I'm visiting Hong Kong and found a few outdoor vendor stalls selling laser pointers while wandering the night markets. On a whim I picked up a green laser; it was cheap (~$20 US) and seemed pretty bright. The label (not sure if I trust anything at these markets, right next to the lasers were USB-to-Lightning cables labeled "Designer by Apple in Californa") says "<300mW." So, what does that mean? Is it a 250mW? 100? 5? Is there an easy way to tell?
It runs of 2 AAA batteries, and at close range (about a foot or less) will strike matches and burn pinholes through black garbage bags. It doesn't ignite white tissue paper.
They also had a big fat blue laser that was stupendously bright for $100 (the lady running the stall said it was 10x brighter than the green) but I didn't want something that would require safety goggles or char the walls. If you can't tell already, I'm totally new to lasers, should've known there was a huge enthusiast community.
It runs of 2 AAA batteries, and at close range (about a foot or less) will strike matches and burn pinholes through black garbage bags. It doesn't ignite white tissue paper.
They also had a big fat blue laser that was stupendously bright for $100 (the lady running the stall said it was 10x brighter than the green) but I didn't want something that would require safety goggles or char the walls. If you can't tell already, I'm totally new to lasers, should've known there was a huge enthusiast community.
