I wanted something to evaluate ambient noise that I could travel with. Most meters are pretty big, and while I wouldn't call this one "pocket-sized", it's pretty close. There are no frills but it works, and the min/max is easy to use. The batteries that came with mine were dead, so I thought the unit was broken, but a fresh pair of batteries solved that.

This review is for the Advanced version. I have had this sound meter plugged in with the LCD lit up (permanently on) for roughly six months straight and it has held up perfectly. The decibel accuracy is reasonable. The screen is fairly easy to read (it has some manner of subtle always-on side lighting that assists with viewing the LCD screen in lower light conditions). It has a USB (mini-A or micro-B, I forget which) connector on the side that you can supply power to it with (it also will take batteries, and has a traditional DC 6V power-in slot on the side; so three ways to power it). You can set it to fast or slow readings; you can choose either decibel A or decibel C measurement; and you can set it to either show the highest decibel level it has measured while it has been powered on or set it to display the decibel levels it is actively measuring.Overall great product with a fair price tag. Sturdy build, the plastic case is modestly rugged (although I wouldn't throw it around or submerge it in water).

I bought this so I can make sure certain noises won’t damage my baby’s hearing. Like how loud I should have her sound machine. Seems to work fine. The new battery that it comes with was dead. So I had to use another one. Luckily, I had a few in my battery drawer.

This works very well in my opinion and is very easy to use. It would be nice if it had a "5 second average" feature, or something along those lines. I find that you have to watch the numbers for 30 seconds or so, then mentally take an average (perhaps "note the modal value" would be better phrasing, though most people wouldn't know what it means).

Fast and accurate with quick boot-up and clear display. It does not keep a record of decibels over time, only holds the highest or lowest reading replacing it with a higher or lower level when detected. However it is light and handy to keep on the factory floor and does a great job for the price.

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I purchased this after reading many reviews but when I used it found very complicated. The buttons doesn't work properly, Manual is also not that helpful. Even though there not much difference in measurement when you compare with free app in you phone. Better to spend money on something which is easy to use and does the job perfect.

What we expected

Straight forward, easy to use, lightweight, clear display, Min, Max button. Does exactly what I wanted, decibel readings ratings when setting up my hifi in the house. Good value for money. Battery included, so ready to go once you have it, pretty much.

The decibel meter works great! I've been using it on my mom and sister because they're talkative, joke a lot with each other, can't seem to hear themselves, and are obnoxiously loud. My sister's squawking, high-pitched laugh ("Ha!"): 95.7 db from 5 feet away! Wow! No wonder my ears hurt!My mom needs sound amplifiers, so her "normal voice" alone is loud. When she was yelling while making some joke about a grumpy Santa Claus: 93.4 db from 5 feet away! They didn't know I hid the decibel meter, so this is the noise level I have to tolerate every day. (Not easy, let me tell you. But they have their mental/physical disabilities, so I can't always complain.)The great thing about the decibel meter is can turn it on, select the option that measures the top record, maximum noise level, and I can walk away for up to (I think?) a good 15 minutes before it shuts off. One thing I wish it did is has a memory of what it recorded, for when I don't make it back to the meter in time and see how loud they got. I've also captured my mom playing with the silverware as she throws it in the silverware drawer: 118.5 db from 1 foot away! This time, she knew I was using the decibel meter, so she made sure she threw down the silverware with much emphasis.Other than that, what can I say? It's easy to use, conveniently has a battery included in the package, fits comfortably in my hand, and is small enough to hide (It's the length of my hand). I'm happy I made this purchase.The only cons is possibly how quiet it will measure. Even in the middle of the night, when the loud ones are asleep, I can't seem to get it below 32 db in the bathroom, even when I shut off the light, leave the room and shut the door. So, I wouldn't recommend it for measuring how quiet things will get. There's a high possibility it's not as sensitive as an expensive, high-quality decibel meter, which is expectable of a product at this low of a price. Still fun in the higher decibel range, though!

I own both, the smaller basic meter (BAFX3370 dBA only) and the larger (BAFX3608 dBA/dBC) advanced meter.PROS1) Gets you some good data for how loud your neighbor's really are, and whether or not you should evacuate before the loudness causes hearing damage.2) Has a nicely and easily readable lit display, including light sensor for usage within dark or dimly lit areas.3) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter: Although Windows only, the software is made by "Sound Lab" and titled "Sound Level Meter", and is a nice simple tool, and easily comprehensible or easily utilized tool, as well as apparently being packaged without bloated software and/or software features.4) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter: When connected via USB ports, the device is automatically powered through the USB port.5) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter: If you so desire, you can stand at your window or outside your door holding this very large meter for the next door neighbors to readily see you're have issues with their noise! (I wonder if anybody also sells any flags stating a person is going to file a civil complaint?)6) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter: This dBC capable device performs much better than the dBA capable devices, and significantly notices the lower-frequency noise range displayed by small 4-cycle engines.CONS1) Familiarize yourself with the peak level button, else you may find you're not getting the results you desired.2) No adjustment for auto shut-off power saving feature. (ie. If you plan to leave this device for more than a few minutes, the device auto powers off.)3) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter, the unit does not allow the users to specify the initial on state of the readings. For example, the unit defaults to dBA and fast reading when initially turned-on. I prefer to always take readings using dBC and slow, mainly dBC as this tends to detect the lower frequency range better than dBA and selecting slow/average readings to average in anomalies versus readily seeing a distracting spiked sound anomaly. Likely when recording, the slow reading option maybe more desirable unless you're trying to monitor for very short bursts of sounds such as gun shots, and then faster readings are desired in order to capture the short bursts of sound.4) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter, although already heavily specified Windows Only software, such a simple device should be able to output using libUSB (and likely does so already) simple streams of data that can be easily piped into a text file for graphing by other open sourced tools. (I'll have to use WireShark to further examine the protocol used, whether serial or libUSB. USB Vendor Device ID is 64bd:74e3 "SM".)5) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter, the hardware manual states possible to sync the time with the computer when connected via USB, but no option appears to exist.6) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter, a pamphlet packaged with the device gives a download URL for downloading a copy of the software (eg. SLVersion2.exe), but this is really an old copy of the software dated 2015.10.07, and the newest version (as of this writing) is already packaged inside the box of the device, using a small mini CDROM. (The version on the mini CDROM is SoundLabSetup20160720.exe, or dated 2016.07.20)Would really be nice to have a USB feature for computer logging, or memory for logging, and easily transferring (regardless of operating system) to a computer for hard copy. (This feature is now implemented within the larger Advanced BAFX Decibel Meter.)NOTES: The ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter contains a usb SILICON LABS C8051F320 8051 8-bit Microcontroller hub chip, with the firmware registering the device under Windows' Device Manager as both, a HID-COMPLIANT DEVICE and USB INPUT DEVICE. The device's USB product vendor and model USB id's are 64bd:74e3 "SM". The device contains a likely closed soure firmware, likely incorporating some minimal addressing with arguments commands to initiate retrieving recorded records, ordering the device to start sending live data, and commands for getting the current time and sending the current time. If I had more time, I would provide some C code to perform these functions, but this is tedious work versus having the specifications or already written code. The hardware manufacturer should be providing the firmware specifications (eg. PDF) for communicating to the device via ASM/C programming code. (eg. Uniden provides specifications for their firmware used on their hardware products, although sometimes difficult to find.)ATTACHED: Attaching an image comparing an apparently older basic BAFX sound decibel meter alongside the newer larger BAFX sound decibel meter.