Novalasers Clearence x150. Pics Now Up!!!

UPS man just dropped it off, and I opened it up. I was suprised it actually came with the silver metal Novalasers case. The papers that came with it say it averages 157mw, and peaks at 162mw. It's definetly the brightest greenie I've ever seen. In fact I think it's the brightest laser I've seen. Beam diameter looks to be sub 1mm, but the divergence is still great! I'll update this review later today with actual power measurements, beam divergence, and of course videos+pics!

Update.

I tested the laser on my Laserbee I, and it's putting out 175mw average 180mw peak!!! They must have tested it with old batteries. There is one flaw to the laser though the beam doesn't hit the lens in the center, so the beam comes out at a slight angle, but it's no big deal. You can see it in some of the pics. I still think I got a great laser at an awesome price.

Update 2.

I just measured the divergence. It's not as great as I thought. Guess I got used to those 445s, but I would like to say that it does have a perfect gaussian beam. Never seen better. On to the numbers. At 7 meters the the beam is 5/8in or 15.875mm. That gives a divergence of 2.1mrad. I might try to adjust it after the warranty. Anybody have experience with this?

Overall I am satisfied with this laser. It was on clearence, so I got it over 300$ off. If I had payed full price I would most likely send it back because of the divergence though.
Pros.
Great power (overspec).
small beam diameter.
pocket sized.
High quality.
Perfect gaussian beam, no mode hopping.

Cons.
Bad divergence.
Heats up quickly.
beam comes out at a slight angle.
AAAs don't provide great battery life.

Pics taken with smoke from just a 2 matches, and engraving wood with my 445.

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

Whew! You received it before you went away for college! Congrats man. Looking forward to the pictures and videos, of course. Brighter than your 880mW you say? Nice!

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

Yeah, in a lit room the beam is much brighter than 880mw of 445. I shined it down my street at a garage door about 200 yards away, and you could easily see it. Also the divergence is ridiculous. The spot looked to be about 6 inches.

Check the update.

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

kevinmassey said:

Yeah, in a lit room the beam is much brighter than 880mw of 445. I shined it down my street at a garage door about 200 yards away, and you could easily see it. Also the divergence is ridiculous. The spot looked to be about 6 inches.

Check the update.

Click to expand...

200 yards, 6 inches? I'm not sure if that's good, but it sounds it!

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

Check the edit for my actual calculations. At 200 yards the spot would actually be about 16in. Not that great.

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

kevinmassey said:

Check the edit for my actual calculations. At 200 yards the spot would actually be about 16in. Not that great.

Click to expand...

Oh, wow. Surprised at the divergence. Sure you didn't make any mistakes? Try this and use two measurements. The specs say <1.2mrad. :undecided: Maybe you should email and ask them about it.

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

Asa said:

Oh, wow. Surprised at the divergence. Sure you didn't make any mistakes? Try this and use two measurements. The specs say <1.2mrad. :undecided: Maybe you should email and ask them about it.

Click to expand...

It's normal but not expected to get such a high divergence on this model because of it's described less than 1 mm beam diameter at the aperture. The laws of physics state that the smaller the beam diameter the more the beam diverges as it travels a distance. You should IMO return the laser and ask for a replacement. I really hope they aren't selling their "defective" or "not up to spec" batch of lasers at a discounted price to get rid of them.

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

Yeah, I'm sure. Divergence is so easy there's really no need for a calculator. There's really nothin I could learn from emailing them. I don't want to RMA it because it IS an awesome overspec laser other than the divergence, and I think i got really lucky getting one that's perfect Tem00 all the time. If I want it fixed bad enough I'll do it. I've fixed divergence on all the other lasers I've had. I'm pretty sure I could fix this one without any problems.

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

kevinmassey said:

Yeah, I'm sure. Divergence is so easy there's really no need for a calculator. There's really nothin I could learn from emailing them. I don't want to RMA it because it IS an awesome overspec laser other than the divergence, and I think i got really lucky getting one that's perfect Tem00 all the time. If I want it fixed bad enough I'll do it. I've fixed divergence on all the other lasers I've had. I'm pretty sure I could fix this one without any problems.

Click to expand...

Well, it's good to know you're satisfied!

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

Yeah, if I wasn't I would send it back. I believe I got my moneys worth.

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

Guys, as I've said there is a reason for Clearance Sales. You still got very good deals from them, while maybe it's not always their premium unit it's still got to be much better than a lot of the junk coming from other vendors.

Remember it's still a genuine CNI Laser, and there is a reason why when they re-stock the prices go back up. Their parent company (LaserGlow) does this from time-to-time too, Premium units do cost more, always have. For the price paid on these units, you've got a very good deal.

The only reason I haven't jumped in and bought some is because I already own several of their Premium Lasers, but for the price I would buy one of these myself if they had a model I didn't have and wanted.

Re: Novalasers Clearence x150.

so.. the endeavor and xseries that nova sell.. you think that are non premium lasers with not best divergence..? no one wold bu ya laser at full price with higher mrad than 1.2. maybe nova is selling at low prices... units with 1.5... 1.7.... mrad.

Updated with pics!