The device itself made a very good impression as a decibel meter. I bought two different meters at the same time and both gave almost the same readings on several different sound settings. The problem I had was that I couldn't start the burning process. The software downloaded from both the included small hard drive and the website with no problems (I tried both downloads due to an issue I was having). After opening the software on my laptop. I couldn't get the software to connect to the device. I've tried all three USB ports, a different USB cable than the one that came with the device, etc., but I couldn't get the program to "find" the device. Without "talking" to the software, I couldn't get the record button on the device to do anything. I tried for over two hours and then gave up. The second meter I bought was a bit tricky to get into recording mode, but I managed it in about 10 minutes. I like the features of this device as it is simply used as a handheld meter. but if you need to record a "session" I would be careful.