This is a late review, I got this laser a couple months back from sci-fi lasers and Eitan was great about getting the laser shipped to me. It arrived very well packaged and there was no visible damage. Shipping took a few weeks, as do most Sci-Fi purchases, but I was able to track my order and it made it safely so no complaints.
FIRST LOOK:
The combination of a white host and a green beam looks badass to me, the host was completely powder coated and had no scratches on arrival. However, I did find that the coating is easily scratched from just putting it down or sliding it across a surface. Any scratches that you see in the pics happened after i got the laser though. It feels fantastic in the hand, has some heft to it due to the enormous heat sink which really makes it feel like the high-power piece of precision engineering that it is. The focus ring turns smoothly, though you will have to refocus the laser pretty much every time you use it since the ring turns so easily. The tailcap turns smoothly and I must emphasize that the BATTERIES GO IN POSITIVE END FIRST! I don't want anybody to read this and then go fry their own laser.
I really like the rubberized recessed button, it prevents accidental activation when picking up the laser and has a pretty firm spring so it will not be easy to turn on without meaning to which is a must in a laser of this power. The Arcane 2.0 has no additional safety features like key switches or aperture shutter so I was really happy with the button's design especially being a side clicky. Of course, the best safety feature is your own ability to use your safety glasses and remove the batteries when not in use.
THE BEAM:
Wow! Just WOW! What did I just see! Theres really no way to explain just how bring 1 Watt of 520nm light is! Even at only 1 Watt this thing will appear brighter than even the 4-6 watt blue lasers out there! The color is more on the green side than 532, which will appear more yellowish in comparison, but the difference is really not huge. It is easily visible in a fully lit room and the dot is bright enough to illuminate my entire living room. When defocused, the beam has the same line shape to it as any other direct diode laser. I did find the beam to be a lot thinner than that of a 445 laser but not quite as thin as a DPSS 532, just figured I'd point that out.
BURNING:
At 1 Watt this certainly doesn't disappoint for basic burning needs (matches, balloons, plastic, etc), but I found that it doesn't seem to burn quite as well as my 445nm 1W. That being said my 1W is technically a 1.2W so it's not really a fair comparison (though I believe blue light in general gets absorbed better). The laser does burn well, but I think the reason to get this would be more for the shear brightness and visibility of the beam than as a burner, if your goal is to torch the crap out of anything you point it at, you'd be better off with a higher-power blue.
All in all a great laser and who doesn't want to own one of the brightest handheld lasers in the world! I highly recommend :)
FIRST LOOK:
The combination of a white host and a green beam looks badass to me, the host was completely powder coated and had no scratches on arrival. However, I did find that the coating is easily scratched from just putting it down or sliding it across a surface. Any scratches that you see in the pics happened after i got the laser though. It feels fantastic in the hand, has some heft to it due to the enormous heat sink which really makes it feel like the high-power piece of precision engineering that it is. The focus ring turns smoothly, though you will have to refocus the laser pretty much every time you use it since the ring turns so easily. The tailcap turns smoothly and I must emphasize that the BATTERIES GO IN POSITIVE END FIRST! I don't want anybody to read this and then go fry their own laser.
I really like the rubberized recessed button, it prevents accidental activation when picking up the laser and has a pretty firm spring so it will not be easy to turn on without meaning to which is a must in a laser of this power. The Arcane 2.0 has no additional safety features like key switches or aperture shutter so I was really happy with the button's design especially being a side clicky. Of course, the best safety feature is your own ability to use your safety glasses and remove the batteries when not in use.
THE BEAM:
Wow! Just WOW! What did I just see! Theres really no way to explain just how bring 1 Watt of 520nm light is! Even at only 1 Watt this thing will appear brighter than even the 4-6 watt blue lasers out there! The color is more on the green side than 532, which will appear more yellowish in comparison, but the difference is really not huge. It is easily visible in a fully lit room and the dot is bright enough to illuminate my entire living room. When defocused, the beam has the same line shape to it as any other direct diode laser. I did find the beam to be a lot thinner than that of a 445 laser but not quite as thin as a DPSS 532, just figured I'd point that out.
BURNING:
At 1 Watt this certainly doesn't disappoint for basic burning needs (matches, balloons, plastic, etc), but I found that it doesn't seem to burn quite as well as my 445nm 1W. That being said my 1W is technically a 1.2W so it's not really a fair comparison (though I believe blue light in general gets absorbed better). The laser does burn well, but I think the reason to get this would be more for the shear brightness and visibility of the beam than as a burner, if your goal is to torch the crap out of anything you point it at, you'd be better off with a higher-power blue.
All in all a great laser and who doesn't want to own one of the brightest handheld lasers in the world! I highly recommend :)