FocalPrice $15 '50mW' 532nm 18650 host review

[qumefox]

When I first saw these, I went 'why not?' so I ordered three. They finally came in today so I figured i'd do a review for anyone else that might be interested.

To start with. Here's where to get it.

Focalprice.com offers 50mW 532nm Green Laser Pointer (Black) ,discount 50mW 532nm Green Laser Pointer (Black),50mW 532nm Green Laser Pointer (Black) products,low price 50mW 532nm Green Laser Pointer (Black),cheap 50mW 532nm Green Laser Pointer (Black

Some basic specs and info. These use 18650's. The hosts are labeled XX-852 on one side of the barrel and 'Green laser pointer' on the other, and they come with a wrist strap. The clicky tailcap is different that what's pictured on focalprice and the contact side is mostly flat, but it's still raised enough that flat top 18650's will work. Battery goes + towards the tailcap. The usual orientation for green and IR's. The threads on the host suffer from usual chinese QC as well, but nothing horrible. Get a brush, clean all the aluminum chips out of them and grease them a little and they'll be fine. The label is accurate on these, and doesn't have the wrong color or wavelength printed on it.

These also come no-frills. A laser in a white box. Mine had no bubble wrap or anything else in the box. They were just in white boxes, rubber banded together in a big envelope with the three sets of goggles I ordered as well. I'll review the goggles tomorrow after I test them a bit more.

Next, here's probably what everyone wants to see.. real numbers. I didn't have the camera handy this morning to get LPM shots when I metered them all so you'll just have to take my word for it.

Laser #1: 37mW 532, 36mW IR, 73mW total
Laser #2: 15mW 532, 10mW IR, 25mW total
Laser #3: 26mW 532, 24mW IR, 50mW total

These are the 'stable' numbers, not 'peak'. Green was measured by getting the total measurement, then putting a pair of OD4 532 goggles in the beam which just left the IR, then subtracting that from the total.

Disassembly:

These come apart REALLY easy.. if you do it in the right order. If you don't, you tear all the pins off the IR diode..

Ripping them asunder.. if you will, is pretty simple. First unscrew the tailcap, then get some type of hook or reaaaly long needle nose, and fish out the black foam ring, plus the two white foam chunks that are wedged around the driver. Next, unscrew the top cap, then unscrew the module from the host.. that's it. If you don't remove the foam first though, when you unscrew the module, you'll find the driver still firmly stuck in the host, and you'll have a green module in your hand with a diode with no pins. :undecided:

The module/driver:

Fairly typical. The average 12mm 532nm module I see on ebay all the time. The switch is jumpered to be on all the time.

In conclusion:

(taken with a moderately long exposure of laser #1 in a dim room with no smoke)

Do I think they're worth $15? Definitely. More heatsinking and a LOT longer runtime than a pen pointer. The host, while not being anything special, isn't really a piece of crap either. The 12mm module could be swapped out with an aixiz module with minimal industriousness if using a similar length driver as the original IR, so these hosts wouldn't be hard to repurpose for other lasers.

They aren't super high powered, but they're $15 lasers too... It's kind of like the $9 405nm pens.. For the price... Why not?

 

[cd520]

Not too bad for 15 bucks unless power was like #2. What is the HT in the charger on the table?

 

[danefex]

Great review!! I also ordered one of these with the same 'why not' afterthought when seeing the price not too long ago. If I may ask, what was or is the difference between the right and the wrong way to take this unit apart to avoid separating the pins from the IR diode?

 

[qumefox]

15mW for $15 (or less, depending on how many you get) still isn't horrible. There are plenty of greens out there that cost more that put out less.

and it's an Icom IC-W32A

Great review!! I also ordered one of these with the same 'why not' afterthought when seeing the price not too long ago. If I may ask, what was or is the difference between the right and the wrong way to take this unit apart to avoid separating the pins from the IR diode?

The difference is, you don't destroy it. Just get something and dig the foam pieces out through the battery end before you try to screw the module from the host. I broke the first one because I expected it to be floating like every other cheap laser i've taken apart, but they reinforce these with foam to keep the driver from moving around under the pressure of the battery.

 

[danefex]

Gotcha... I will keep that in mind when it's here & on deck for disassembly. Thanks again!

 

[qumefox]

Why would you need to take it apart though unless you plan to use the host for something else or replace the module with a better one. These are still cheap green modules. Pot modding them accomplishes nothing. I tried it on #3 (#2 is the one I tore the pins off the diode) and only succeed in LOWERING it's maximum output by 3mW.

The only real thing these need is the threads on the tailcap cleaned and greased, and an IR filter added, which can be done by just unscrewing the top cap. No need to pull the whole module for that.

 

[danefex]

Why would you need to take it apart though unless you plan to use the host for something else or replace the module with a better one.

I just want to learn how it's built & how it looks inside, I have no plans of modding it or anything unless I come across something cheap and simple that could maximize what this laser already does.

I'm quite new to the laser building hobby and this forum despite being a laser geek most of my life, so as I read more deeply into the laser build guide, the laser bible and the many kit tutorials available here - eventually I'd like to start doing some disassembly and reassembly to make full sense of it all.

That's why... If it's the decent greenie you say it is I'll likely use it quite a bit. I'm far from ever considering pot mods too. I need to successfully complete some of the kits I'm on standby for first before considering anything like that.

 

[qumefox]

Got another batch of three more of these. Figured i'd add the data to this thread.

#4 30mW 532nm, 47mW IR
#5 25mW 532nm, 13mW IR
#6 62mW 532nm, 13mW IR.. Overspec.. WOO!


#6 was different internally from the rest. Top cap was glued on. it had a different type module and driver from the rest, had no white foam around the driver, and it didn't come with a wrist strap. I'm not sure if this is a new variant, or an old one that was mixed in their stock.

 

[DJNY]

Thank you qumefox, I know now who is responsible for if they´re Out of Stock.

 

[qumefox]

First come, first serve, you know.

Though, while availability of chinese products are always an unknown, I doubt these are going to vanish any time soon.. plus looks like they're still in stock to me.

I will add these aren't the highest quality lasers around (duh, heh) A couple of these i've had to dismantle/rebuild the tailcap switches, and one had a module that wouldn't screw down into the host properly for the battery to make contact. I had to use a small triangle file and go after the threads on that one to make it work.

 

[ZapU]

I wish I had seen this thread last week. I got this exact laser. I measured total output, it was only 30mW.
Since it was cheap, I went ahead and tried to take it apart, only I didn't pull out the foam padding and tore the pins out of the diode. Doh! :banghead:

Ordered another one. I like the design and the fact it uses 18650 batteries, I have a few of them.
The driver looks identical to the $9 DX 5mW greenies that I have been able to pot mod successfully to over 50mW. I know you had no luck but I don't see why it shouldn't work on this. Of course, if the next one comes overspec, I'll leave it alone.

Nice review. +1

 

[anselm]

I got one of these too, AFTER reading this review.
I'm rather happy about it.
I don't have a lasermeter, so I can only guesstimate.
When cold, it does smolder black leatherette, pop balloons, poke through black electrical tape.
No luck lighting matches though.
Unfortunately it will go dimmer and stay there after 10-30 secs.
I gotta say this is great value for money.

Marginally more expensive or even same price as ebay pens, but a different class
altogether, with the 18650 and the clicky.