As shipped, this tool comes in a clear plastic display case that can (and should) double as a storage case. Included in the package is the tool itself, a pair of AA batteries, a wall mounting pin (more on that later), and an instruction book. With the exception of the wall mounting pin everything fits snugly in the case; the pin is held in by gravity rather than the design of the case and can (and will) easily fall out if you open the case while holding it at anything other than a horizontal plane.

Setup is easy; remove it from the box, install the batteries, pull off a little plastic tape, and away you go. The instructions are clear and easy to follow, and it's intuitive enough that many people won't even need them. Controls on the tool are minimal; there's a fat on/off switch on the left side which controls the leveling function of the tool, and a fat momentary contact button on the right side which controls the stud finding function of the tool. I'm torn as to the size and placement of these controls. On the one hand their size makes it easy for someone wearing heavy work gloves to use. On the other hand, this tool is clearly not a "heavy duty" tool and is designed more for people who need to hang pictures or drill a hole in a wall without hitting a power cable so there won't be many heavy work gloves holding it.

The unit is also a little bulky and will likely be uncomfortable for people with smaller hands. Although the leveling tool activates via an on/off switch, the rest operate on a button that you have to hold down while you move the unit. This can quickly become painful, particularly if you've got small hands and you have to sweep a large area. Why B&D didn't use a second on/off switch for the stud finder/AC power sniffer function is a complete mystery to me. Then again, I've noticed that a lot of tools like this feature poor ergonomics so I can't solely fault B&D for this.

As a laser level, this tool is very accurate but only moderately useful. Hold the tool flat against the wall (or use the wall mounting pin), turn on the switch, and the red laser springs to life. The laser is mounted on a balancing point that gives you a few degrees of forgiveness. Hold the tool at, say, a 30 degree angle and the laser will stay at that angle. Hold it at a 1 degree angle and you'll see the laser "float" a little while it levels itself, and then you have a true horizontal line. A pencil hole in the center of the tool allows you to mark the wall on the same plane as the laser line. The laser itself is very powerful. I was easily able to shine the laser across a distance of about 50 feet.

For "hands-free" operation, use the included wall mounting pin. Hold the tool against the wall to the level you want, mark the wall, remove the tool, then press the pin into that mark. Then you just hang the tool onto the mounting pin and away you go. It's a little annoying that you have to pierce the wall in order to make a level, but the hole isn't that big and could easily be painted over if need be.

More disappointing is the lack of a vertical system. There are only lasers on the sides, not on the top or bottom, and it offers no leveling system to rotate it 90 degrees by hand. Using this tool alone, there is no way to create a true vertical line that's 90 degrees from the horizontal.

As a stud finder, it gets mixed marks. To use it, hold the tool against the wall, then hold in the button on the right side. When the unit beeps, slide the unit across the wall. It will beep when it finds a stud. The display will show you how far "into" the stud you are, even alerting you when you're centered within it. (TIP: Keep the laser level turned on when you're using the stud finder. It will help you keep the tool level which will result in a more accurate discovery of the studs.) In my experience its capabilities as a stud finder were mediocre at best. I ran the tool over a wall that I knew had three studs behind it. In three different passes I got three different results, including one which told me I had NO studs supporting the wall.

The stud finder component also features an AC power line sniffer, ostensibly to tell you when you're about to drill into a house main. It SHOULD work in largely the same way although in my experience it fails miserably. I've run the tool over several live power lines and never got anything more than an erratic vague notification that something might be there. I've run it over a live electrical outlet, and even an electric power cable that was connected to a running vacuum cleaner, and it never so much as flinched.

That all being said, I find it hard to give this tool more than two stars. As a horizontal-only laser level it's quite good; a bright laser, a wall mounting system and an auto-leveling system makes it very useful. But it fell short as a stud finder and is virtually lobotomized as an AC power line sniffer. With very few exceptions I tend to believe that any single device that presents itself as a multi-function device tends to do all of the tasks equally poorly, and in this case my belief is largely justified. Those shopping for a "combination" tool like this would be better served elsewhere, or by buying separate tools that are dedicated to their respective tasks.

I bought this for my daughter who is doing home improvement -- she loves it!

I purchased this relatively expensive gadget to upgrade from my cheaper Zircon brand stud finder that always seemed to work great, but I wanted someting more fancy that had a laser level line.

The stud finder gives very innacurate readings whereas my old Zircon stud finder finds the studs every time it seems.

I just tried to hang a wireless doorbell using this thing to find the stud. It supposedly found the stud so I centered my screw entry point where the supposed center of the stud range was using the detection zone on the B&D and I began to screw a wood screw into our nicely painted wall......no stud was there!

My Zircon located the stud and it's not even close to what the B&D was telling me.

The laser level seems to work pretty well though.

Save your money as this thing is a joke.

Pretty nifty little gadget. The laser beam doesn't turn corners as well as I would have liked, but overall it's a decent product.

Laser is good, wall mounting is misleading, stud finding is not accurate. Though I still use it find stud, I don't trust it anymore.

Won't buy it if i were have a chance.

Smaller than the last model. The LCD display provides DUD, Edege ... information, it's much more convenient than the last model.

the stud finding capability works fine, and the laser levels real nice. good range on the laser, but I don't like the fact that you have to pin it in to the wall. So far, I've used it for paintings and shelves, and the holes are covered up by the thing itself, but one of these days, I'm going to want to use it as a reference between two independent hanging items, or for some other thing, and I'll have to devise some way to hang it without puncturing the hole. Its a small hole anyway, no big deal.

Great product! I was shopping for a replacement stud sensor after my old one bit the dust after 10+ years. Came across this model which offers both a stud sensor, wire detector and laser level, so thought I've give it a shot. Very glad I did - it works very well for all tasks.

Bear in mind that a stud sensor is just measuring the density difference in the wall. It's not an x-ray machine, nor is it magic. Every stud sensor has limitations and you need to use some measure of common sense before drilling. The biggest cause of mis-reads is if you happen to start the calibration procedure when you are on, or very near, a stud. If so, you'll get spurious readings. It's a good idea to check twice, and drill once (to borrow from the "measure twice, cut once" mantra).

Small nitpicking issues - the velcro on the back works well on smooth walls, but can snag on textured walls. Covering it with tape helps, but it would be nice if the velcro was removable. Also, the hole for marking the spot is a bit small - large pencils will not fit. Minor issues, however.

Love the foam case. Makes it easy to keep the unit secure and all the parts in one place.

The laser level works very well. Easy to see the line in daylight. Would be nice to have a vertical line as well, but the model that has that from B&D does not have a stud sensor function.

All in all, a great product and a fantastic value at the sale price of $28!

It does what it says it does and has defiantly helped with our move into our new home. Sometimes it's easier to just measure out alignment rather than putting the tool together and getting it all setup. I can usually pull out a yardstick make a few marks and bam have something aligned faster than then getting the tool put together and hung.

I am very happy with this product. I only wish that it had the combination horizontal, vertical laser lines, stud finder and auto wall distance measurement.

The laser pointer and stud finder features both work great. I just installed 3 closet shelve organizers and it made it so much easier and fast. Definately recommend spending a couple of extra bucks and pick this item up.

I recently purchased and used this item it was very easy to navigate and use. I would refer this product to anyone hanging pictures, curtains or just need a straight line or in need to find a stud in the wall.

Bought for my grandpa since he has soo many pictures and yet they are all crooked. But now everything is all good. It can hang on nails and in drywall and levels perfectly unless your house is tilted.

When I first got this product I tested it out finding studs. It was consistent in finding both edges of the stud within a fraction of an inch each time. Then I held it up near the ceiling and projected the laser beam along the wall which also showed the beam on both side walls. The wall was 23 feet long. I was surprised to find the measurements were off on the ceiling height by about 1 inch. So I got my tape measure out and sure enough one wall, from floor to ceiling, was 1 inch off. After these tests I proceeded to use it for all kinds of things including hanging pictures, installing a kitchen tile backsplash, building cabinets and much more. It works well on many projects. My next laser will have a vertical beam.

I love this leveling gadget. It took me a few minutes to figure it out but after I did, I was hanging up all sorts of pictures and things on the walls! I love it.

Easy to use, fool proof product. Excellent locating wiring on the walls.

The stud finder is inconsistent and never displays "edge" of stud function as the instructions state it will. The laser level "line" was more like a fuzy blob of light. I took it back and am very disappointed in B&D quality.

I was really excited buying this product, since i have been wanting to own a good stud finder...well this isnt the one meant to be!
The product consistently returns incorrect reading. In fact i was unable to get even a single good reading from this. It would sense a stud at one location for three times and then if i retried it would not find it at the same location. I tried this for multiple days and multiple times...still the same results...
In anycase this has to be returned!! Thanks B&D