[Review] Olight M2R Pro (1800 Lumens, 21700 Battery, Neutral White, Faster Charging)

liquidretro · 2019-11-18T03:37:29.000Z

Today I have up for review the Olight M2R Pro. I have been critical of Olight in recent reviews with Pro models because they are not much different from their non Pro lights. However the M2R Pro is the first “Pro” model I think that’s worth of the “Pro” name. Thanks to SkyBen Trading (Affiliate Link) for sending this to me to take a look at and review.

YouTube Version of this Review:

Full Image Gallery: Olight - M2R Pro - Album on Imgur

Packaging & Accessories
Olight has quite a nice compact box for the M2R Pro. It’s white with a picture of the light on the front and throw and lumens numbers. On the back are more features, details and a spec table. The box itself is a magnetic side folder, that once inside you see the yellow warning card telling you to remove the battery protector. Once inside you see the light protected by it’s belt holster along with the accessories.

Accessories that ship with the light are the Olight proprietary 5000mAh 21700 battery. It has the positive and negative as well as a plastic spacer on one side. You also get the dual direction pocket clip, standard olight lanyard. The holster looks very similar to what came on the standard M2R. It’s pretty high quality, lightly padded, and has a plastic clip to secure the light, a hole at the bottom and a belt loop with a button. Lastly you get the new Olight MCC Charger that’s variable charge rate is capable of up to 2A. More on the charger later on in the review.

Construction
I am going to do some compare and contrast of the differences in the M2R and M2R pro for this section of my review. So if you haven’t seen my original review, make sure you check that out too. They are definitely similar but have differences as well.

*Size - *The biggest difference between the standard and Pro M2R is the size. The standard light is using a standard button top protected 3500mAh 18650 battery, and is 130mm in length and about 25mm at the head in diameter. The M2R Pro is using a proprietary 5000mAh 21700 battery. As a result it’s grown in length to 136mm, and grown in diameter to 26.6mm in the head. Weight is up slightly to 180g a difference of 25g.

Both lights are made from black anodized aluminum and share very similar styles. Starting at the head, the M2R Pro features a much more aggressive bezel. The points actually come to a point, more like a strike bezel. I wouldn’t want to EDC this bezel in my pants pocket because I think it would fairly easily rip the lining of the pocket. I have a few concerns about the longevity of the included holster as well. Thankfully the Bezel does screw off fairly easily, now all we need is for Olight to make a less aggressive model for people who want it.

The lens on the M2R Pro is also different. Gone is the orange peel reflector and glass lens on the M2R. Instead a deep, plastic TIR type optic is in it’s place. This is a reflector and lens combo, that has no glass lens over the top. It means you can’t see the LED underneath either. The result on the beam pattern is a very focused hot center, and very minimal spill.

Further down the head on the Pro we see similar but larger tear drops milled into the bezel. As we get to the switch area there is a similar anti roll ring except it has no milling on it like the M2R Standard had. Buttons are very similar but not exactly the same. The Pro is slightly shallower and silent when pressed unlike the Standard.

Bodies have another larger difference, the M2R Pro is more aggressive, each of the bars for lack of a better term are actually triangles that the points are slightly rounded. This really locks in better on your hands with or without gloves yet it’s small enough to still fit on the rifle mount that fits on the M2R. Internally Olight has went to a single tube design on the M2R Pro vs the dual tube design on the standard. They can get away with this due to that custom battery.

The tail cap is also different on the Pro. Internally it’s contacts are different, and the battery goes in with the positive side facing the head, which is the opposite of most other olight’s including the M2R Standard. Externally they are similar, but the pro has a more beveled edge on top. On the very top the Pro features a revision of the button. The new button and charging surface is much more raised, the center is taller and has 3 prongs protruding from it. This makes it easier to actuate with gloves on.

LED | Beamshots | Runtime
The Olight M2R Pro is using a Cree XHP35 in Neutral White, same as the M2R used, except in this application it’s driven a bit harder. Tint is pretty neutral white but does have a bit of green especially on lower power.
https://i.imgur.com/FaPrbTy.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/AY4EaIB.jpg

Olight lists the official output as the following. Outputs are thermally regulated.
Turbo - 1800 - 750 - 250
High - 750 - 250
Medium 1 - 250
Medium 2 - 60
Low - 15
Moon - 1

Overall Turbo is where you see the most difference with the modes on the M2R Pro about 300 more lumens, and 50 more on high. What I do like is that Olight is telling the step down progression and approximately how long each lasts on the box. Not a lot of brands are as up front as Olight is on this one. I applaud them for their honesty here. Heat on the M2R Pro was pretty well controlled. I measured for 10 minutes on Turbo and the hottest I saw at the 10 minute mark was 97F.

The beam pattern on the M2R Pro is pretty different then the Standard light. It’s got a hot centered beam with a much sharper cutoff and minimal spill which results in more throw. For a tactical light or one you mount on a weapon the Pro is the better choice due to that tighter beam and longer reach. Olight claims 300 meters on the Pro.

For the first time that I can remember Olight is being upfront about runtimes and their progressions on higher level modes. My testing showed this was pretty accurate as well. Starting off on Turbo we cana see it lasts for just over 4 minutes, this is a gradual step down during that time. It then steps down to 750 lumens for what olight is saying is 145 minutes which agrees with my testing, then another 45 minutes before it shuts off. So total runtime from Turbo is 200 minutes. Lower modes obviously last longer.

UI
UI on the M2R Pro is similar to the M2R. The biggest difference I can see is in how the tail switch works. Now when you half press the button, you get medium 1 about 250 lumens, and then turbo 1800 lumens when you full press. This is in configuration 1, In configuration 2 the tail switch goes to turbo on half press and strobe on full press.

UI is similar to other Olights but with some differences. Long press from Off to go to moon light mode, Double click to go to Turbo, and Triple click to go to strobe.There the front eswitch is mostly used as a mode switch but can be used to turn the light on and off from off as well.

Recharging
The Olight M2R Pro features Olights new faster charging system. It’s capable of charging at 1A, 1.5A and 2A. This new magnetic charger looks almost identical to the old but it can be differentiated by the red background on the inside and new markings on the outside. This system is supposed to be smart and charge all your existing Olights (With the exception of the two pistol weapon lights that require slower charging) at optimal speeds. Getting the maximum speed out of the charger requires you got get the position just right I found out. It will start charging at pretty much any angle but it seems to be a little sensitive on the exact position rotation wise for maximum charging speed. If you really care about this get a in line USB voltage meter to monitor what’s going on. I have several that I have reviewed here on the channel if you need any suggestions.

I charged charged the included 5000mAh 21700mAh battery that came with the M2R Pro using this new charger. LVP on the battery kicked in at 1.84v and then I put it on the charger. I saw my charge time take 6 Hrs 15 minutes at 1.82A max. Charging seems to start slowly as it analyzes the battery, then ramp up, and then slow down at the end of charging. This is typical of Lithium ion charging and a good sign to see.

Pro’s

Much more user friendly to disassemble the head, but no glass lens on top.

Neutral White returns again.

Faster Charging system!

New button on the rear is easier to operate and locate with gloves and has a more pronounced half and full step.

Con’s

Unfortunately Olight has replaced the standard battery configuration with a proprietary one. Using a magnet with a normal 21700 isn’t an option even.

I would love to see a less aggressive bezel be offered as an accessory or option.

No glass lens on top of the optic which means scratches will stay with the light.

Magnet still isn’t strong enough to hold the light in a horizontal position

Conclusion
The Olight M2R Pro is the first Pro series of light from Olight that I think deserves the name. It’s has some pretty significant differences from the standard M2R yet remains a similar light. I was a fan of the original M2R and I am a pretty big fan of the Pro as well. While I think the move to a 21700 battery was smart, I am disappointed Olight went to a customized proprietary battery version rather then keep the pretty standard button top 18650 they had in the M2R. I understand from a monetary reason why they did this and it allowed them to simplify the design of the light and minimize the size increase which maximizes compatibility with other accessories such as the rifle mount but it’s still disappointing to see standards be used.

That said I am a fan here, I think the Pro version is a nice revision. I love the more aggressive milling on the body of the light, and the new smart charging system but that it remains compatible with the older accessories. The tail switch is nice as well and revised UI makes sense. I like how you can get half power with a half press and full turbo with a full press and lock on. The larger size of the light still remains compatible with the rifle mount and pressure switch as well for you guys looking to mount this one your firearms. The new beam shape gives you a better spot at distance. It’s nice to see they stuck with Neutral White here too. Overall I quite like the M2R Pro.

Cereal_killer · 2019-11-18T03:52:11.000Z

Thank you for the review!

Do you happen to have measurements of the TIR? Are you able to identify it as a COTS part or is it proprietary?

liquidretro · 2019-11-18T03:53:53.000Z

Cereal_killer:

Thank you for the review!

Do you happen to have measurements of the TIR? Are you able to identify it as a COTS part or is it proprietary?

Like physical measurements? I could do that. Not sure if it’s off the shelf or proprietary.

Cereal_killer · 2019-11-18T04:09:35.000Z

Yes size measurements would be great sir. Thank you!

mortuus · 2019-11-18T08:55:32.000Z

Good light but i dont like how they make that using standard 21700 is not working… i guess they dont want people to buy batteries they dont sell in their own store that works in light…

SKV89 · 2020-01-31T04:46:23.000Z

Measurements taken with the Texas Ace Lumen Tube calibrated with Maukka lights and Sekonic C-800-U. Output measured at 2s from turn on.

Olight M2R Pro Warrior Camouflague	Turbo	1,948 lumens	4908K	0.0099 DUV	66.6 CRI	-46.0 R9	36.9 R12	66 Rf	94 Rg	included battery
Olight M2R Pro Warrior Camouflague	2nd highest	735 lumens	4796K	0.0127 DUV	66.4 CRI	-49.4 R9	35.3 R12			included battery
Olight M2R Pro Warrior Camouflague	3rd highest	237 lumens	4713K	0.0140 DUV	66.6 CRI					included battery
Olight M2R Pro Warrior Desert Tan	Turbo	1,957 lumens	5040K	0.0096 DUV	67.6 CRI	-44.4 R9	42.2 R12	67 Rf	94 Rg	included battery
Olight M2R Pro Warrior Desert Tan	2nd highest	748 lumens	4853K	0.0113 DUV	68.0 CRI	-44.1 R9	39.7 R12			included battery
Olight M2R Pro Warrior Desert Tan	3rd highest	241 lumens	4786K	0.0126 DUV	68.1 CRI	-44.8 R9	38.8 R12			included battery