Olight M3XS-UT Javelot review (1200 lm,3/4xCR123A/2x18650,XP-L dedome)

Hello,

I will continue a series of reviews of new Olight flashlight models, and this review will be dedicated to the brightest and the one that has the most throw of them all, the M3XS-UT Javelot

What’s so special about it?

1. An impressive 1 kilometer of throw figure. Not many manufacturers has a flashlight with such a throw, regardless of size and price.
2. The flashlight is very light and even compact. Please see point 1.
3. De-domed XP-L led. It’s the main reason of the impressive figures this flashlight has to offer.
4. 5 year warranty of a well known company
5. Price. The flashlight can be purchased for a very decent price

Why stepdown, why? Well, we know that there is no such thing as ideal flashlight.

Shall we begin?


Like other flashlights that belong to the “Javelot” series, M3XS-UT comes in a plastic case, that can be used for storage and transporting the light.

The packaging contains a semi-hard holster,user manual, spare o-rings, a cassette for using 3 CR/RCR123A batteries and an extender for using the flashlight with two 18650 batteries.



This is the holster. It feels very well made.



O-rings, a cassette for the 123’s and the extender. The extender is also made from aluminum.


Here it is. It looks very thin and long, but it does not make him feel flimsy. All rigid, the batteries don’t rattle inside even when you try to make them rattle :slight_smile: . BTW, all tests conducted in 2x18650 configuration.

The flashlight is being controlled by two buttons. One - tactical button located at the tailcap, the mode can be chosen before switching the flashlight constantly on. The flashlight has a mode memory, that unusually also works for the strobe mode.
Pressing the electronic side key together with the back button from “off” position turns the flashlight on in moonlight mode.
Short pressed at the side button change modes in the following order : “low~~mid~~>high->low…” , holding the button a little turns on the strobe mode.



Here is the light itself. The anti-reflective coating can be easily noticed. By the way, I asked the Olight representative some questions, that might interest you as well.

1. Who is actually de-doming ? Olight or Cree?

2. What LED’s are being used in Javelot series flashlights?

3. Will de-domed LED’s be used in other flashlights that do not belong to the “Javelot” series ?

* Update from 11.08.2015

Just received an update from Olight. All new Javelot series flashlight (including M20SX) will switch to XP-L HI, only the M3XS-UT will remain with XP-L dedomed by Olight.


The flashlight tail-stands, but the surface must be straight.



Different options. I like it with the grip ring.




Near other “Javelots”. Each one a champion in it’s league.

How about some light?

When I first turned on the flashlight I was a little … disappointed. While expecting the 1km throw and 250kcd I thought it will be a laser, a jedi sword scorching all in front of it. But … it was nothing like it, same white spot, maybe a little brighter and tinier than on other flashlights that I help. But evening came and all changed. It is simply a blaster. It is obvious that without optics you can’t see for a kilometer distance, but for a distances that you can see that thing is really a beast. I happened to used it while on some military training and people around me was just shocked, they never saw something like it, and being so light and compact. I think at the end they did not believe me that it is a working flashlight that you can easily buy, but some secret prototype.









Pictures speak for themselves

Some numbers

What it is? My luxmeter has a maximum reading of 200 kcd. So from 1 meter distance it was maxed out and started to give inconsistent readings, so at maximum mode I had to measure from 2 meters instead of 1.
As you can see from the numbers even the moonlight is intense, you can see from 10-20 meters in that mode.

Conclusions

A great flashlight, I think if you think you need a really powerful thrower you can’t get wrong with it.

I’d like to thank Olight for providing me the review sample
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Thanks for reading. Comments? Requests? Please write me, I will be happy to assist.

It’ll be great if you could get a zoomed in em image of a lighted target with that light at a specific distance! :slight_smile:

I will try to do that. A problem is that my DSLR does not have much of a zoom, and digital zoom of a smartphone does not count …
What distance have you had in mind?

At least 500m! But further would be awesome just to see what it’s capable of :wink:

Indeed, very interesting questions you were able to get answers to!

Basically they admitted they are falsely advertising the “Cree XP-L ”High Intensity”:http://www.cree.com/News-and-Events/Cree-News/Press-Releases/2015/April/XPL-HI-intro” emitter when they don’t use it in any of their Javelot lights. Or, for the M23, they are purposefully being tricky by backtracking and calling it a “high intensity Cree XP-L LED” (though some websites that haven’t updated their descriptions will say “XP-L High Intensity”).

Yet, they are pushing hard to get these torches out to our flashlight communities without being as forthright as they finally were in answering your questions. I don’t think I’ve seen so many review samples floating around as I have for the two newest Javelots.

I have no trust in them at this point, and am beyond frustrated that so far the only recourse I have is to pay very expensive shipping costs out of pocket to return mine, despite Olight’s deliberate deception with emitters being the issue.

Our veteran member here DB Custom had already reviewed this light, and he also stated that it can also be run on 2x 18500 like what I use on my m3xs to stay in compact form. Anyway great review thanks :bigsmile:

I have no trust in them at this point, and am beyond frustrated that so far the only recourse I have is to pay very expensive shipping costs out of pocket to return mine, despite Olight’s deliberate deception with emitters being the issue.

Or, you could just enjoy a VERY nice flashlight, which does meet all advertised specs. Your reaction seems a bit overwrought…

I’m admittedly already agitated because Olight’s customer service has responded badly and not owned up to help me with this — that’s the biggest no-no. But regarding “specs”, what are you referring to? Output and throw?

That’s like comparing all 18650’s by capacity and voltage only. Different ones have different characteristics that go beyond that.

Olight’s main spec for the M3XS-UT Javelot is that it uses Cree’s new XP-L High Intensity emitter. Instead, they subbed in a regular XP-L that they de-domed themselves in their factory. The performance might be similar, but the tint is green, and as far as I know, the reliability / longevity could be compromised.

Why should I have to settle for this? Folks call out lumen specs that are exaggerated by 20% or less, even though the difference probably can’t even be noticed without technical measurement — should they just enjoy their very nice flashlights too?

I’ve updated the review with fresh information about LEDs used in Javelot series.

Interesting update, especially since these are the M3XS-UT Javelot’s specs:

While for other Javelots, Olight has already vaguely covered their butt by mostly calling the emitter a “high intensity XP-L” instead.

Coupla weeks ago I was at a flashlight meeting in Germany and one of the members had one of these lights.

Interesting light, typical high Olight quality in every aspect, but especially in the lower settings greenish (at least the one I had in my hands) which could indicate that there is not XP-L HI int he light but an XP-L dedomed by Olight.

Great lamp with great throw for its size.

Grtz
Nico