First off I would like to say I have no prior knowledge in the laser "field".

I was looking to buy the 125mw Viper and then I was looking around on this forum and I heard about the other stores such as deal extreme and I seen that their prices were only about 1/20th of DL.

My question is: Why is DL so much more expensive?

Also this would be my first real laser purchase. I am looking for something I wont really need to replace as I plan on this purchase being my ONLY laser purchase. Basically something of good quality, visibility, power, lifetime without breaking the bank. (300+) Also I am looking for the best bang for the buck and I was wondering if DL was the way to go.

Cheers

DragonLasers, Optotronics, LaserGlow and the likes have much high quality control
standards when it comes to reselling lasers. You pay more, but are garranteed a laser
that puts out what is advertised.

Because it's actually within the spec posted. And Dragon Lasers resell CNI lasers which is a reputable manufacturer with real quality control and testing etc. The beam is also more likely to be more stable and in one particular mode.

They do have a good reputation here, that's true.

Many products are just slapped together over in China in "cottage industry" with a bunch of parts that "should" work.

A 125mW from Deal Extreme might just be 50mW, or maybe putting out 75mW of IR that's adding to the total when held up to a laser meter. The beam might be multi-mode or mode-hopping, changing it's shape and output from second to second.

IMO, a pen is a bad choice in terms of heat dissipation and battery life when you get over 100mW anyway. So if it does work well, that also adds to the cost.

A good compromise company for you between Dragon and DX might be O-Like, their products are close to what is promised, the prices are better, and they have a good reputation with most of us here.

200mW transformable green laser/adjustable [OLV6200] - $165.00 : Welcome to O-Like.com, Your source for laser products

Is there one that is better than the other? In your opinion? Any suggestions for what I am looking for? As In not needing to be replaced? I Dont know a lot about terminology either, Ie. Modes Etc.

So what you are saying is the 125mw is not a good choice because it is a pen?

If you want a good quality pen style greenie, check out the X series from Nova Lasers, a branch of LaserGlow. It's the same model as the Viper from Dragonlasers, as they both get their products from CNI. Nova is located in Canada, which may be a good thing for you, depending on where you live.
Edit:125mW in a pen is, imo, fine. You would need to have a duty cycle, (I.E. 60 seconds on, 30 seconds off) to prevent the laser from overheating, but it's definitely not too much power for a pen. They also have a 200 something mW pen on their site, expensive, but shows that it can be done reliably.

Places like dragonlasrs, cni or optotronics sell top of the line high quality lasers. The lasers they sell are always up to, or above spec. The stuff you get from DX is of much lower quality and is almost always way under spec. If you want to buy a cheap laser get one from rayfoss or O-Like. They sell lasers that are similar in quality to DX, but are at least up to spec.

i live in the US, so am I going to have issues getting one? I heard something about being over 5mw but didn't really get what it meant

It is illegal to import lasers into the US with an output of over 5mW, unless it has safety features to comply with the FDA. That being said, there's a very small chance that a laser would be seized at customs, and I believe Nova, Dragon Lasers, and most other respectable company would just send you another one if it did get confiscated. If you do want one that complies with the FDA, an Alpha from Nova lasers, or an Aries from LaserGlow would be a good choice.

I sort of skimmed the other posts.... did not feel like reading them "all" but the difference between the both is DL has "Very" high quality lasers. Places like DX and such have low quality lasers...some people were even shipped broken units "several" times. The customer support sucks for Dx too, so lets say they ship you a faulty laser.....its pretty difficult to get another one "if you can get in touch with them". DL on the other hand has "VERY" good customer support. They will tell you almost anything you need to know and even offer advice.

If your looking for a good quality laser <300$ some of the other members mentioned a few places you can shop. It will also help to know what kind of color you want, what type of host (example: pen, flashlight, handheld, labby ect.) It also helps to know what you plan to do with it.

Now on to the issue of customs. I along with "many many many" other members have gotten lasers through customs without issue. There are a few cases where customs have seized goods but its pretty uncommon. Your laser should come through. If you are really worried about customs you can request your battery and tailcap to be shipped seperate. This will almost gaurrentee it will slip by. (all though thats kind of unnecessary)

Any how, i wish you good luck finding your perfect laser and hope you enjoy your stay here!

Thanks,
Jeff

I would like to get a green pen laser. Mostly for pointing at thing indoors and outdoors at night. At night I would like to be able to see the line pretty clearly.

How come the Alpha and Aries are so much easier to get?

They're not really easier to get, but they're both legal to import, because they have the 5 safety features the FDA requires for class IIIB lasers and above. Thus, there's next to no chance of it getting seized at customs.

Can someone point me towards a laser that is close to what I want? I am not sure what/ where to look

I recommend either o-like or budgetgadgets.com for a good blend of low cost and good quality. Neither are much more expensive than dealextreme, but in my experience they're better.

Here's a link to a 100mW 532nm (green) unit from o-like:

100mW Ultrafire host portable green laser /outdoor hunting [OLUGL100] - $72.00 : Welcome to O-Like.com, Your source for laser products

Ok here is another question. Why is this aries from laser glow so much more than the pen laser from dragon laser?

Aries-125 Sustained: 125-149mW $439

Viper-125 Output: 15mW-200mW US$279.99

No meant to sound picky, but that think just looks fugly.

The Aries is a huge, heat-sinked, flashlight-like host that runs on two C batteries.

The Viper-125 is a 'pen' host, runs on two AA's, shorter lifetime, shorter duty cycle, less heatsinking.