Xiaomi Mi Smart Laser Measure

Forums › Home Workshop DIY › Xiaomi Mi Smart Laser Measure - Anyone own one?

alisam

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#315743 12-Aug-2024 08:12

Looking to buy a laser measure for DIY jobs e.g. calculate area of a room to paint.

I have looked at Bunnings, Mitre 10, Placemakers. There doesn't seem to be a lot of choice (Bosch, DeWalt) and they can be more than what I would ideally like to pay

Does anyone have one of these Buy the Xiaomi Mi Smart Laser Measure laser and measurements at a distance of... ( BHR5596GL ) online - PBTech.co.nz ?

If so, what do you think of it?

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#3270709 12-Aug-2024 08:49

While I've not touched one, for DIY the Xiaomi is likely all you need. It looks well built, and of course it is simple enough to do a few test measures to satisfy yourself of its accuracy.

We've got one of the Bosch ones at the office with a 40m range. While only occasionally used, it's fantastic and so quick and convenient. For the majority of our use, measuring to the nearest few centimetres is fine as we are working with cable lengths or office measurements and don't need mm accuracy. I've not used it's Bluetooth function to link to my phone as generally I'm writing on hand sketched plans. The one we have is a PLR40C which has a six year warranty. It shows the current reading plus the last three readings on screen. The build looks to be reasonably rugged and it comes with a decent pouch (that has a belt loop) for additional protection. Definitely a commercial grade unit.

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nzben

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#3270723 12-Aug-2024 09:30

Hi purchased a Xaiomi precision screw driver set from PBTech as a compact set to carry around as backup to my main set made by Wiha...turned up and the logo on the front was .... Wiha

tchart

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#3270726 12-Aug-2024 09:39

nzben:

Hi purchased a Xaiomi precision screw driver set from PBTech as a compact set to carry around as backup to my main set made by Wiha...turned up and the logo on the front was .... Wiha

They have a lot of sub-brands - with weird names; Mija, Poco, 70mai, etc. They are all high quality in my experience.

Anyway to the OP I dont have a Xiaomi one but I bought one several years ago off Alixpress and its amazingly accurate and very handy - for example measuring the internal dimensions of window frames. Ive been thinking about upgrading it with one that includes bluetooth and also measures angles.

Funnily enough the one I purchased looks very similar to the Xiaomi one. Although mine has a 4 way pad surrounding the button which lets you add/subtract/total and work out areas but Im guessing the bluetooth functionality replaces the need for that?

I'd say its a safe bet if you want to buy local.

The ones in the big box hardware stores are way over priced for what they do.

mdf

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#3270729 12-Aug-2024 09:43

I've not used that one, but have a similar specc-ed Ryobi laser distance measure from Bunnings (from a quick check, no longer seems to be available, replaced with (should be a better) green laser version: https://www.bunnings.co.nz/ryobi-30m-hyper-green-laser-distance-measurer_p0251274).

They both advertise accuracy to +/- 3mm and (for the Ryobi at least) that is accurate when compared against a tape measure. Brilliant for things like calculating paint areas or measuring for room plans. Main trick is figuring out the best way to get a clean line of sight while holding it steady and plumb/level.

I don't use mine for anything that needs better precision than 5mm or so, and use a steel rule or tape measure instead.

The Ryobi has dedicated buttons for area (and volume but I don't think I've ever used that) rather than having to use an app. I probably prefer this approach but YMMV / personal preference.

robertsona

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#3270731 12-Aug-2024 09:52

I have had a Xiaomi laser measure, until I lost it. It was handy to have for simple measure jobs - very compact. However, I struggled with reading the tiny numbers on the small screen.

nedkelly

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#3270741 12-Aug-2024 10:28

I have one, its great with the App on my phone just to measure distances as needed.

alisam

829 posts

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#3270742 12-Aug-2024 10:31

mdf:

I've not used that one, but have a similar specc-ed Ryobi laser distance measure from Bunnings (from a quick check, no longer seems to be available, replaced with (should be a better) green laser version: https://www.bunnings.co.nz/ryobi-30m-hyper-green-laser-distance-measurer_p0251274).

They both advertise accuracy to +/- 3mm and (for the Ryobi at least) that is accurate when compared against a tape measure. Brilliant for things like calculating paint areas or measuring for room plans. Main trick is figuring out the best way to get a clean line of sight while holding it steady and plumb/level.

I don't use mine for anything that needs better precision than 5mm or so, and use a steel rule or tape measure instead.

The Ryobi has dedicated buttons for area (and volume but I don't think I've ever used that) rather than having to use an app. I probably prefer this approach but YMMV / personal preference.

The Link above doesn't work (for me at least) but this must be the one: Ryobi 30m Hyper Green Laser Distance Measurer - Bunnings New Zealand

I had started to do a bit of digging into this model. However, it is a tad more than what I wanted to pay. But no decision yet.

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alisam

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#3270743 12-Aug-2024 10:33

nedkelly:

I have one, its great with the App on my phone just to measure distances as needed.

Thanks for this. Presumably the App easily tells you the Area?

nzben

31 posts

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#3270746 12-Aug-2024 10:49

chart:

"They have a lot of sub-brands - with weird names; Mija, Poco, 70mai, etc. They are all high quality in my experience."

Point being that is was the same brand as what I already had... that being Wiha which is a well known reasonably high end American brand, pleasantly surprised by the quality, quite likely the workings of the laser measure is rehoused off the shelf hardware used by other known brands.

nedkelly

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#3270801 12-Aug-2024 11:12

alisam:

nedkelly:

I have one, its great with the App on my phone just to measure distances as needed.

Thanks for this. Presumably the App easily tells you the Area?

The app lets you either just take measurements or it has the ability to do Drawing measurements where you just add the measurements to a blank page or you can upload a photo such as a floor plan to put the measurements on, unfortunately I am not aware if it can do the area, but does have a calculator built in.

Happy to test and PM you screenshots if wanted.

johno1234

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#3270802 12-Aug-2024 11:15

I really should get one of those - I spend far too much time faffing around with tape measures.

The other thing I should get is a laser level of some sort - I spend far too much time faffing around with spirit levels as well.

richms

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#3270807 12-Aug-2024 11:28

I got a really cheap laser measurer off aliexpress, way less than that and it works perfectly when used in sensible situations. Pointing at something shiney, it has issues, but for matt walls and similar, always spot on with what I got the old fashioned way once getting the tape straight.

It did have issues when I had it on the ceiling measuring from a wall when I had the line from the laser level basically hitting where I was measuring to, but putting my hand in the way of the laser level when hitting the button and it worked fine. Was spacing out downlights. One thing I wish they would have is you could set a number and it would beep once you were on that distance to save having to read the display while sliding it along the cieling.

Richard rich.ms

djtOtago

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#3270811 12-Aug-2024 11:58

nzben:

<snip>

Point being that is was the same brand as what I already had... that being Wiha which is a well known reasonably high end American brand, pleasantly surprised by the quality, quite likely the workings of the laser measure is rehoused off the shelf hardware used by other known brands.

OT
Wiha is a German tool company. Not USA. Although they do manufacture in USA. That is why the quality is better than you expected. 😊
Wiha Tools - Wikipedia

tchart

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#3270820 12-Aug-2024 12:10

OT apparently the Wiha branded tools are a collaboration between Wija and Xiaomi

neb

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#3270863 12-Aug-2024 15:28

tchart: Anyway to the OP I dont have a Xiaomi one but I bought one several years ago off Alixpress and its amazingly accurate and very handy - for example measuring the internal dimensions of window frames. Ive been thinking about upgrading it with one that includes bluetooth and also measures angles.

Same here. The Xiaomi looks a bit style-over-functionality, the better Ali ones have multiple lines of display for when you're measuring area or taking multiple measurements, and multiple controls for different operations rather than what looks like measure/don't measure on the Xiaomi one.

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