Back to square one again

I now have $550 to spend on a greenie. Remember 9 years ago I spent $1100 on a 6-8mw greenie and I was happy. God times have changed. I cant see spending $800 on one. So now the question is 150mw or 175mw. Nova laser of course. Is there a difference that is tangible 150 vs. 175?

There will be a difference but it won't be very noticeable. The x-175 will burn a bit faster and the beam might be slightly brighter.

You can also toss in $50 more and get an RPL-165 for $579+shipping.
http://www.optotronics.com/r-lithium-ion.php The RPL will be more stable and have better divergence. Additionally with an RPL you will never need to worry about buying batteries for it. Buying lithium AAA's for a Nova X-series will quickly burn through a good amount of cash.

I just posted a line about Optotronics. What average milliwattage do you think I will get during the first 20 seconds from the PRL165? I'm just wondering now whether to go with the 165 or the 225.

Go for the 225, you will be much more happy with a 225 in the long run.