Strait Line STRAIT-LINE 6041401CD Sonic Laser Tape 50

Doesn't use laser, uses sound

By Matt  Aug 10, 2005

Pros: Laser pointer is good for presentations and for my cat to play with

Cons: incredibly inaccurate measurements! Sometimes off by 8 FEET or more!!

I bought this sonic "laser" tape measure to help me remodel my house and figure the dimensions for painting and flooring. I figured it'd help me work faster and I'd be able to get some good value out of it - what a disappointment. It's so inaccurate ...I might as well pace the room by foot and guess the dimensions. First, forget about using it outside. This "laser tape" uses sound waves, not lasers to measure distance. So, the sound is lost outside in the noise. Since you can't see the cone of sound spread out, you don't know what it's really measuring. The laser pointer gets you a sorta accurate point to hit, but if something else is in that cone of sound, it could measure that. Trying to measure the dimensions of my living room was impossible - the sound would hit a lamp or a chair or my cat playing with the laser and I Read more Less