Have you confirmed the 40T cells are genuine? I highly doubt there’s something wrong when he says that both are the same
The EA has a more focused center hotspot which makes it appear the same brightness.
The EC has a lot more evenly spread flood (surrounding light) which is producing more lumens
You need to understand the difference between lux and lumens when choosing the right flashlight for you.
Lux - the brightest (most intense) part of the beam
Lumens - overall light output