting cases basically the same as fifteen-dollar calipers. Mitutoyo should be doing better here. Despite this, I feel confident in the quality of the unit but still look forward to a day I can stop using disposable batteries.

Just holding it and looking at it you can tell the difference in quality. The fit and finish are amazing. The slide is smooth and doesnt wobble or feel loose. The display is easy to read and its spot on. You dont have to re-calibrate. It knows its exact position wherever it is when you turn it on. Ive had it for a few months now and the battery isnt dead unlike all the other look-a-likes you can find for $25-$30. Made in Japan not China. It does not have an automatic shutoff. some like that, some dont. I kinda like it when you get distracted (wife, kids, buddy with beers in hand) the measurement is still on display when you come back.

I am a hobby machinist constantly overhauling flat head engines. Having a repeatable accurate vernier caliper is a must. This is a quality tool at a reasonable price.

I just purchased this thru Amazon, this is an excellent high-quality digital caliper. For those searching on eBay and elsewhere, this is the real Mitutoyo product in the original case, with the OEM 1-year warranty, and an official calibration certificate whose serial number matches the instrument. This is NOT a cheap imitation, its the original Mitutoyo product and the seller (listed as MSI-Viking Gauge) is an authorized Mitutoyo reseller. I did a lot of research on the Internet to be sure I was buying the real thing, and this is it! The differences between this caliper and the imitations are: The action is very smooth, the readings are stable and repeatable (tested with gauge blocks), the readout is four decimals for inches, two decimals for millimeters, and the construction is very solid, no wobble or shake. Plus, this caliper has an absolute scale, it always remembers the zero-point and you only have to reset it when you change the battery. The cheaper scales drift and need frequent resetting. You can make relative measurements easily (yellow button), but when you turn that feature off, it returns to the original zero without resetting. I highly recommend these calipers, the only caveat is that these are NOT auto-off, you must remember to turn them off after use. However, based on my experience with other Mitutoyo gauges and micrometers, the battery lasts a LONG time so I dont see this as a problem.

This is not a cheap Chinese nock off. Smooth action and holds it calibration well. The only reason I rated “easy to use” as a 4 was because it doesn’t have an auto on feature like my 12” Mitutoyo. Mitutoyo evidently did this to help save the battery, but this isn’t the fault of the seller.

Please note that this product review is for both: the digital caliper and the company producing them (Mitutoyo). In my opinion, a good review should take into account both facets when determining a products overall price/performance. With that said: SUMMARY In summation, this digital caliper from Mitutoyo works great as advertised BUT the shortcomings in the calipers functionality and the companys performance leads me to rate this product just three-stars. As a discerning customer who is spending $$$, I EXPECT a little more from a well-established company like Mitutoyo. Here is why: PRODUCT REVIEW The caliper (Mitutoyo 500-196-30 Advanced Onsite Sensor Absolute Scale Digital Caliper, 0-6 Range) is a wonderful device that works great. Ive used it to measure the dimensions of various KNOWN objects and I found it to be fairly accurate. For example, comparing the known dimensions of an iPhone 5 against the calipers readings, I found the measurements to be pretty exact; my measurements varied only slightly (+/- .01-.02mm), as expected. To achieve consistent readings, I had to ensure I applied the SAME continuous force for both: taking measurements and when setting the origin. Using the same amount of force I was able to achieve fairly consistent and accurate results as mentioned above. However, there IS a significant shortcoming or two from my experience. The first has to do with the lack of an auto-off feature; this digital caliper from Mitutoyo has none. Once you turn on this digital caliper, you MUST remember to turn it off or else the battery will continuously drain until you do so. In addition (but not as important) the caliper requires a battery, an (SR44SW), that is not commonly available locally in most areas. If Mitutoyos engineers decided on a more common battery like a (2023) ,the overall design would have been superior. Due to these shortcoming, the calipers rating was reduced one star lower. Overall, the caliper is great at taking consistent accurate measurements but you should already expect that given the price $$$ you are paying for this device; its not exactly inexpensive. COMPANY REVIEW In my opinion, the only technical reason for excluding such a BASIC feature as auto-off in this day-and-age is purely a Marketing technique to create product differentiation. This type of practice allows companies to create additional versions of the same exact product by varying features across their product line. This practice attempts to sway more customers towards EVEN more expensive versions of their product line and this is type of general practice is one I dont agree with. Why cant Mitutoyo just make a SINGLE highly accurate version of their caliper (one digital and one analog) that works for ALL their discerning customers (designers, engineers, hobbyist, students, etc)? Mitutoyo lists 27 different calipers on their corporate website.

does what it is designed for with absolute precision...

Great caliper.

This caliper is well worth the money. I had some other brands, but they never last. You can not go wrong with Mitutoyo.