ALIVE: Astrolux S42 groupbuy: US$ 25.95

Got my parts. I can get the breathing light (whatever that is) bit nothing else with an Efest button 18350 or a 16340. Plug it in, I get a blinking green light. Nothing else.

What am I doing wrong?

Just a question.
Anyone know what optics is used in the s41/42?

The breathing light is fading on and off.
That’s the normal mode when not locked out and when not charging.

When charging the light blinks green or red.
red when below 50%, above green blinking. It turns constantly green when it’s fully charged.

Mine has doggy connector. I am nearly done with that light

Yeah, so I get the breathing light.

I got the blinking green when charging, solid green when charged.

But nothing after that.

I don’t have the time or the skills to try to locate and rectify a fault. Is it worth trying the paperclip coil? I can’t see what that would achieve, since power is reaching the head to turn the breathing light on?

I’m no torch enthusiast in the sense of understanding and tinkering with the magic that goes into making these things work - I’m just an enthusiast in the sense that I like them.

I’m not at all enthusiastic about this utter abortion of a torch.

Astrolux have not covered themselves in glory with this one.

Unless anyone has any suggestions I think I’ll be returning it or going for a PP dispute.

Regards,

SP

I think you’re supposed to pull it from the inside.
So you stick the end through the hole and then pull the rest through from the inside with tweezers.
Because when you pull it it stretches and gets a little thinner.

Greetings from France.

The head on mine clearly is faulty - I tried the tail on the head of my S41S and it works fine. Tried the head of the S42 on the tail of the S41S, no go.

S42 head is dodgy. It is allowing the breathing light to operate but won’t power up.

Is there something obvious I could do to get it to work? I mean without soldering and shenanigans like that?

So disappointing.

SP

So can we buy this light now? Problems got resolved?

Only the 18350 tube length and usb port cover have been addressed… and apparently you still need some of the shortest cells. The UI is still the same and very annoying to say the least.

Unless you really want usb charging you should check the TK’s Emisar D4 review thread - that’s what the S42 should have been:

+1

only if you need charging.
I would recommend a S41 or a D4.

S42:

- optic should be 0.8mm nearer to the LED

- 18650 tube can’t handle protected ones

- the UI is bad

- tends to to start in my pocket, even locked out. A long press to reset lock out and a second long press to start in turbo. m(

  • I can’t use it as an EDC

but the LEDs are nice

really sad,that emisar is not usb recheargable…it could be really the best…

If you really need charging on the go, buy this:

Tested by HKJ here:

…or a Liitokala Lii100

It’s always on sale somewhere and can be used as a power bank too.

The D4’s lack of built-in charger is probably a feature. Built-in charging is generally a way to make lights more accessible to the general public who don’t already have (or want) separate batteries and chargers. However, a hotrod light probably shouldn’t be very accessible to muggles.

It makes more sense for lights with much lower output, like the Olight S20R.

By including a charge port, the S42 and E14 II seem to be a little confused about who they’re designed for.

i mean,chargers and lion are still business…but too many people dont like charging,buying special cells…….its very comfortable to get one cable and recharge so easy your flashlight…meybe future design…

It’s common in many industries that the “all in one” products are intended for people who aren’t very serious about it. These are great for people who want to stick their toe in the water without a huge commitment. Beyond that entry-level stuff, the industry’s products tend to specialize in whatever specific feature they are designed for, and it may take multiple different products to create a complete solution.

For example, I could go to a local mega-mart and get a cheap Casio keyboard which has everything I need to create simple songs. But if I want to do more complex higher-quality songs I’d need several more-expensive tools which work together to create the specific types of songs I want to make. There might perhaps be a MIDI keyboard which makes no sound, a standalone synthesizer module which makes sound but has no keys, a drum machine which only makes rhythms, a specialized recording device to capture the audio from other parts, and some sort of multitrack sound-editing software to arrange the pieces together into a song.

To a casual musician, it may seem strange that people sell synthesizer modules for thousands of dollars which can’t even produce sound without hooking up an external keyboard. However, a professional musician will often feel exactly the opposite, avoiding products which have keys built in because the keys are an unwanted feature which adds extra cost and complexity and takes extra space.

i think,the flashlight world reached really maximum.who knows.so,maybe another good point for better sales will be adding the usb rech.ports…
but i dont trust to the cheap ones yet…

So Banggood told me to make sure everything was tight and to use only flat top u/p cells. I’ve bought some more (getting pricey this bargain torch……) and it still doesn’t work. I can smell a PP dispute if they don’t get their act in gear. Wish I’d got a D4….

Has anyone done a post mortem autopsy “lessons learned” on this deal, looking into how it slipped into the disaster category?

It’d be a fascinating study to compare this, the BLF348, and the Cometa to the successful flashlight-design-and-build stories.

What kind of things go wrong, where, when, with whom?

Er, what happened with the BLF-348? Wasn’t that one so successful that it came back for three group buys?