This is easily one of the best gadgets I've purchased. I've used the electronic version of these, often finding the batteries are dead the one time every six months you happen to need it. This one is dummy-proof. There are nails in your wall studs that the strong magnets in the stud finder grab onto. There's a plumb-bob (vertical) and leveler (horizontal) bubble in the center to make sure you've got the stud finder straight. The yellow circle housing the bubble twists depending on which way you're trying to align. Make a pencil mark on your wall and you're set to mount things, hand heavy paintings, etc.
I picked mine up to mount a pull-up bar and gymnastics rings I bought on Amazon Prime Day. I expected it to take at least a few swipes across the wall before the stud finder magnets connected with stud nails, but I got lucky and landed on some immediately. Be aware though that not every bit of metal in your wall is a stud nail. Perhaps most common is the metal protecting corners from floor to ceiling. I actually leave my stud finder on a wall in my home on one of these corners. You'll want to hold the stud finder somewhat gently and move it slowly in a swooping motion until it locks onto a stud. On my walls, it was very easy to tell when you were over a nail, but if you are struggling to feel it, tie a string to your stud finder and let it dangle beside the wall and you'll find a nail. You can then move it straight down or straight up to find other nails on that stud (so you don't run into them with whatever you're hanging). You should be able to find the next stud 16" or 24" inches away. Figure out the correct distance, use a tape measure to mark the studs, then throw the magnetic stud finder up to confirm you're right, and you'll know the studs' locations quickly.

Thanks to this thing, I have a solid, new, exercise setup that I'm enjoying a lot. I don't have a regular need for a stud finder, so the fact that this one is so inexpensive and effective is perfect. I will absolutely buy another if it gets lost.

Hope that's helpful.

Yes, it works. The strong magnets find nails that have been hammered through the drywall into the studs. The magnetic pull is very strong, and the device will stay attached to the wall once it finds the nail. Using this was the first time I had no difficulty hanging a very large piece of art.

However, once you use this, you will realized all you really need to have is a neodymium magnet. I think you can buy 10 of them for about this price. So although I like the product for introducing me to the concept of finding studs with magnets, I now see that only the magnet was necessary. The level is just an after thought to me.

So buy a neodymium magnet, put it on your fridge and use it whenever you need to hang a picture.

This stud finder works exactly as it is supposed to. It is so strong the it can suck magnets often be referred greater from almost 2" away. It works perfectly through extra thick plaster and paint over the dry wall. However because of its small size that means it has a very small footprint also. You almost have to swipe it across the wall as if you were frosting a cake or mowing a lawn. When you do find a nail it is unmistakable that you found it. I have used to message to find nails. The 1st is to hang it from a string in just pass the string along the wall to let the stud finder drag on the surface of the wall and it will stick hard when it finds a nail. The 2nd is to cup it loosely in your hand and pass your hand back-and-forth across the wall until it suddenly grabs hold.

The packaging is anything but frustration free and is the old school piece of double-layered plastic molding sandwich between sheets of chipboard/cardboard. Notice in my photo the it is not much taller than a standard size toothpick. See that the entire package is much smaller than the A1 size box, Amazon's smallest box.

Over all, does it work? Yes, exactly as advertised and as a perfect backup if you don't want to require batteries. Would I get it for a job site? Absolutely not. Its small size and therefore small footprint makes it too cumbersome to try to use for more then figuring out where to mount something at home. For the home user that May only occasionly have to figure out where the studs are, it is perfect because it can also double as a refrigerator magnet due to its smaller size. Additional note regarding the refrigerator usage: When this thing gets within about 2" of the refrigerator it will jump out of your hand in clean hard. It requires a decent amount of skoal to get it back-off. We have a calendar held to the refrigerator with 3 clip magnets. This stud finder was powerful enough to not only grab the 1st magnet from an inch away, but also pull the other 2 from the refrigerator and hold the calendar in the air while carrying it to another room and passing it through the door.

Usage tip: Once you find the 1st stud, have a tape measure extended several feet and let the magnets of the stud finder hold the extended end of the tape as you hold the base end. Now mark every 16 or 24" to figure out approximately where to check for other studs' exact locations. This will make finding studs a little easier.

Hint (for those without access to ask a good carpenter / inspector): An easy way to figure out your stud placement is to find the stud nearest the corner of a Room. (Avoid corners with windows or doors nearby, or corners of the house, as this may cause design layout to vary.) Measure either 16 or 24" (most common), and that will be your base measurement to expect in the rest of your house. Also note that exterior walls may have different / closer stud placement and distance than interior walls.

Remember: Building code changes with time or materials used or location of wall. Keep that in mind when checking different parts of your home.

{Professionals, please don't read this next part.} The quality of work or extra decisions of carpenters impacts placement. (I've seen "the studs are an average of 24 inches", and "as long as they're somewhere closer than 16 inches we're fine", plus what looks like "We're putting the door / window / outlet right here and that's final! Throw in some extra boards if it doesn't line up with the studs properly. It will be extra solid then, so it's no big deal if it doesn't make sense!") Also, metal doesn't always mean stud. ("Oops! Didn't measure that cut right / cut isn't smooth / didn't place the drywall correctly. But we can just patch it with sheet metal.")

+ Measure twice, cut once. This way you don't make mistakes.
- Cut once and measure twice. That way you'll know how badly off you were and then finally get a rough idea of how you need to guess better next time.

I love this thing! I paired it with my electric stud finder and I was able to drill with confidence. Didn't miss a single stud and got the job done quickly and smoothly. Have to say without this it would not have gone down that way. I also like the fact that you can use it as a guide while drilling without having to pencil line your walls. Just move it up to the nail above or below your drill spot and it magnetizes to the wall giving you a dang good center point. Again, paired with the electric finder you can make sure the guy/gal nailing in your dry wall was hitting center. Would recommend to anybody.

This is effective, though it must be stressed that you have to be very sensitive when using this in certain situations.

I was very disappointed the first 10 minutes I tried in vain to use this by sweeping it by hand across various walls. I couldn't detect anything that I was comfortable assuming was a stud nail, let alone drilling a hole in my wall based on that assumption.

HOWEVER: I found it far easier to hang the device with a simple piece of thread and then just swinging it along the wall. Do not touch the finder with your hands at all.

With a string added, it jumped right to the stud nails when I came anywhere close to them. The difference between the two methods is like night and day.

It's a simple way to increase the sensitivity and efficiency of this product.

To anyone disappointed, give it a shot!