How to read a datasheet without missing the fine print
The number at the top is the range, not the accuracy. Three lines decide whether a datasheet applies to your case.
Datasheets are written to be comparable, not persuasive. Read them in this order.
1. Conditions attached to every number
Accuracy is quoted at a temperature, usually 25 °C. A figure without its condition is not a specification — check the footnote before you compare two models.
2. Range, over-range and burst
Three different values appear on the same page. Range is the measuring span; over-range is what the unit survives; burst is the point of no return. Selecting only on range leaves no margin for transients.
3. What is not on the sheet
Mounting torque, cable specification and warm-up time often live in the manual. Those decide whether the unit survives the first month in the field.
Before ordering
Confirm the condition attached to accuracy, confirm over-range is at least twice the working value, then confirm a manual exists for the variant you picked.