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Cheap green laser.

cpper

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Jun 10, 2013
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Hello :)
I decided to buy a cheap green laser pointer,for fun,and for pointing to stars.
I've bought one last year,from internet ( this type ),it cost 15$.It was advertised with 500mW,on the box was written <5mW, and on another side <1mW.On the sticker near the cap,was <500mW written.I haven't got a measurement tool,so I can't tell the right power.I can find on sites like ebay,amazon,or okazii(in my country) this kind of laser with power from 5mW - 1000mW. Are they all the same power actually ? Which are there real power ?
Anyway the laser has been dropped more times,and the dot went bigger and blurrier.I tried to disassemble it, but I failed epicly. Anyway I could rotate a piece,and the distance between the diode and a small magnifier went greater or smaller, the dot(outputted thing) likewise.

So I want to buy a new one,maybe the same type.But I found a new type,with plastic button,at nearly the same price,advertised with 500 mw , this one . If you scroll down, you can see a picture with the cap and the plastic button,but I cannot understand how it's turned on,if the button is not pressed.I asked the seller, and he told me that its power is the same as this one .
Has anybody this kind of laser ? What is it's real power ?
Thanks in advance.
Have a nice day :)
 





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Jul 2, 2013
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Both of those lasers are a scam. Don't buy either of them, as they are both probably just overspec 5mw lasers. They are not 500mw or 1000mw as advertised. This LP 515nm 532nm 1-150 and this HL 532nm 50-300 are high quality lasers that would be up to spec.
See this http://laserpointerforums.com/f45/guide-buying-your-first-green-laser-30608.html page for more help

Also you can go to the companies section (Companies - Laser Pointers) To find trusted companies with good lasers

The laser with the plastic button is most likely Photoshopped so that there is a beam that makes it look like 500mw, but that is not the actual beam.

Welcome to the forums
 

cpper

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Jun 10, 2013
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Thanks for the response :)
I think i cant afford a good-company laser because:
1) My budget is only 35$
2) I live in Romania,eastern Europe,all USA-things are here much more expensive.
3) I think I cant find something good in my country,and if I buy from a foreign shop,the shipping cost is huge.
:(

EDIT:I don't need laser for burning stuff. I just want a long beam at night...
 
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cpper

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I think the most of you have got a cheap green laser pointer,sold with ~10$ on shops like Amazon.Has anyone measured it's actual power ?
 

cpper

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Well, my very first laser (Rakuten.com - HDE 50mw Green Laser Pointer with 5 Interchangeable Heads) is that one. It is under-spec, but I would put it at about 15mw and it is very cheap. You can see the beam easily in a dark room, and it is amazing at night. You might consider that one.

The laser I had, looked exactly the same,but another box.The cheap laser,advertised with 1000mW(posted in first post link) and all lasers on okazii.ro look the same as yours first.What I hate,is that I can't find them on an official page on the internet,and on the box or on the laser isn't written a company name.
 
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All the lasers look the same, but they are all different. They just simply use the same housing. Most of them will have completely different internals, but the housing just looks the same. They are not all the same, no matter how much they look alike.
 

cpper

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All the lasers look the same, but they are all different. They just simply use the same housing. Most of them will have completely different internals, but the housing just looks the same. They are not all the same, no matter how much they look alike.

I though that the cheap lasers <15$ are all the same power,but differently overspeced :undecided: . So if I find 2 lasers, at the same price,but one advertised with 500mW and one with 200mW,could it be a difference between them,although no one of them reaches the claimed power ? I'm speaking here exclusively about the cheap,usually scam lasers.
:thanks: for helping me :)
 
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Well your 500mw and 200mw will definitely both be waaaayyyy under-spec. However, they are not necessarily 5mw. they are in the 5-30mw range most likely, but I cant be sure, because I have never seen them before. Usually lasers like that are 5-30mw though. Not all cheap lasers are necessarily the same power, some might be legit, but 99% of the time it will just be an over-spec 5mw laser
 

cpper

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Thanks.I read somewhere that this cheap lasers are sometimes underspeced,which makes them illegal in some countries.Anyway I don't think one of them is legit,because the "100mW" and the "1000mW" look exactly the same.I suppose that for greater power,the laser will need greater housing.
 
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If you were doing 1000mw in a little pen housing, it would get super hot and blow the diode. Those things don't have room for heat-sinks.
 




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