Yep $6 more for this light is no biggie for what it is.
And as TK said HERE (copied & pasted below). This triple is not going to be a “thrower” anyway……
Throwiness is a rough measure of candelas per lumen. It’s the overall beam shape. Even the throwiest option is not a thrower, because compact triples are floody by nature.
So yeah…… the XPL HI makes the most sense for best overall choice to me.
Since there are too many different opinions the team has decided to settle for Cree XR-Es
In all seriousness, I get that there are different preferences when it comes to tints and LEDs, but please try to tone the discussion regarding this a little down or at least the several contradicting absolute truths (the universe should already have exploded ). There is no clear best solution for this light and it depends on the personal preference. Everybody will have a chance to vote and we will try to be as objective as possible when describing the advantages and disadvantages of each tint and LED.
I am signed up for several also. I am not saying $6 more is trival. I DO NOT have an over abundance of money either.
I am saying in the big scheme of things $6 more dollars per light is worth it… to me anyway.
I am also saying that to base the cost or emitter choice on the preference of the few people who are only buying them for host to change emitters and/or optics as soon as they lay hands on them would be a mistake.
Of course they would want them for as cheap as possible and not care at all what components they contained.
Most likely however, the vast majority will use them as they are delivered from LT.
I think while lumens and cd and such are easily appreciated, not everyone has a light with not only a high CRI rating but also a properly good spectrum; it’s impossible to tell the difference on most screens, and harder than real life on all of them. R9 is only the most often deficient part of the spectrum. Personally, the best I can mention apart from incandescent is my viltrox 116t which maukka saw 92 CRI and 95 R9 on. I’ve used it at a variety of color temperatures and have been properly impressed. Viltrox L116T - Album on Imgur
I do not think the floodiness of the samsung would relegate it to indoor use only; perhaps I can test this using my d4 219c since with the filter and GA cell in it, the intensity should be similar. Tonight if I remember, I will show the results.
I’ve tried XPL2 with domes on in triples and it’s very floody. Too floody for anything except very close range use.
XPL HI is much more useful. You can illuminate stuff up close using half the power, or go to full power and have a light that’s good out to medium range.
If we do XP-E2 with photo red, green, and royal blue, I can totally make it do a bunch of pretty color patterns. I already have the firmware about two thirds finished. Just add an extra-long diffuser to the front, and it makes a pretty decent lightsaber. Or maybe a shoto. Laser wakizashi!