Wicked Lasers 445nm <1W Spyder III Pro Arctic Series

[wyager]

I am an engineer, though I have not personally disected one of these. Is this standpoint based on your own inspection or hearsay from someone else? Hopefully there are at least detailed pictures indicating this. The driver in their DPSS (532/473nm) Spyder III's was actually pretty good. You are right though you can have an opinion, but you are taking it further to an almost obsessive level. If you had a personal bad experience with them then what could I say, you would be justifiably upset, but without one I guess I don't understand why you have such a strong viewpoint which seems beyond just an opinion. I'm not trying to argue with you, just saying it seems a bit over the top. I can only speak for myself in that I've not had a bad experience with them ever.

I have two units G1 and G2 that I am reviewing currently (not finished), but other then a lack of AR coated lens, I see no aparent problem with the laser at this point...either of them. I have issues with the stock battery, but it has nothing to do with the device itself. Output can't be tested until the weekend due to my LPM on loan, but if I were to guess I'd say it's at least over 800mW based on experience. Offhand my G1 seems higher output then my G2... many possible factors though and I could be wrong.

As to the data, this was made available to me upon my request. It only indicates that a small fraction under 1% of orders were RMA'd. Shiftlock you are correct in that people are just receiving their lasers, the info is current; I have no idea what the percentage will be in six months honestly.

You're just as obsessed as I am here, LOL. You're defending wicked just as much as I'm offending it. The driver is awful because A)It's huge B)it has awful output filtering (BIG spikes) and C)there appears to be an inherent flaw that occasionally generates massive voltage spikes. I don't know of another driver that could possibly destroy a diode as badly as these drivers do.

And if the data was made available to you upon request, that means wicked could have messed with it! Your argument is really not holding up here-of course it can be tampered with if wicked provided it to you.

It sounds to me like you're being compensated somehow to say these things... I wouldn't put it above wicked.

 

[Shiftlock]

As to the data, this was made available to me upon my request. It only indicates that a small fraction under 1% of orders were RMA'd.

I'm still confused... What is this data? Is it something that was scanned, then emailed as an image file? Is it a spreadsheet? Is it a screenshot? An online database? Text in an email? In what format does this "data" exist?

 

[wyager]

Hey athoul...
you might wanna check this out...
http://laserpointerforums.com/f65/30-reasons-not-buy-wicked-lasers-arctic-s3-56289.html#post794342

 

[Markus Unread]

"B)it has awful output filtering (BIG spikes) and C)there appears to be an inherent flaw that occasionally generates massive voltage spikes."

Where was the posting with the info on this? Any scope pics? I'd like to know what kind of spikes were measured.

 

[whirlysplat]

I ordered 3x Arctic Spyder on 21st JUNE.

I have received numerous promises and appologies, but no lasers. Maybe that's a good thing given the reports of reliability problems.

Today I have cancelled my order.

WL is without any question the most useless company I have ever dealt with.

"Disgusted" seems inadequate.

 

[Shiftlock]

"B)it has awful output filtering (BIG spikes) and C)there appears to be an inherent flaw that occasionally generates massive voltage spikes."

Where was the posting with the info on this? Any scope pics? I'd like to know what kind of spikes were measured.

He may be saying that based on the fact that some Arctics have had blown diodes, to the point that the diode won't emit even a small bit of light. Usually when a laser diode is pushed to the point of damage, it will still emit a slight glow, but these Arctics are blowing diodes to the point that they make no light whatsoever. It takes a lot of current and/or voltage to damage a laser diode so completely.

It's true that this is only circumstantial evidence for "massive voltage spikes," but then he did say "there APPEARS to be an inherent flaw..." Or perhaps there's other, more direct evidence of this that I'm not aware of. In any case, some Arctics have had very blown diodes - there's no question about that.

 

[wyager]

"B)it has awful output filtering (BIG spikes) and C)there appears to be an inherent flaw that occasionally generates massive voltage spikes."

Where was the posting with the info on this? Any scope pics? I'd like to know what kind of spikes were measured.

As shiftlock said, these spikes can not be measured, only deduced, for the simple reason that they occur when you least expect them, and it appears they only occur once. :fail:

 

[arrrx]

Re: Wicked Lasers 445nm 1W(!) portable deathray

I found this part interesting:
Warning: Extremely dangerous is an understatement to the power of 1W of laser power. It will blind permanently and instantly and set fire quickly to skin and other body parts, use with extreme caution and only when using the included eye protection. [...]
Wow.

Maybe it should be treat as a weapon...mini sized and with low power.

 

[glynnlock]

I ordered 5 G1 models months back maybe in June or July preping for a gun show on the fisrt weekend of August and got them all in a few weeks time. Sold one and have 4 left and havent had a problem with any of them yet. I dont know why I bought 5, I guess I am really sick in the head. I used one for some time and demo'ed it at a gun show prior to selling it and didnt have any problems. I am going to go outside and play with one and see if I can kill it like people are saying they die. lol! Maybe I got ones before they were rushed into production?

I was waiting for my lasers for a couple weeks and sent an email and got a response quickly and they made it up to me for having to wait by sending an extra pair of goggles and a lens kit.

I havent had a problem with WL yet. I sell High end US military night vision and high end IR illuminators and lights and just was intrigued with the WL Arctic. I know it isnt as nice as some of the really high end IR military laser designators I deal with but it is like a blue light pipe cannon going on for as far as the eye can see..

Glynn

 

[andyw513]

Mine came in a couple weeks ago, hence my absence from here. I have no complaints so far, other than having to wear the goggles while I burn stuff. (But you know, for purely scientific purposes 100% of the time)

 

[senecaripple]

anybody still waiting for there's that ordered back in june? I'm still forever waiting for my two. Called them a couple of weeks ago. said shipment wont resume til sometime in october.

 

[Wakko]

Yep, I still haven't got mine yet. I did get one from a buddy, and the damned charger didn't work. Laser works well though.

 

[helios]

Just got tracking info for mine. Its in Lousiville and listed as "Import Scan" right now. Hope it gets through Customs. I originally ordered back in June and called last week to get a shipping update. They told me the order went out three days ago. What a coincidence!

 

[Wakko]

I will contact them tomorrow to cancel my order. Either they ship it immediately or I'm done with it. They'll likely say "Oh, it just shipped!"

 

[Notsure Fire]

I hate it when they keep you hanging like that.

 

[senecaripple]

i finally got a shipping notice for my two. really hoping their not somebody's returns. And they've corrected all of their bugs.

 

[hank]

From an 'Arctic' review here:
http://ledmuseum.candlepower.us/30/arctic.htm

this:

"... From a posting on the Laser Pointer Forums (and used with explicit written consent; not just implied oral consent) comes the following {no changes to spelling, syntax or grammar were made}:

Hello everyone as you may know I've had my Arctics for a little while now....
About an hour into charging I heard an explosion & large flash and awful burning smell from the room the charger & batteries where. Both my Fire Alarm & Burglar Alarm went off at the same time.

The WL 18650 battery had EXPLODED ...."

 

[wyager]

No big surprises there. Some chargers turned up broken.

 

[Shiftlock]

From an 'Arctic' review here:
http://ledmuseum.candlepower.us/30/arctic.htm

this:

"...
About an hour into charging I heard an explosion & large flash and awful burning smell from the room the charger & batteries where. Both my Fire Alarm & Burglar Alarm went off at the same time.

The WL 18650 battery had EXPLODED ...."

I get the fire alarm, but how did it set off the burglar alarm? After exploding, did the battery tip-toe out of the charger and try to escape out the window?

 

[AnAppleSnail]

I get the fire alarm, but how did it set off the burglar alarm? After exploding, did the battery tip-toe out of the charger and try to escape out the window?

Lots of burglar alarms are meant to detect people messing with windows. They do this with a foil on the edge of the glass that will break if the window is broken. Perhaps the explosion damaged the foil.