Once again, for the average flashlight user a Maglite wins by a large margin.
Ease of use ( you pick it up and press the button )
Durability ( They can take a hit and they have been in use for YEARS)
Dependability ( They ALWAYS work just as they are, My last order of Chinese lights were 3 for 3 DOA, simple fixes though, but can you see the average joe putting up with THAT?)
Availablity - Can buy one almost anywhere, drug, hardware, even WalMart! why it takes up to 2 MONTHS to get a Chinese light! I can hop in my car and get a Mag in 5 minutes
Length of runtime - Talking LED Mags here, 9 hours for 2D and 70 hours with 3D. Of course Chinese lights can get that kind of runtime …………on LOW
Availability of Batteries - The average person is NOT going to put up with taking the batteries out and recharging them, THEY JUST WON’T DO IT. They will however plug the light in at night if it has an integral charger. We do this already with Cell phones, but only because a cell phone is an “every day carry” Remember the average flashlight is NOT used every day. Also if you battery runs down you can walk into ANY store and buy more, no waiting for 4 hours to recharge.
Overall Quality of build and Finish Except for the high end Chinese lights, The quality of the build and finish of a Mag exceeds the JUNK that I have seen in ALL the cheaper Chinese lights that I have bought. The anodizing is especially superb.
Usability ( Pick one up and it just works, do you think that a “forgotten Li Ion battery flashlight is going to actually work 3 years from now when you need it, after it has been in a drawer all that time (remember it is not used every day, but rather only several times each year. Now I hear that the latest Duracells have a shelf life of 10 years!
Price (Cheaper initial cost than ANY Chinese flashlight, battery, charger combo) - Its TRUE
Decent enough spill OR Throw for most applications. (how often does one REALLY need 1000 Lumen?)
Front mounted switch, not a tailcap switch, for one handed operation - I HATE tailcap switches
NO BLINKY modes - enough said
Only people with a specific need or a flashaholic would choose anything else.
Now after having said all that, I am excited about these new Chinese lights and find myself lusting after a number of them. I actually buy many of them. But I am a flashaholic, NOT the average flashlight user.
Marc you are right, technologically the Chinese have gone way ahead, but will they sell to the general public??
I think NOT.
I am not saying they are the best for you and I, I am saying they are the best for everyone else!
BTW, When the IPAD first came out my wife wanted one. I objected because
It was Apple - Proprietary
no USB ports
can’t print
no external video port
can’t replace the battery
no flash
etc. etc.
but I got her one anyway…….and she LOVES it, and so do I
It’s simple and it WORKS and it is dominating the market, sometimes what seems best to the ones “in the know” is not the best for everyone else.
That was the Genius of Steve Jobs, creating the best computers, not for techies, but for the “rest of us”
In fact that was Apples motto.