Wow! Interesting read. I have never given much thought to the whole affiliate link thing. Don’t really even understand how it works because I don’t do it. Now that I’ve been reading this, it occurs to me that if someone does a good enough job reviewing a light that it makes the product sell like hot-cakes, then they get some kick backs from that review (whether disclosed or not) it’s an aside that essentially makes it somewhat worth their time to have done such a good job on the review. But what I’m seeing here, what concerns some, is whether the review was taken on purely on that basis? I see that, still irrelevant in the end as far as I’m concerned. I still won’t use affiliate links and even if I posted a link (not being aware it was affiliate) I wouldn’t cash in the perks, as it were. In the same way I don’t use discount coupons at MTNElectronics or Banggood or GearBest, I just don’t use em. Simon offers BLF a discount, but Simon is a small shop (Convoy) so I don’t use his coupon, his products are well made and I like em, they’re cheap enough already, so I want him to make a bit more money and develop more models. That’s just me though.
When I get asked to do a review, I make sure they know I’m gonna call it like I see it. I’m gonna open up the light and inspect it inside and out. I’m gonna report where I see they’d done good and where I see they cut corners. If they know their product has some shortcomings, they better dang well know I’m gonna call em out on it and show clear close-up pictures. A really well made light will shine, in my report, same as a poorly made one will stink when I’m done.
As far as me getting a “free light” out of the deal, well, yeah, but one that’s been thoroughly dissected and sometimes marked up getting it apart if they glued it. 7-15 hours of work on it, so if it’s not a $400 light to begin with I’m losing money just working up the review. But then, I’m a flashaholic and a photographer and I have physical issues so I use the hobby aspect as a relief valve… that’s what I do it for and if I can show folks what is a great light vs a good light vs a nightmare then that makes me happy that I helped someone buy the right one or avoid the wrong one.
I don’t have a great many review lights in my collection, the vast majority I bought myself. And even those get dissected and reported on in the same way as a review light. Like the Nitecore TM03, I bought it, full price, and took it apart more than once, taking pics and modifying and changing he XHP-70 to an MT-G2 because I prefer the tint.
At any rate, I don’t make any money on any light that comes in here, but I know people that have as many lights as I do that only bought one or two. That’s they’re thing, this is mine.
Also, I almost never know if a company has other lights out for review or how many, so it’s usually a big surprise to me to see the same light I just posted on with multiple threads by other people. I know I don’t have the tech saavy to make all the charts and stuff, but I show the light for how I see it, inside and out, and if it gets destroyed in the process (a couple have) then whatever. Sometimes I end up using these review lights to do giveaway’s, didn’t cost me anything to get it, only cost’s me shipping to give it away. And so it goes…