Longer Ray5 Laser Engraver Review from kana lisa's blog

Longer Ray5 laser engraving machine has built-in 3.5 inch touch screen, TF card slot and built-in WiFi. Plus, it has a built-in controller that eliminates the need for a computer to be constantly connected to the laser engraver. Ray5 can be used for engraving or cutting.

Touch Screen and Offline Engraving: The Longer RAY5 10W laser engraving machine has a built-in 3.5-inch touch screen and a friendly user interface. This allows us to cut multiple pieces of plywood or an image to be engraved without taking up your computer to run it. Longer Ray5 has a built-in controller, no need to connect the laser engraving machine with a computer all the time. Save your files to TF card and use it to run Ray5 for engraving or cutting.

Ultra-Fine Laser Spot and Powerful Laser Module: This laser engraving machine adopts the latest FAC laser technology for compressing the laser spot, the spot size is 0.08*0.08mm; the smaller the spot size, the more concentrated the energy. This makes engraving or cutting much stronger. The output power of the laser module reaches 5-5.5W.

32-bit chipset and WIFI connection: RAY5 is built with ESP32 chipset, including WIFI connection for engraving machine and router. This 32-bit chipset runs at 240MHz. This means it is faster and more powerful than comparable machines with 8-bit chipsets. As a bonus, RAY5 supports WIFI connection via web page or App to control engraving or cutting.

Safety Protection: Longer RAY5 is designed with movement protection and thermal protection. If the machine moves during use, the mobile protection will initiate an automatic shutdown to ensure personal safety. Thermal protection initiates an automatic shutdown if a flame is detected or if the engraving area is overheated.

Compatible with Windows/MAC/Linux systems: Longer RAY5 5W is compatible with free engraving software LaserGRBL and paid LightBurn software. Supports importing BMP, JPG, PNG, DXF, AI, SVG and other file formats.
Power Button & Eye Protection: The engraving machine has a power switch for turning the power on or off. The laser module has an acrylic cover. This shields the laser to help protect the eyes. You will also need to wear goggles for laser light scattering.

The Longer Ray5 laser engraver is made from a material that feels like aluminum. It's lightweight but strong. Assembly is required, but is easy. There is a shield over the laser and it contains shadows. Also includes a USB micro SD card and adapter. USB cable and Allen key to tighten the screws.

The first step is to assemble the router. It's easy as long as you take your time. The instructions in the manual aren't great, but there are also instructional videos on the included micro SD card. However, I don't need video.

Once the engraver was assembled, I used the micro SD card that came with the USB adapter to test the unit. The card comes with 3 sample files for engraving. Additional software is also on the memory card, including manuals, firmware, instructional assembly videos, and 2 design applications.

Once the height is set, it's time to insert the micro SD card and start engraving. A USB cable is included if you want to use an external hard drive or connect directly to your PC.

Watching the Longer Ray5 20W laser engraver is as much a pleasure as I am watching a 3D printer print. However, this device produces quite a bit of smoke and of course the smell of the material you are carving. If you want to see the laser to see what it's doing, you'll have to use the shade that comes with it. I recommend using it outdoors or at least in the workshop. Also, I didn't test the cutting ability as I currently don't have a suitable surface to place underneath the material I'm cutting. The device would be better if it included a case and some material to limit the depth of the laser. The way the engraver works is that you can choose how many times you want to engrave while engraving, and each time you engrave, it will cut deeper. I have to assume it would take hours to cut open the 1" think board I used for testing. Overall, this is still a very good engraver with a large print area and a wide range of uses.

I must say that I really like the quality of the Longer laser engraver, its relatively quiet operation, and the quality of the engravings it produces. Since it's not enclosed, in the future I'll have to use it outdoors, maybe in my garage. There will be quite a bit of smoke when carving, and if it is carved from material, there will also be a smell of burnt wood. I tested it indoors and the smoke was the offending part. However, the experience was great for me, and this carver is very capable, especially because of its larger build area. I give it a job well done!