So, I want a green keychain laser....

[Chicxulub]

But I want it to be civilized. I.E., 1-2mw of green light, enought to be much more visible than a red, but not enought to destroy any innocent retinas. I've used a 3-4mw 660nm red keychain for many years now, and I'm at a point where I'm ready to retire it.

I've found what I consider to be a prime candidate on DX, which is this little guy...

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.7417

Does anyone have any experience with this thing? I really like the fact that I can run it off of a 10180 for increased run time. Does anyone know if it has a pot so that I can turn it DOWN if need be? Are these things hardy enough to actually stand up to life as a keychain?

Thanks for your help!

 

[happytomato]

I'd run it at 5mW, it's eye safe then, but still quite visible. Apart from the battery life it looks good.

 

[mikeeey]

There was a review here on the forum for one of those mini keychain lasers. Aparently it got terrible battery life, something like 30 minutes i think it was. Just warning you, you will be spending a lot on new batteries.

 

[Razako]

That DX keychain laser has terrible battery life. According to the reviews the batteries only last 5-10 minutes. Also it has no IR filter so you will have a hard time getting 5mw from it.

 

[Bionic-Badger]

Half an hour? I don't think so. Yeah, more like 10 minutes max. There's 350mAs pumping that IR diode for that 5mW of green.

 

[Chicxulub]

Half an hour? I don't think so. Yeah, more like 10 minutes max. There's 350mAs pumping that IR diode for that 5mW of green.

Another reason I want to turn it down. I've found the link to the guy who got one and took it apart, and with it having a pot I should be able to do what i want with this thing. If I turn it down to about 100mA I figure I'll get about 1.5mW and decent battery life from a 10180.

I want <2mW because I want green and discretion, even 5mW is far to bright for the circumstances I'm going to be using this in.

 

[mega]

It's a decent laser. I got one and I'm very happy with it. I was juggling between one that runs off three little batteries or one that runs off CR2 3V 750mAh battery.
I was worried about staring at the dot or beam for too long so I went with a one that runs of three batteries. ( For the reason that even if I looked at it too long, it would just dimm to a safe level)
It works fine if you run it in short intervals and lasts relatively long if use it that way.
Of course if you just sit on that button it won't last more than a minute of continuous use.
The beam is comfortably visible in the dark, so even 5mW may be too much for you.
I recommend it if you want a nice small portable key chain laser that's safe enough for your eyes and you use it in short intervals.

 

[rog8811]

I recieved mine and the batteries were crap...it ran for a few seconds only, I have some more batteries on the way so I will see what they are like.

I bought this to be a module anyway (the 5mw DX modules have been out of stock forever) So I am not that bothered about it but I could see it being a great dissapointment to anyone wanting to use it as is......

Regards rog8811