Mines are from January and February respectively
AH!!!
I forgot to say that the manufacturer of the F23 offers this light with different emitters and different drivers:
Emitters: From xpe Q3 to xpg R5
Drivers: from single mode, 3 mode, to 5 mode
Also in ALL online shops that sells the F23, claims Q3 LED except DX, which claims R2 and is not
KD has a Trustfire F23, a AAA with a Q3
DX does not seem to have this light. They have a F22, which is a AA R2
Could you give us a link phlowcus?
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.24291
I was planning on modding mine with an xp-e q5 warmwhite anyways, if that makes it brighter it was indeed a q3. :)
Oh, they call it EF23.
Did I hear you say its a Q3 or not a R2?
I think it was a plain and clear sentence, I didn't use any irony or metaphers if that helps.
EDIT: Erm, wait. Maybe it wasn't too clear after all: I have not done this test yet. Sorry Nautic.
You can't tell from just looking it at whether it's Q3 or R2 or whatever. You need to measure efficacy which is not easy.
All of you know about the web site of DrJones? DrJones is a member of DX forums. He has measurements of many DX flashlights.
He compared the F23 with the Tank TK703. The TK703 claims Q3 LED and has same brightness of the F23. So F23 has Q3 LED
He compared the F23 with the Tank TK703. The TK703 claims Q3 LED and has same brightness of the F23. So F23 has Q3 LED
That's not how it works. Brightness on these cheap lights is going to be more a function of the driver (of greatly varying quality), and the current it provides.
To measure efficacy you need an integrating sphere and reasonably precise current/v (power) measurements.
To reiterate: you cannot tell which emitter bin because they look EXACTLY the same.
Ey guys.... I have corrected the photo links
Can be seen the photos now? If you cant see them please tell me!
Yes it works.
Thanks. The photos are there and works. But sorry for the bad quality, I have not digital camera. They was taken with my mobile phone
Thank you for the nice review 
Great review fran! 
This wasn't about precisely binning/ranking an emitter. We were trying to find out whether an led is rather a ~q3 or ~r2. This is totally possible, especially with the mentioned emitter swap. Why do flashlights keep getting visibly(!) brighter in the last years and months without the need for an integrating sphere?
OK, returning to DrJones "methodology" of testing. He has not yet an integrating sphere, it has another "invent"...
If he test F23 with 10440 and he gets, lets say, 150 units of ceiling bounce and 1,8 units of spot intensity
and then
he tests tank 703 with 10440 and he gets, 140 units of ceiling bounce and 1,6 units of spot intensity...
It seems that both flashlights has same LED, because with 10440 both of them goes Direct Drive. The only differences are the reflector........
This is totally possible, especially with the mentioned emitter swap.
Swapping to a warmwhite...
Why do flashlights keep getting visibly(!) brighter in the last years and months without the need for an integrating sphere?
Note the sentence I replied to:
He compared the F23 with the Tank TK703. The TK703 claims Q3 LED and has same brightness of the F23. So F23 has Q3 LED
His 703 could have a p4 for anyone knows.
====
The only differences are the reflector........
And switch, all contacts, soldering. Cree bin gaps are not that big compared to width of bins themselves.
In any case the human eye can not distinguish between the spectrum of light from a Q3 (100) and Q5 (114 lumens) without electronic help.
as stated agenthex, switch, all contacts, soldering ... all influences.
Even two identical flashlight in the same manufacture may vary.
Sometimes it is difficult to recommend a flashlight just because yours is good, although opinions are always valuable, of course.
Just ordered a couple for my father and brother, this time from Lightake. They have the best price (w/coupon) I've seen yet. Under $20 USD for each is a real steal.
Not to belabor the point but I think it's an important one:
There are far more important aspects of a light than q3 or q5 or r2. The bin difference is simply not that big compare to the huge quality gaps between individual specimans in chinese lights (you get batches that drive at 500ma and 800ma). That may be even smaller than design details that make difference between a light you use regularly and one you don't. (loose head, crap modes, etc)
In any case, this seems like a good light (the ITP, and seems worth it at twice the price of a cheapy), q5 or not.
Me too x 100 million!
How it does what it does can sometimes be more important than how "well" it does it. Consistency can be far more important than specification - see ISO 9000 and any NATO spec requirements.
Unfortunately I have had to work with organisations who needed to meet ISO 9000-9002. It is quite OK to provide junk as long as it is consistent junk with a paper trail to prove it is consistent junk. It costs a lot to provide garbage with a paper trail to prove it is garbage. If it is a light with an A0 bin LED it is fine, just as long as the lights with an R5 LED behave in exactly the same way - including exactly the same battery life and output.
It is easy to build a device that does one thing extremely well to the exclusion of all other factors (Like all the "zoom" lights out there).
To build something that works very well as a whole is harder. Much harder.
It isn't hard to take a Q*/R*/S*/ whatever emitter and drive it way past specification. It is likely that it will survive long enough to get out of QC (If there is any). It is probably possible to drive an XP-C at 3 amps for long enough to make it light up and therefore "pass" QC and get shipped out. Anyone expecting such a device to work for more than a minute thereafter needs medication. And it will produce silly lumens in genuine tests.
It just will not do so for very long. Think drag racers. If the engine can survive ten minutes at full power it is overbuilt and far too heavy. It only needs to survive ten seconds at full power.
Many lights seem to be designed the same way. This is wonderful in short tests - but unless you are in lumen championships, do you want to own the result?
It is a lot harder to produce something that provides a balance between output, efficiency, battery life, and usability.
If I want a light that will produce 1 lumen for ever, no problem.
Now I want it to weigh less than a ton.
Now I want it to use common cells.
Now I want it to be able to.....
Design is all about compromises. Do I want a million lumens for 3 seconds in a consumable device? Do I want 100lumens from an AAA device. Do I want it never to exceed 40 Centigrade in any part (Which is a NATO issue) and so on.
After all this...
Is it a device that I, the manufacturer, can sell?
How many of them can I sell?
We all have our own priorities and choose stuff that suits what we want.
What I want is the capability to light stuff up a kilometre away and do so for a week in a device that weighs less then 100g.
There is no such device. So what do I really want?
And how will I know when I've got it?