Why You Can Trust CNET Put a laser on a freakin' tape measure for just $28
This two-in-one laser tape measure can be used to measure length, area, volume and indirect height -- 3,000 times on a single charge.
Traditional metal-band measuring tapes are fine, and everyone should have one in the kitchen drawer. But these days, laser measuring tools are increasingly popular because they're fast, accurate and can do measurement calculations (like areas and volume) automatically without resorting to a calculator. Laser measures don't need to cost a fortune, either. You can get the Meterk 2-in-1 Laser Tape Measure for about $28. That's the price you'll get when you click the coupon on the product page and also apply promo code CNET0429 at checkout. That's about 44% off the regular price of $50.
The deal should last until May 8, but a lightning deal just ended, so I am not sure how much inventory remains. The moral of the story: if you "size up" this deal and "measure" it worthy, act fast, because I'm not sure how long it'll be around.
So about the tape measure itself: I have had this for a few days and I love it. To be honest, I've never owned a laser tape measure before, but I knew what to expect and have been super impressed with the ease with which it quickly shows distances on the top-mounted illuminated LCD display. You can choose a variety of formats for displaying the results (metric or imperial, and imperial can appear as decimals or fractions). And it has all the typical functions you'd expect from a laser measure, such as the ability to add or subtract distances and measure area, volume, and indirectly find height using sides of a triangle. In fact, I have seen pricier laser measures in the past that don't do indirect measurements, so this Meterk model is a steal no matter how you look at it.
It's accurate to within 2mm and has a maximum range of 130 feet. To be fair, that can't compete with lasers that have a 500-foot range, but you probably don't need that kind of power unless you're working on a construction site. And if you prefer the feel of cold, hard aluminum between your fingers, this is a two-in-one, and has a 16.6-foot measuring tape built in.
The integrated battery charges via USB-C and Meterk says it'll power 3,000 measures between charges.
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