O-Like 1W Blue - Any Good?

[Jeff88]

I accidentally posted this in the Blu-Ray forum. Re-posting here.

I'm thinking of saving some money and buying this: Power Rock 1W Blue laser torch /Focusable/ waterproof

Anyone have any opinion about the laser? Is O-Like pretty good? I'm in the USA but from what I've read customs doesn't seem to be much of an issue. Anyone know what happens if it does get taken?Does O-Like do anything for the customer if customs takes the laser? I know Lazerer doesn't. I think Rayfoss refunds like 50% (What's up with their new site, btw?).

Or does anyone have a different one in that price range they'd recommend? About $150.

Sorry for the barrage of questions. I appreciate any responses!

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

I see a couple potential issues with this laser...

1. It's not 1W, it's actually rated as >800mW before lens (all o-like measurements are before collimating lens). Meaning after lens you could be looking at as little as 700mW.

2. It's a small host, likely using a brass heatsink. This means the duty cycle on the laser will need to be short, or you will greatly reduce the lifetime of the laser.

I have a 635nm laser in the same host coming soon (hopefully) and I do think it's a great host. I just don't think it would do well considering it's size, with a diode/driver that require good heatsinking.

You're better off ordering from survivallaser.com, yobresal, or just about any member here on the forum imo.

 

[Jeff88]

I see a lot of people seem to buy from each other on here like you mentioned. Should I just go post in the "Buy, Trade, Sell" section for what I'm looking for and/or what my price range is? Is $150 reasonable for someone fairly new to lasers?

I assume the reputation section on the member bio pages is a good reference?

 

[snoutke]

(all o-like measurements are before collimating lens).

How do you know this? Did Susie tell you this in a PM?

Because O-like doesn't tell on the website that all their measurements are before collimating lens. They just say: Output is > than X. And then people receive an underspec laser and get mad at O-like and have to return it, like I did with two lasers I bought from them.

Is this another one of these dirty marketing tricks, not to say lies?

 

[Seoul_lasers]

The 1W O-like laser, at least the one I have peaks around 890-900mW then drops to ~720mW as the diode warms up. This is after lens measurement. I test this using a University LPM. NOT my own LPM! I am assuming the measurement I got is fairly accurate. One of these days I am going to have to get my own LPM!

Several things to warn about for this laser, if any of you need to correct my info on this post let me know. This is what I have found to be true for my O-like >1W laser!

a) Do not let the 445nm >1W pointer be on for more than 40 secs! I'd be on the safe side as the heat sink is pretty small and made of brass. It isn't a bad laser, but not the greatest quality. 1min duty cycle, the laser body get VERY warm! Warm enough for me to think that the duty cycle isn't 1min and might be about half of that. After measuring, on the LPM, there was a large drop in output after 30secs!.

b) Also watch for the spring inside on the negative terminal as there is no support. Put in your batteries (RCR123A) carefully!

c) Careful with your batteries and don't let them drop below 70%!

d) It is possible to low power your pointer with 1 18650 cell, power is about ~2-300mW,

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

I see a lot of people seem to buy from each other on here like you mentioned. Should I just go post in the "Buy, Trade, Sell" section for what I'm looking for and/or what my price range is? Is $150 reasonable for someone fairly new to lasers?

I assume the reputation section on the member bio pages is a good reference?

If you want to start out with a high powered laser, you will need to increase your budget a little bit. You will need good goggles, so ~$200 is the budget should be aiming at, which can include a good battery, charger, and most importantly SAFETY GOGGLES.

You can post a thread in the b/s/t section, or just see who is selling what... someone is always selling a 445nm laser.

Rep, tenure and post count are all good indicators, but they are not the whole story Stick to buying your first laser from a veteran member and you'll be happy.

How do you know this? Did Susie tell you this in a PM?

Because O-like doesn't tell on the website that all their measurements are before collimating lens. They just say: Output is > than X. And then people receive an underspec laser and get mad at O-like and have to return it, like I did with two lasers I bought from them.

Is this another one of these dirty marketing tricks, not to say lies?

That's exactly it... I had a long chat with her over MSN when I finally got around to LPMing all my lasers. I was rather disappointed by the fact that my 1.2W tactical was not actually 1.2W. It was barely 1W.

She said the minimum 1.1W output of the 1.2W laser (ridiculous already isn't it?) is the RAW optical output from the diode window, with no collimating lens in the way. Since I was measuring with both the collimating obviously I wouldn't get close to the 1.2W.

Since that time, I assume all power claims on the o-like website are RAW OPTICAL, and not after the lens.

d) It is possible to low power your pointer with 1 18650 cell, power is about ~2-300mW,

If you're getting ~800-900mW with two 16340 batteries, I highly doubt you would get over 200mW with one 18650. Possibly, but I doubt it:undecided:

Rest of your info is spot on. The tiny brass heatsinks are one of the biggest problems with cheap chinese lasers. I would bet the lifetime of the lasers made my members on here with good heatsinking is more than double of those cheaper chinese lasers.

 

[Seoul_lasers]

If you want to start out with a high powered laser, you will need to increase your budget a little bit. You will need good goggles, so ~$200 is the budget should be aiming at, which can include a good battery, charger, and most importantly SAFETY GOGGLES.

You can post a thread in the b/s/t section, or just see who is selling what... someone is always selling a 445nm laser.

Rep, tenure and post count are all good indicators, but they are not the whole story Stick to buying your first laser from a veteran member and you'll be happy.



That's exactly it... I had a long chat with her over MSN when I finally got around to LPMing all my lasers. I was rather disappointed by the fact that my 1.2W tactical was not actually 1.2W. It was barely 1W.

She said the minimum 1.1W output of the 1.2W laser (ridiculous already isn't it?) is the RAW optical output from the diode window, with no collimating lens in the way. Since I was measuring with both the collimating obviously I wouldn't get close to the 1.2W.

Since that time, I assume all power claims on the o-like website are RAW OPTICAL, and not after the lens.



If you're getting ~800-900mW with two 16340 batteries, I highly doubt you would get over 200mW with one 18650. Possibly, but I doubt it:undecided:

Rest of your info is spot on. The tiny brass heatsinks are one of the biggest problems with cheap chinese lasers. I would bet the lifetime of the lasers made my members on here with good heatsinking is more than double of those cheaper chinese lasers.

Well, I know what I measured. I don't think like a lot of these O-like products there is much consistency. There is quite a drop in output after 35secs on mine.