A "laser pointer" is technically a low-power hand-held laser legally sold, purchased and/or used for pointing purposes in a particular jurisdiction. Hand-held lasers may look and operate similar to laser Pointers, but they are more than legally allowed to be sold. Laser, buy, and/or use as an indicator more powerful. Since the media generally refers to any hand-held laser as a "laser pointer," it is probably futile to cite this distinction. But the public should know that, like the devices used in demonstrations, low-power indicators for playing with pets (less than 5 milliwatts) are much safer than the high-power hand-held lasers (50-2000 milliwatts) often used in protests.
In the United States, it is illegal to manufacture, distribute, or sell lasers of 5 milliwatts or more for "Laser pointer" or indication purposes. However, it is legal to manufacture, distribute or sell hand-held lasers with power of 5 megawatts or more as long as they have the appropriate labeling and safety features. (Also, under federal law, anyone in the United States can have lasers of any power. Some states and localities may have restrictions on owning lasers. The reason this is important in protests is that laser Pointers (less than 5MW or 1MW depending on the country/region definition) usually do little or no damage to the eye or camera. However, the power of a handheld laser can reach hundreds or thousands of milliwatts, which can injure eyes and damage camera sensors.