Equipment Review

Equipment R= eview

Wicked Lase= rs 35 Milliwatt Green Laser

By Bill Del= linges March 3, 2007

Purchased from Wicked Lasers (wickedlasers.com).

Price: $159.95 plus $19.95 shipping.

My first laser was from Beta Lasers in 2002. I returned it because I was not i= mpressed with the strength of the < (less than) 5mW beam. Next up was a Howie Gla= tter <5mW laser purchased in 2003. It was noticeably stronger, though rated at the same <5mW power as the Beta Laser. It served me well for a couple of years but suffered from a common complaint of not being bright enough to be seen by large groups during public star parties. I then learned of more powerful laser pointers offered by Glatter. I ordered his 18mW. It was a noticeable improvement over the 5mW, but still not bright enough for people= to see if they were more than 20 feet from you. Early this year club member Ma= rtin Thompson blew me away with his 35mW green laser from Wicked Lasers. Its beam had to be at least twice as bright as my Glatter 18mW, and could easily be = seen in the light polluted skies at the Gilbert Rotary Centennial Observatory (<= st1:place w:st=3D"on">Gilbert, AZ.). I knew I had to upgrade. I ordered the Executive Advanced model from their = web site on January 4^th and had it in my hands on the 12^{th,
shipped directly from Shanghai=
,
China, wh=
ich
explains the steep shipping charge. The label on the unit reads: “Max
output <60 mW, wavelength 532 nm, Class IIIb.” So for all I know,
maybe the power output might be more than 35mW (?). Whatever the power,
I’m very satisfied with this laser. It has the brightest beam of any
laser I’ve owned so far and seems to be all the power I need. Now fol=
ks
30 feet away from me can see my laser beam during star talks. I can’t
imagine using a brighter laser to point out stars – any brighter and =
I’d
think you’d be adding to the light pollution we try to avoid. A word =
to
the wise: keep your laser on a chain or lanyard around your neck to avoid
dropping. They are delicate. I’ve dropped them twice – both tim=
es
they had to be sent in for repair.}

One small negative: The Wicked Laser comes in a small square-ish wood box with a paper hinge. I much prefer the Glatter’s modern looking black metal c= ase with its metal hinge – it’s a smaller unit easier to store in a pocket and the metal hinge will last forever. Thus I store my wicked laser = in my Glatter case.