Omnifixo vs. A Cheap Knockoff: The Summary You Actually Have Time For

Let's be honest, those old gooseneck 'helping hands' were about as helpful as a chocolate teapot. They drift, they sag, they occupy half your bench just to hold a single wire. Fortunately, humanity has evolved. We now have magnetic options. The catch? One costs a pretty penny, and the other is cheap enough to be disposable.

In one corner, you have the Omnifixo: a masterclass in over-engineering with adjustable everything and a clever conductive base for powering your projects. In the other, a plucky upstart from AliExpress that costs about as much as a pint. It forgoes fancy features for a simple, brutish mission: hold the thing still. And, to everyone's surprise, it mostly succeeds.

So, is the expensive one worth it? If your work involves delicate angles or you need to ground your circuit through the clips, then yes, stop being a cheapskate and buy the proper tool. For the rest of us just trying to splice two wires without a third-degree burn, the cheap alternative is shockingly competent. Don't believe us? Watch the man himself, Joshua Bardwell, break it down.

Of course, there's also a near-perfect clone lingering in the murky depths of online marketplaces, if you're into that sort of moral grey area. If you crave more excruciating detail and want to weigh the ethics of saving thirty quid, you can punish yourself by reading our full, unabridged breakdown. Don't say we didn't warn you.