while trying to figure out which high powered green laser i should go for when i can afford it, i wrote a C++ program to work out the price per mW of various lasers, to compare prices. obviously, price isn't the only thing to consider when buying a laser, but i felt it may be informative so here are the results
prices are all in US dollars, and i try to update them every so often. these are power levels as specified on the webpages, where possible i'm counting the lowest expected/guarunteed output, for example the Spyder II GX's specs say 200-300mW so i'm counting it as 200. these prices do not take discounts into account, for example the discounts offered by some companies to members of LPF.
also, these are just the portable laser companies i know of - if there's any others you'd like to see, please tell me, and i'll try add them i'm restricting this to a minimum of 10mW lasers for red/green, and 5mW for orange/yellow/violet/blue, i don't really feel it's worth adding anything below that.
IMPORTANT: laser models with a * besides them have a disputed output. this means they have been tested and shown to output less than 90% of the stated power level of their lasers. obviously, this doesn't include broken lasers, or the *occasional* under powered laser - only consistently below-spec lasers from a company. Company names with this mark against them may have disputed output on all their models, or really poor quality, or really poor customer service, or a combination of all 3. they may also lose their link, i don't like people being scammed
Green Lasers (532nm)
BFG Lasers *
DealExtreme
Destructive Gear
Dragon Lasers
Laserglow
LucentOptics
Nova Lasers
(for X series extras, as in the box, nova membership, and reward points, add $20 to the price)
Optotronics
ThinkGeek
Ultra Lasers
Wicked Lasers *
Red Lasers (635-670nm)
Laserglow
Wicked Lasers *
NOTE: far cheaper than both these options ($15-20 for the diode - or use one from an old dvd burner - then some cheap extra parts) is to build a laser from a DVD diode, using instructions found on LPF, or asking around to see if someone will build one for you, for cheaper than one of the above lasers.
Blue Lasers (473nm)
Dragon Lasers
Laserglow
Nova Lasers
Optotronics
Wicked Lasers *
Violet Lasers (405nm)
Wicked Lasers *
NOTE: FAR far cheaper than the Sonar ($30-40 for the diode, then some cheap extra parts) is to build a laser from a bluray diode, using instructions found on LPF, or asking around to see if someone will build one for you, for cheaper than the sonar (people on ebay sell 405nm lasers for $150-300).
Orange Lasers (594nm)
Laserglow
prices are all in US dollars, and i try to update them every so often. these are power levels as specified on the webpages, where possible i'm counting the lowest expected/guarunteed output, for example the Spyder II GX's specs say 200-300mW so i'm counting it as 200. these prices do not take discounts into account, for example the discounts offered by some companies to members of LPF.
also, these are just the portable laser companies i know of - if there's any others you'd like to see, please tell me, and i'll try add them i'm restricting this to a minimum of 10mW lasers for red/green, and 5mW for orange/yellow/violet/blue, i don't really feel it's worth adding anything below that.
IMPORTANT: laser models with a * besides them have a disputed output. this means they have been tested and shown to output less than 90% of the stated power level of their lasers. obviously, this doesn't include broken lasers, or the *occasional* under powered laser - only consistently below-spec lasers from a company. Company names with this mark against them may have disputed output on all their models, or really poor quality, or really poor customer service, or a combination of all 3. they may also lose their link, i don't like people being scammed
Green Lasers (532nm)
BFG Lasers *
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|BFG (90mW) + shipping (always $25) | |$224.00 | |$2.49 |
DealExtreme
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|True Green 10mW | |$21.72 | |$2.17 |
|True Green 20mW | |$22.90 | |$1.15 |
|True Green 30mW | |$24.57 | |$0.82 |
|True Green 50mW | |$54.00 | |$1.08 |
|True Green 100mW * | |$99.95 | |$1.00 |
- | - | - |
|150mW Green * | |$110.76 | |$0.74 |
|200mW Green * | |$120.00 | |$0.60 |
Destructive Gear
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|40mW Advanced | |$160.00 | |$4.00 |
|55mW Extreme | |$205.00 | |$3.73 |
|75mW Sirius | |$250.00 | |$3.33 |
|100mW Pyro | |$370.00 | |$3.70 |
Dragon Lasers
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Viper 15 | |$99.99 | |$6.67 |
|Viper 35 | |$129.99 | |$3.71 |
|Viper 55 | |$139.99 | |$2.55 |
|Viper 75 | |$159.99 | |$2.13 |
|Viper 95 | |$229.99 | |$2.42 |
|Viper 125 | |$399.99 | |$3.20 |
- | - | - |
|Hulk 75-99 | |$299.99 | |$4.00 |
|Hulk 100-150 | |$379.99 | |$3.80 |
|Hulk 160-199 | |$569.99 | |$3.56 |
|Hulk 200-300 | |$849.99 | |$4.25 |
Laserglow
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Aries-20 | |$199.00 | |$9.95 |
|Aries-35 | |$239.00 | |$6.83 |
|Aries-50 | |$289.00 | |$5.78 |
|Aries-75 | |$379.00 | |$5.05 |
|Aries-100 | |$489.00 | |$4.89 |
|Aries-125 | |$589.00 | |$4.71 |
|Aries-150 | |$689.00 | |$4.59 |
|Aries-175 | |$789.00 | |$4.51 |
|Aries-200 | |$889.00 | |$4.45 |
|Aries-225 | |$989.00 | |$4.40 |
- | - | - |
|Hercules-250 | |$989.00 | |$3.96 |
|Hercules-275 | |$1189.00 | |$4.32 |
|Hercules-300 | |$1389.00 | |$4.63 |
|Hercules-325 | |$1789.00 | |$5.50 |
|Hercules-350 | |$2189.00 | |$6.25 |
|Hercules-375 | |$2589.00 | |$6.90 |
|Hercules-400 | |$2989.00 | |$7.47 |
LucentOptics
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|NV-80 | |$200.00 | |$2.50 |
|NV-100 | |$250.00 | |$2.50 |
Nova Lasers
(for X series extras, as in the box, nova membership, and reward points, add $20 to the price)
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|X-15 only | |$79.00 | |$5.27 |
|X-25 only | |$99.00 | |$3.96 |
|X-45 only | |$109.00 | |$2.42 |
|X-65 only | |$129.00 | |$1.98 |
|X-85 only | |$159.00 | |$1.87 |
|X-105 only | |$209.00 | |$1.99 |
|X-125 only | |$329.00 | |$2.63 |
- | - | - |
|Alpha15 | |$139.00 | |$9.27 |
|Alpha25 | |$159.00 | |$6.36 |
|Alpha45 | |$179.00 | |$3.98 |
|Alpha65 | |$199.00 | |$3.06 |
|Alpha85 | |$239.00 | |$2.81 |
|Alpha105 | |$289.00 | |$2.75 |
|Alpha125 | |$389.00 | |$3.11 |
- | - | - |
|NOVA200 | |$799.00 | |$4.00 |
|NOVA250 | |$999.99 | |$4.00 |
|NOVA300 | |$1299.00 | |$4.33 |
|NOVA325 | |$1599.00 | |$4.92 |
|NOVA350 | |$1899.00 | |$5.43 |
Optotronics
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|PPL-100 | |$359.00 | |$3.59 |
|PPL-125 | |$419.00 | |$3.35 |
|PPL-165 | |$569.00 | |$3.45 |
|PPL-225 | |$779.00 | |$3.46 |
- | - | - |
|RPL-165 | |$619.00 | |$3.75 |
|RPL-200 | |$759.00 | |$3.80 |
|RPL-225 | |$829.00 | |$3.68 |
|RPL-260 | |$999.00 | |$3.84 |
|RPL-300 | |$1199.00 | |$4.00 |
|RPL-325 | |$1379.00 | |$4.24 |
|RPL-350 | |$1499.00 | |$4.28 |
ThinkGeek
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|High-powered Green Laser - 10mW | |$149.99 | |$15.00 |
Ultra Lasers
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Green 50mW (no gift box) | |$80.00 | |$1.60 |
|Green 75mW (no gift box) | |$140.00 | |$1.87 |
|Green 100mW (no gift box) | |$185.00 | |$1.85 |
Wicked Lasers *
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Executive 15 | |$99.99 | |$6.67 |
|Executive 35 | |$159.99 | |$4.57 |
|Executive 55 | |$209.99 | |$3.82 |
|Executive 75 | |$259.99 | |$3.47 |
|Executive 95 | |$369.99 | |$3.89 |
|Executive 125 | |$499.99 | |$4.00 |
- | - | - |
|Evolution 15 | |$149.99 | |$10.00 |
|Evolution 35 | |$199.99 | |$5.71 |
|Evolution 55 | |$249.99 | |$4.55 |
|Evolution 75 | |$299.99 | |$4.00 |
|Evolution 95 | |$399.99 | |$4.21 |
|Evolution 125 | |$549.99 | |$4.40 |
- | - | - |
|Spyder II GX (200-300) | |$1699.99 | |$8.50 |
Red Lasers (635-670nm)
Laserglow
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Orion 200 | |$589.00 | |$2.95 |
Wicked Lasers *
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Pulsar P75 | |$179.99 | |$2.40 |
|Pulsar P100 | |$199.99 | |$2.00 |
|Pulsar P125 | |$249.99 | |$2.00 |
NOTE: far cheaper than both these options ($15-20 for the diode - or use one from an old dvd burner - then some cheap extra parts) is to build a laser from a DVD diode, using instructions found on LPF, or asking around to see if someone will build one for you, for cheaper than one of the above lasers.
Blue Lasers (473nm)
Dragon Lasers
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Aurora 5-9mW | |$829.99 | |$166.00 |
Laserglow
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Aquarius-8 (5-8mW) | |$889.00 | |$177.80 |
|Aquarius-10 (8-10mW) | |$1089.00 | |$136.13 |
|Aquarius-15 (10-15mW) | |$1389.00 | |$138.90 |
|Aquarius-20 (15-20mW) | |$1689.00 | |$112.60 |
|Aquarius-25 (20-25mW) | |$1989.00 | |$99.45 |
Nova Lasers
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|NOVA Blue >5mW | |$699.00 | |$139.80 |
|NOVA Blue >10mW | |$799.00 | |$79.90 |
|NOVA Blue >15mW | |$899.00 | |$59.93 |
|NOVA Blue >20mW | |$999.00 | |$49.95 |
Optotronics
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|RPL-Blue-10 | |$739.00 | |$73.90 |
|RPL-Blue-15 | |$859.00 | |$57.27 |
|RPL-Blue-20 | |$949.00 | |$47.45 |
|RPL-Blue-25 | |$1129.00 | |$45.16 |
|RPL-Blue-30 | |$1229.00 | |$40.97 |
Wicked Lasers *
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Spyder II BX (15-30mW) | |$1699.99 | |$113.33 |
Violet Lasers (405nm)
Wicked Lasers *
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Sonar Blu-ray (20mW) | |$1999.99 | |$100.00 |
NOTE: FAR far cheaper than the Sonar ($30-40 for the diode, then some cheap extra parts) is to build a laser from a bluray diode, using instructions found on LPF, or asking around to see if someone will build one for you, for cheaper than the sonar (people on ebay sell 405nm lasers for $150-300).
Orange Lasers (594nm)
Laserglow
|Laser model | |Price | |$ per mW |
|Vega-10 (5-10mW) | |$789.00 | |$157.80 |