Gadgettown UltraFire 50mW laser

I ordered this http://www.gadgettown.com/50mW-532nm-Flashlight-Style-Green-Laser-Pointer-Pen-with-Clip-and-Free-Battery-HKE03431.html 50mW green laser from Gadgettown because it seemed like a pretty good deal at $22 and I had read on the laser forums that it was a good place to buy from. I am no laser expert. I just got a little interested in green lasers because I bought the DX branded 5mW laser pointer from DealExteme and was really amazed at the output. I figured if 5mW was good then 50mW had to be better and I was right. The output of green lasers is really something if you have never seen one or are more familiar with red lasers.

The buying experience was really well done. Paypal was the method I used and it went without a hitch. After the order I received all the proper notifications and received the item 15 days after I ordered it. Gadgettown is reported to have a US warehouse in NY that some items ship from but this item ships from Hongkong and that fact is clearly stated on the product page. The laser arrived packaged in a familiar yellow envelope and inside was a surprisingly nice foam lined white presentation box with a magnetic catch and gold embossed printing that said "GREEN LASER POINTER". The box is very suitable for gift giving. When I bought the laser it was listed as 50mW. The link I ordered from, listed above, still says 50mW in the link but specifies 100mW on the product page. It is also listed $4 cheaper. The laser I received has 100mW on the warning sticker. No documentation came with the laser. The output of these lasers is always in doubt much like the flashlight specs we all navigate our way through when dealing with the vendors we use. There are reports that the DX branded 5mW laser pointer put out 18 to 20mW. My observation of this laser is that it is a quite a bit brighter than the 5mW. Thats about a technical as I can get on the output and for an item like this and I believe it suffices.

The laser itself is hosted in an UltraFire WF-502B body. Enough has been documented on this body so I wont really say much about that. I dont know if a clip is routinely included with this host but this one included a sturdy, if a bit thin, clip. The body was in perfect shape with no scratches or damage. The laser module sits deeper into the body of the host than a P60 would. This precludes installation of an 18650 battery. An unprotected UltraFire 16340 800mAh battery was included. I said earlier that no documentation was included and it probably is not needed except one small detail which might cause a little initial consternation. The battery is installed with the pos(+) tip towards the tailcap. Every flashlight guy in the world will try to install it the wrong way. The fit of the battery in the tube is bad. The battery fits very loosly and the laser would only work when pointed up. I fixed this easily by slightly grinding down the diameter of an old copper US penny and using electrical tape to fasten it to the end of the battery, just increasing the battery length slightly. Works great, no contact issues and it doesnt even need to be removed for charging.

This laser is really well put together and aside from some easily fixed contact issues it seems like a quality product that will be pretty durable. The green dot can be projected onto almost any object you can see. I dont know exactly how far it goes but it goes forever. The best thing about a green laser though is the beam. You can easily see this beam, especially at night. The laser can easily point out any stars or heavenly bodies(no airplanes). How usefull is a laser like this? Probably not so much but it is Really cool! Another caveman measure of output is that the laser can burn a hole through black electrical tape, burst a balloon if a black Sharpie dot is placed on the balloon and can make a match head smoke but not ignite. I would say that the 50mW designation is pretty accurate.

Oh c'mon, if you're gonna tease us like that you MUST post some beam shots~

Nice thing! I was contemplating to get a 200mW green unit and play with lenses. I can see where is this going. BudgetLaserForum...

Or Forum subcategory:

Gear for bored flashlights owners that does nor relate to lasers but uses same batteries

I'm looking at that unit for over 6 months! Would have snagged it if it was around 12usd but i would not spend much more due to the risk of being seized by customs. :/

Uses flashlight batteries, common flashlight body, tailstands and lights up a room and projects light out the front. I’m saying flashlight! :wink:

Lang, why did you do this? Now, I have to go to Gadgettown, buy this laser light and then figure a way to fit its innards into a proper Solarforce host. Anyway, I like how you described the buying process and some of the things that occurred to you initially.

goingbrokeagainFoy

I think it would be hard to do good beamshots. With my skills anyhow but here is a lttle video. Hard to see anything but gives an idea anyhow.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9G28VONTyM

ive been looking around for one too. gonna have to check this out.

I've always been tempted by this laser/flashlight combo, which is also supposed to be 50mw.

http://www.manafont.com/product_info.php/mr-lite-pt1-pen-style-cree-q5-led-flashlight-green-laser-p-4609

There's a review and beamshot here, thought they changed the deign slightly after that review was made:

http://lygte-info.dk/review/Review%20MrLite%20PT1%20UK.html

That green beam looks pretty darn big. You're right, would be a challenge to photograph. Won't stop me from trying, though. Your videos were kinda fun to watch.

I wana ride on the Neptune Lander. Heat gun/bread maker/coffee roaster - there's a market segment that has long been ignored.

jacobfellinthecreekFoy

Thats a very nice laser, waiting for my 400mw 532nm one to come in the mail today .

It looks very similar to my order from Tmart.com http://www.tmart.com/100mW-532nm-WF502B-Flashlight-Style-Green-Laser-Pointer-116340_p117638.html....hope is gonna be real 100 mW...:-)

33696933 I see you received your laser. Could you let us know the vendor? It really helps people with this item in particular. I hope you get laser safety glasses, that’s a powerful unit.
Foy you are right the breadmachine heat gun roaster segment has never gotten the respect it deserves :bigsmile:
I have been looking at that Q5/laser combo myself. If you pull the trigger on that one I’m sure people would like to hear your impressions. You could even post them in the real flashlight section instead of the gear section.

I really would like a green laser, but I'm just too worried about doing something bad to my eyes. I imagine this is a field where spending quite a lot more to get a name brand is probably worth it because then at least you can be sure it's got all the right kind of filters and the like...but then of course they are too expensive for me to consider.

I ordered my laser from o-like.com , very good vendor of lasers. I have safety glasses for the green wavelength but doesnt cover the IR spectrum. The one I ordered is out of stock atm.
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=cache%3Awww.o-like.com%2Findex.php%3Fmain_page%3Dproduct_info%26cPath%3D2%26products_id%3D80

Okay Lang, I just pulled the trigger on this bad boy. Free shipping and it says they ship in 1- 2 days. Free battery and clip; how could I pass that up but the real reason is your video. That green beam looks really fat compared to the $10 red pen thing that I bought some time in the '90s.

beammeupscottyFoy

A 400mW from o-like. Man you are big timing us! That will be a burner.
I chose the 50 to 100mW because I didn’t want to spend more and lose it to customs. I also wasn’t real interested, although my son is, in burning stuff. It is a good power for pointing at the sky and laughing like an idiot. Just what I need.

Yeah , I got scared when it was in customs for 3 days . If I wanted to burn stuff I would probably buy a 1w 445nm

Don't know why I am suddenly so excited to get this. How do I review something I have absolutely no use for? Can't wait till it gets here so I can "use" it.

needsalaserlightFoy

Exactly my toughts. Not ordered my 200mW (if it's at least 100mW is fine) from MF just because my monthly budget is way overspent.

This video compares a 5mW pointer style laser to a 50mW flashlight style laser. That guy got his 5mW from eBay. I think they are all pretty much the same. The DX branded 5mW is $7. The DX laser has a surprisingly substantial feel to it and is much more powerful than you would expect for $7.