DX XPG R5 16mm - damaged emitter lens - should I care?

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/cree-xp-g-r51b-7000k-350lm-emitter-with-16mm-base-44306

Arrived scratched and with a little stain.

Works - emits a lot of light.

Also, the base looks a little different than the DX pics.

Should I worry and ask for replacement or it is nothing and I should go solder it somewhere?

And the board as a whole:

focus on the board:

focus on the lens:

Tried gently (very) cleaning the dome? I often do that when they came dirty occasionally. I use microfiber cloth on a stick made of rubber foam and gently wipe the dome where needed.

Tried that, even with an LCD screen cleaning liquid.

Doesn't help, it's really scratched at one point, and the stain at the other point doesn't get off.

it's nothing..the dome is just a led protector basically from what I understand..I doubt you will see it in the beam..i've learned a long time ago that ordering from DX you should be happy that it works and never expect perfection..

That is considered a damaged product in my book. QC should have ditched that one...

agreed, but does DX even have a QC department?

I managed to take a little black off the black stain, but the dome is damaged underneath.

I looked under a microscope (those 60x-100x zoom from DX :)) and it isn't pretty. But I really doubt I'll ever see this damage, even using a zooming lens (which is how I intend to use this LED).

Question is - is there any chance the LED will be damaged? Or is damaged right now?

the led die itself should be fine but the fact that there are blemishes on the dome would make me return it. i dont think dx has a QC dept.

I think you will see it in the beam. I had a loose speck on one of my lights the other day and I could see it in the beam until I was able to get it removed. They will want a picture and then tell you to try to get help on the forums and then should send you a new one. The base looks good.

Wow, nice closeup pics :p That stain could be barely visible as slightly darker spot on beam, but dunno you will see it in real life (i.e. not a white wall :bigsmile: ). That crack isn't a bad thing also, dunno it will crack more with heat.

I got emitters with scratches in the soft lens (the XP-G R4 from KD). Deep cuts (as in 0.5mm deep) in the lens, right in the middle. Visible defects in the beam of an aspheric, but not an issue in reflector torches.

I wonder if the black is from carless alignment when soldering which coudl acount for the other mark to.

I'd send the pictures to DX and try to get a refund.

While in most circumstances you wont notice it, it will be reducing the overall brightness and possibly would be visible with an aspherical lens.

Thanks for the comments, I took your advice and opened a ticket at DX.

Should get through as it is easy to spot the issue. At most you will be told that you probably did that yourself which would be really annoying...