# Radio Shack green laser pointer...



## ks_physicist (Sep 1, 2007)

Can anyone visually ID whether this pointer is a re-badged version of some existing pointer that we know about?

Radio Shack Greeen Pointer


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## ks_physicist (Sep 1, 2007)

Okay, I was googling around to the laser pointers I *don't* own, and it looks like the newwish laser I ran across.


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## stephenmadpotato (Sep 1, 2007)

I've actually used that. Its a sony diode. It wasn't anything great. I don't think theres a pot in it...


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## 3rd_shift (Sep 1, 2007)

Hmmm, 5 milliwatt version. :thinking:
Last I checked, there are a few online places selling these for half that price, or even less.


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## 360freak (Sep 1, 2007)

just a way for people to see something theyve never heard of by a big named company and buy it for twice the price.


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## ks_physicist (Sep 2, 2007)

What reputable online source has Newwish lasers which can be confirmed to be <5mw and confirmed to have functional IR filters in place?

I want a new green laser for lecturing, and I'm not willing to chance it on either spec.


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## 360freak (Sep 2, 2007)

well, the new wish brand name does not put in IR filters i dont think. i do think you'd be best off with wicked lasers though if you want all that, but it will be much more expensive.


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## ks_physicist (Sep 2, 2007)

I may be naive, but I suspect that the Radio Shack brand laser would have the necessary filtering...

I guess I'll pick one up and check. 

What the heck, it's only a few dollars more than I would spend on one online, and it reduces the questions I might get from administrators about its safety.


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## 3rd_shift (Sep 4, 2007)

The good thing about Ratshack is this;
If for any reason you don't like it, it's usually easy to return. 

It won't bring down a previous night's party balloons from the ceiling, but it can still point out where they are.


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## ks_physicist (Sep 29, 2007)

I decided to skip it for now. I ordered a green pointer from Atlasnova, so I'm set for a while.

I might pick one up if I see them on sale just to test it (maybe send it to LEDmuseum for a non-destructive test).


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## wulfgang (Jan 5, 2008)

I just bought one of these, not because I like RadioShack (I hate it), but because I've got a conference pres on Monday and there's not time to buy one from an online store. My old pointer just died somehow... the crystal or glass is rattling around inside. Lots of green light, but no dot.

They DO have a pot and are apparently capable of higher power. There is at least one vid on YouTube describing the mod. The pot is on the back side of the board, opposite the button.


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## yuandrew (Jan 5, 2008)

Pot Mod:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCx-4gu_ThI

Difficult part is how to open the unit though.


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## instinct (Jan 5, 2008)

3rd_shift said:


> The good thing about Ratshack is this;
> If for any reason you don't like it, it's usually easy to return.
> 
> It won't bring down a previous night's party balloons from the ceiling, but it can still point out where they are.




:laughing:


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## liveforphysics (Jan 6, 2008)

In my testing of IR intensity from unfiltered lasers, the IR spot was over a 2" oval at a mere 2ft. This placed the IR intensity much below that of looking down at your stove burner when you remove the pot while cooking.

Also, many newish lasers do have IR filters. I know the 50mW, the 100mW, and 200mW newish lasers from DX all are equiped with IR filters.

I generally can't stand rat-shack, but I supose it is nice to have around for those times when you need basic low quality overpriced parts on a Sunday...


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## AndrewAZ (Jan 7, 2008)

liveforphysics said:


> In my testing of IR intensity from unfiltered lasers, the IR spot was over a 2" oval at a mere 2ft. This placed the IR intensity much below that of looking down at your stove burner when you remove the pot while cooking.
> 
> Also, many newish lasers do have IR filters. I know the 50mW, the 100mW, and 200mW newish lasers from DX all are equiped with IR filters.
> 
> I generally can't stand rat-shack, but I supose it is nice to have around for those times when you need basic low quality overpriced parts on a Sunday...



The DX lasers do not have IR filters.. (Its possible some might but so far the majority of people who have gotten then report no IR filters.)


As much as I hate wicked lasers if your looking for a green 5mw pointer check out the core, I would spend a little more and buy from nova lasers.. But using a 5mw green for presentation pointing isnt a good idea and might make a few students sick. My experience is people are very sensitive to green light (we all are its our eyes) and some people get sick for some reason.. If your looking for a great visible presentation laser I would check out http://www.atlasnova.com/ and pick up a 635nm red, that wavelength is more visible than a normal 650-670 cheap laser pointer you buy and it has a nice color to it, at night with adjusted night vision you can faintly see the beam.


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## greenLED (Jan 7, 2008)

ks_physicist said:


> I want a new green laser for lecturing, and I'm not willing to chance it on either spec.


I recently bought an AtlasNova green laser for my brother:
http://atlasnova.com/GreenLaserPointer.htm


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## wulfgang (Jan 20, 2008)

Just an update on the RadioShack lasers. I bought the first one and immediately returned it because it wouldn't stay on and also would not consistently light up. The store clerk tried to explain to me that the button was a momentary pushbutton, and that it wasn't supposed to stay on when you let off the button. So I tried to kindly explain to her that I was not as stupid as she looked.

I checked the replacement in the store, and it looked fine. So I tried it for a presentation... well, it had an extra spot of light a few degrees away from the main dot. At presentation distances, that 2nd dot was a few inches away and was about as bright as a normal red pointer. So I returned that one too. I told the clerk that it was not a speck of dust because I couldn't remove it by cleaning. She agreed and said, "nope, that's definitely light, not dust." Ok. Because I wasn't sure that was light. I mean, it was green and glowing, but I thought it might be a little bright green bug that liked to follow green pointer dots.

So I got my money back. Seems like RadioShack has quality control issues with those lasers. And of course they definitely need some sort of IQ control to make sure they don't hire any more people that stupid.


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## sotto (Jan 21, 2008)

I've bought and returned about 5 or 6 of the RS green laser pointers to get two that worked reliably. I hope you're not buying at the stores where I've returned the unreliable ones!


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## Lightdude (Jan 21, 2008)

Yeah I bought a green laser from "them" and it also had a second small green dot. It also only stayed at full power for about 3 or 4 minutes before a drastic downgrade in power. I returned it and won't be getting another!:thumbsdow


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## iguanaman (Aug 13, 2008)

*Re: Radio Shack green laser pointer... (super modded)*

I bought a RS one a few months ago for $49.99 and was impressed with it's build quality. There was that little green spot that seems to hover near the main dot but it's incredibly faint and can only be seen if you block the main dot and it fades away completely after about 6 feet. Not a problem in the least. Ok, one of the first things I did to it was pot mod it and easily tripled it's brightness. I was afraid of frying the diode so I toned it down a tad and used it for a couple weeks with no problems. At that time I decided to crank it up as high as it would go. Again, tested and used it extensively for about 4 more weeks with no problems. I had an idea about using Energizer e2 Lithium batteries in it thinking the 1.7v beasts might help push it further. Man, those batteries are awesome for this pointer! It completely eliminated the 1-2 second power drop-off that many have complained of and also seemed quite a bit brighter too. So, more extensive use went by for several weeks and still no problems. I started thinking this thing seems robust and wanted more out of it, so I began to attempt to examine the power supply and open the filter section of the laser. Wow, do they secure those threads in place well! After some major 'wrenching' (..and fear of destroying it) with 2 pliers I managed to get the filter section apart. To my horror there were 2 wires inside that had glue on them from the threads causing them to rotate while unscrewing the assembly. This caused them to rip apart and away from a sensor at the IR filter. Fearing the worst I cut the frayed wires off and screwed the culminating assembly back on to the filter section, connected the batteries and luckily the thing still turned on. OMG, not only did it turn on, but the intensity had easily more than doubled again! The IR filter at the end is angled to reflect a portion of the light to a sensor I now assume had throttled the intensity level. Well, my little wire 'accident' gave me even MORE power and now I'm really thinking this thing is going to fry. Folks, weeks have passed and this little monster is lazing along fantastically. I'm not sure about it's output right now but I'll guess it's at LEAST 30mw. The beam is very visible in a brightly lit room. Do I recommend one, YES! I think I'll pick up another and do all this plus remove the IR filter for burning (ALWAYS USE SAFETY IR FILTER GLASSES WITH NON IR FILTERED LASERS!!!)

PS - It should be noted that the fact that I did this in stages over a long period of time might have contributed to it's reliability by letting it 'burn-in' slowly. If you're familiar with overclocking CPU's you have similar results by allowing the CPU to have burn-in time. So, that being said, your mileage may vary but I'm one happy camper! :naughty:


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