I’m powering it directly off of my microcontroller’s 5V logic power.
5V is technically too high for a laser diode, but there’s other junk on the tiny circuitboard (a small IC, and two blinking LEDs).
The IC is covered up by that sealant goop that a lot of manufacturers cover chips up with, so I can’t be sure what it’s doing.
My guess is that it’s regulating the voltage to the laser diode, which would explain why overvolting it doesn’t result in magic smoke.
I bought a 3V regulator before I found that out.
If you’re going to use laser pointers, I’d recommend buying one of those as well as buying a surplus of extra pointers.
The easiest way to find out how many volties that a pointer can handle is to fry a couple.
