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Spyder III Krypton Laser – Power Readings and Battery Current Draw

jayrob

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730mW Spyder III Krypton

Krypton%203.jpg








I am very impressed with the WL Sypder III Krypton laser...

Because I never expected 1 Watt... And I was just hoping for maybe 500mW’s... (specs claim 500mW's to 1 Watt)

So I am very pleased with 730mW's! :)







Here's their official release video about the new Spyder III Krypton:



I sent Steve some of my 405-G-1 glass lenses when he had asked about them, and he returned the favor by sending me one of the new Sypder III Krypton's... (I got the better end of that deal!) :)

I received this laser, in the first week of August (before it was officially released), but was asked not to mention anything about it, until it's release…

I understand that it is now released. But first, to people who have signed up through their Facebook site. There was an email sign up. And people who signed up, could get the Krypton before the public release. It has recently also been released to the public.

I have been told that they have been accumulating stock so that they don't get so buried with a swarm of orders, like what happened with the release of the Arctic...







I am just posting my impression of it, with some power readings, current measurements, etc…

Steve did not ask for a review or anything. But I just wanted to mention a few things on my own.

Just the laser and package, not anything about all the bad rep the company has had with customer service issues, etc, etc...

Actually, I will say one thing. (as mentioned above) I have been told that they have been stocking up on the Spyder III Krypton lasers before releasing them publicly. Because they didn’t want to get swamped, and totally buried with orders. Like they did when they released the Arctic…

So if that is true, then hopefully buyers will not be waiting too long when they order…








Output power:

This is the most powerful green laser that I have. 730mW's in a hand held laser! :D

I like that it goes right to peak too! It will peak within 10 or 15 seconds. It is very consistent with this.

The beam width is satisfactory. Not super thin like those 100mW modules, not fat like those 250mW+ O-like modules. Not quite as thin as my RPL, but a nice beam width for my taste. Nice divergence for my taste as well. (no beam width measurements though)

I measured 1680mA's battery current draw on high. (steady)

Not sure if it has an IR filter inside. I did put the beam through an IR filter, and it was about 10 to 12% less output, so I'm thinking that it possibly does not have an IR filter. But then again, I guess at that power, it very well could have an IR filter. (possibly) Because a second optic of any kind will take away some power...

I still measured over 650mW's through an IR filter. Which is outstanding in a hand held 532nm laser.

I did another IR test with some 532nm blocking glasses and my camera. I have looked through my camera at an IR diode before, and it is amazing what the camera picks up!

Anyway, I saw nothing at all coming through the glasses if that means anything.

Per WL, all of their 532nm lasers have an IR filter...

Update 9/21: Here's a direct quote from Steve per e-mail...

"All green lasers from WL are IR-filtered. If there wasnt an IR filter on the Krypton, it would say 4W.The reason why it would go from say 750mW to 680mW with an additional IR filter is that, any filter, whether its a clear filter (flat lens), expanded lens (From the kit), a second or third IR filter, will drop green laser light minimum 10%. If you need an example to back up this theory. Take any green laser that you feel confident has an IR filter. Then take the same IR filter you are putting in front of the S3 Krypton, and measure the original green laser, the same % loss will result from the green laser"






I have done several 1 minute runs with no mode hopping…

I asked Steve about the internal workings. I told him that I seriously doubt that it has a peltier, because it would need maybe 400 or 500mA's for that. (and I measured 1680mA’s battery current draw on high)

He did not elaborate, but he did say no TEC. He said that if it gets too hot, the current to the diode gets regulated, depending on the temperature. I suggested maybe calling it 'TelsaCool Thermostatic Regulation’... (instead of TEC)









Speculation:

I'm guessing maybe a 2.5 Watt C-mount pump. (just a total guess based on the battery current draw, and knowing that Optotronics uses a 2.5 Watt pump diode)

But it is entirely possibly, that they are just using this 800mW CNI module:
http://www.sonic.net/~jayrob/PGL-H-532.pdf

I'm not about to take it apart, because I like it too much, and don't want to tamper with it. :) (the only thing that I did, was to focus it to my liking)








SmartSwitch:

I'm sure there are differing opinions, but I happen to be a fan of the SmartSwitch. I like that it has high and low power settings. Not a big fan of the strobe, SOS, and beacon modes, but you don't have to enter those modes if you don't want to. (only the initial low power strobe that you can quickly change to constant power with a quick click...

For me personally, I like that I must know the sequence of clicks to initialize the laser. It is just different I guess. It is something that takes a little thought to operate. (not difficult at all once you get used to it - it can be turned on very easily)

The new SmartSwitch 2 also has a 'hibernation mode'. Basically, once you hold the switch down for about 3 seconds, the laser turns off, and the center indicator is now blinking. This is the hibernation mode. It will come back on with a single click. So it can be hazardous. You must be aware of this, when in the hibernation mode. It will come back on in what ever mode/power that you had it in last...

I also like that the initialization lights will double as a battery capacity indicator, once you have turned the laser on.

The battery seems to be a good quality 18650 battery. (Sanyo IMR I believe)








Size:

It is exactly like the Arctic, except it is about 29mm longer at the front.

Krypton%201.jpg


Same exact diameter per my calipers, and the expanded lens kit attachments will fit both the Arctic, as well as the Krypton...








Package:

The package came with the expanded lens kit (I believe this is an accessory that is normally ordered separately), safety glasses (these seem to be good ones, but no rating marked on them), 18650 battery, cheap charger, operation manual, safety flyer, and a very nice protective case/holster.

Krypton%202.jpg


I really like the protective case for the laser! :)

I also like that it has an AR coated glass lens to protect the laser collimating lens from dust and what not.








Conclusion:

Bad rep or not, this is an awesome laser in my opinion. (that is, as long as it lasts)

Is it worth $1000 bucks? I guess that will depend on how long it will last. (I know that I paid much more than that for my Optotornics 425)

I do not know the inner workings, but as far as the looks, feel, and the way it comes right to power, it's down right awesome at 730mW’s!

It is (at this moment), my favorite laser…

So I just hope that it lasts!
 
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Apparently they are advertising it as the brightest laser you can legally own :rolleyes:

Can those stupid f%$ers just tell the damn truth for a change? A 650mW green laser is not 1W, and it is by far not the brightest laser you can legally own. (Besides, it is probably illegal to import like the arctic so it's not even legal to begin with.)
 
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I'm sorry.... $1000 for 1W of green???

What kid of market are they appealing to?

That's $1 / 1mW... if your unit is only producing 650mW then you are essentially getting ripped off by $350.

I would like to see if this is a one off incident or if they really can hit the 1W range they claim. Even a +-10% range is acceptable... but not 30%+
 
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When you are selling to the general public... anything goes :cryyy:

Lol. You mean like rounding up to 1W from 500mW?

Guess I'm carrying 1W of green in my pocket when I got out, what with the o-like torch that peaks at over 550mW:p
 

Trevor

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I'd love to see a power graph from an LPM that datalogs (preferably something with fast response time like an Ophir-based meter)... jayrob, do you have access to something like that?

-Trevor
 
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Well, I'm going to say that it's nice, but in no way worth the money for only 730mw of output.

With that being said, looks like it's still a pretty cool laser!
 

jayrob

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I like it...


I'd love to see a power graph from an LPM that datalogs (preferably something with fast response time like an Ophir-based meter)... jayrob, do you have access to something like that?

-Trevor



I believe my Coherent PM5200 can plug in to my computer and give a numerical read out, that can be translated into a graph, but I have not experimented much with it...

About the laser, I have only ran it for 1 minute duty runs. The specs claim continuous. But I have always had the habit of using a duty cycle.

So I'm just guessing that if you run it constant, then the power will obviously drop...
 
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Trevor

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If you wouldn't mind trying that, I'd love to see the numbers.

My hypothesis is that they've got these running in TEMhideous for maximum output - so a fair amount of power fluctuation will occur as the mode goes through subtle shifts.

-Trevor
 

daguin

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730mW Spyder III Krypton

I am very impressed with the WL Sypder III Krypton laser...

Because I never expected 1 Watt... And I was just hoping for maybe 500mW’s...

But I am very pleased with 730mW's! :)

To what level have we sunk?

We do not expect to get what was advertised and are ecstatic if it is higher than we thought it might actually do

"I knew that they were lying to me"
"I expected only 50% of their promise"
"I am very pleased that it wasn't as bad as I expected"
"Oh Yeah -- 11% of the output is IR"

Peace,
dave
 
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jayrob

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Good point Dave...

Maybe I should have inserted: (since I only traded some lenses, I am happy with 730mW's)

But yeah, if I paid $1000 bucks for it to be 1 Watt, I would not be happy with 730mW's.

However the claimed specs are between 500mW's and 1 Watt, so I never expected 1 Watt...

On the other hand, I paid much more than that for my 425mW RPL from Optotronics...

So far though, the Krypton is more stable output vs my Optotronics. (doesn't jump around as much) But who knows if it will last. That's the question... (hope so)
 
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I still measured over 650mW's through an IR filter.

I don't think I would be pleased to spend $1000.00
on an advertised IR Filtered 1000mW 532nm Laser that
output only 650mW... Unless I got a real good deal on
the price..

The way I see it you should have only payed $650 for
that Laser. It is advertised at $1.00 per 1mW of IR filtered
532nm.

Jay.. you're a better man than I....


Jerry
 
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jayrob

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Yes you and Dave are right about that...

I just posted above yours, that I would feel differently if I thought it was supposed to be 1 Watt.

I traded a couple of lenses, and got the much better end of the trade...
 
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Cool laser, Jay. You got a good deal on that laser although, as I suspected, it is a <1000mW laser rather than a >1000mW laser.
I'm sure the beam is very impressive regardless.

If you want to check and be certain whether the laser is IR filtered or not, you can easily do this if you have a camcorder with "night mode."
If you set the camera in night mode and cover the lens with a pair (or two) of 532nm blocking safety goggles (filtering out as much green as possible, ideally 100%) you should see a blob or spot of light still making it through if the laser does not have an (adequate) IR filter.

Alternatively, you can take a known 100% IR filtered green laser and measure the power with and without the external filter to calculate the optical losses and then apply that number to the Krypton.

Just a couple tricks I've used in the past. :)
 




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