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In order to add some pics, I decided to move my review onto a new thread to prevent thread hijacking Razako. 
As you may be aware, six members were given free 520 pointers to review. As others have done the same I have made the review quite brief.
Laserlands 5mW 520nm Laser Pointer.
Wavelength: 520 +/-5nm
It has a beautiful colour, resembling traffic light green. I was pleasantly surprised by the colour compared to that of a 532nm. This wavelength is more pure of a green IMO. Although this seems to be more apparent in darker environments. I believe my laser is probably in the 520-525nm range.
Here are some comparison shots of my 532 and this 520.
Power: 5mW (Rated) Actual 5-6mW (LPM tested)
Its power also was of a surprise to me, I was in a reasonably lit room at the time and I was able to see a dim beam when hovering over black objects. Without an LPM test I can't say for definite, but the power is most likely exceeding 10mW. In a dark room, the laser is able to compete with my 589 Spartan so I'm most content with the power. The Spartan is probably 2-2.5x brighter.
Here are some beamshots.
Batteries:
This laser takes 2x 16340 (CR123A) at 3.7V each. It is too early to tell what the battery lifetime is yet, but I can imagine it will be longer than that of the 589 Aurora and slightly less than the 589 Spartan.
Build quality:
For the retail price of this laser, one thing that was impressive was the quality of the host. The host is actually of high quality. The batteries fits fine, with no contact problems or rattle. The tail button turns on/off without issues. The lens end is well designed. The only thing I would say, is I'd rather have a glass lens. But for the price, I really can't complain. The lens does the job, you just have to be extra careful when cleaning it.
Edit: Something I found out by accident, is that the tail cap is also phosphorescent (glow in the dark). Very useful for when in near total darkness.
Beam Specs:
I can say that I'm happy with the beam quality. The dot is slightly oval. The divergence is also very good, however the fast axis is actually negative. This is now the second laser in my collection to have a negative axis.
Beam Diameter: 4.06 x 1.20 mm
Beam Shape: Oval
Beam Divergence: ~(-1.027 x 0.381 mRad)
This is the beam profile when magnified by a long focal convex lens.
A picture of the dot from around 5m away.
This is how I measured the beam size. Both are at 0.2m away from the aperture.
Shipping:
The shipping was quicker than expected, seeing that it was coming from China. Usually it can take up to a month for things to arrive, but only 9 days after I received my tracking number, it had arrived. Very good for the impatient hobbyist.
Packaging:
The seller had packaged the laser well. No risk of the laser being broken, as there was protective foam inside the laser box as well. But like Razako already said. The box saying laser torch on it does make it a bit risky going through customs. 1) Seeing the word laser, already can flag interest with the authorities. 2) The word 'torch' usually is an object which is particularly bright. Put both together, and you could have a problem.
Luckily for us, we didn't. But the custom label did state the item as a gift.
Overall, this laser has made a very nice addition to my collection. It is highly stable, giving me the idea that the diode inside might be able to cope with some more power? Are these MDF520's or more powerful Osram PL520-50's possibly?
Well anyway, I finally have a 520. Already considering a 1.4W 520 soon.
Also, just a quick thank you to Laserlands. He didn't have to send out free lasers to us, so again thank you. :beer: These are by far, the cheapest 520's on the market at the moment, and you sure would not think it. I highly recommend this laser to anyone, not just beginners.
As you may be aware, six members were given free 520 pointers to review. As others have done the same I have made the review quite brief. Laserlands 5mW 520nm Laser Pointer.
Wavelength: 520 +/-5nm
It has a beautiful colour, resembling traffic light green. I was pleasantly surprised by the colour compared to that of a 532nm. This wavelength is more pure of a green IMO. Although this seems to be more apparent in darker environments. I believe my laser is probably in the 520-525nm range.
Here are some comparison shots of my 532 and this 520.
Power: 5mW (Rated) Actual 5-6mW (LPM tested)
Its power also was of a surprise to me, I was in a reasonably lit room at the time and I was able to see a dim beam when hovering over black objects. Without an LPM test I can't say for definite, but the power is most likely exceeding 10mW. In a dark room, the laser is able to compete with my 589 Spartan so I'm most content with the power. The Spartan is probably 2-2.5x brighter.
Here are some beamshots.
Batteries:
This laser takes 2x 16340 (CR123A) at 3.7V each. It is too early to tell what the battery lifetime is yet, but I can imagine it will be longer than that of the 589 Aurora and slightly less than the 589 Spartan.
Build quality:
For the retail price of this laser, one thing that was impressive was the quality of the host. The host is actually of high quality. The batteries fits fine, with no contact problems or rattle. The tail button turns on/off without issues. The lens end is well designed. The only thing I would say, is I'd rather have a glass lens. But for the price, I really can't complain. The lens does the job, you just have to be extra careful when cleaning it.
Edit: Something I found out by accident, is that the tail cap is also phosphorescent (glow in the dark). Very useful for when in near total darkness.
Beam Specs:
I can say that I'm happy with the beam quality. The dot is slightly oval. The divergence is also very good, however the fast axis is actually negative. This is now the second laser in my collection to have a negative axis.
Beam Diameter: 4.06 x 1.20 mm
Beam Shape: Oval
Beam Divergence: ~(-1.027 x 0.381 mRad)
This is the beam profile when magnified by a long focal convex lens.
A picture of the dot from around 5m away.
This is how I measured the beam size. Both are at 0.2m away from the aperture.
Shipping:
The shipping was quicker than expected, seeing that it was coming from China. Usually it can take up to a month for things to arrive, but only 9 days after I received my tracking number, it had arrived.
Very good for the impatient hobbyist. Packaging:
The seller had packaged the laser well. No risk of the laser being broken, as there was protective foam inside the laser box as well. But like Razako already said. The box saying laser torch on it does make it a bit risky going through customs. 1) Seeing the word laser, already can flag interest with the authorities. 2) The word 'torch' usually is an object which is particularly bright. Put both together, and you could have a problem.
Luckily for us, we didn't. But the custom label did state the item as a gift.
Overall, this laser has made a very nice addition to my collection. It is highly stable, giving me the idea that the diode inside might be able to cope with some more power?
Are these MDF520's or more powerful Osram PL520-50's possibly?Well anyway, I finally have a 520.
Already considering a 1.4W 520 soon. Also, just a quick thank you to Laserlands. He didn't have to send out free lasers to us, so again thank you. :beer: These are by far, the cheapest 520's on the market at the moment, and you sure would not think it. I highly recommend this laser to anyone, not just beginners.
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