Some complaints with lights are obvious and the same old ones mentioned a million times ..But others are less obvious and not as well recorded .
For manufacturers sake and for new users as well...
List things you don't like about lights
things to avoid
strobe , s.o.s., pwm , sharp edges ..etc ...
- Why do chargers like the i-4 flash continually ?
-Why do manufacturers carve out a flat spot on lights to slap their name on it ? Who wants that ?
-Why would anyone make a hollow pill ?
Pet peeve of mine, especially for larger lights. Add on another button to allow cycling through modes low to high, or high to low in both directions.
Sharp edges. If my fingers are going to get scratched up by it, it's never going in my pocket.
Lights that do not work with flat top batteries.
And my #1 pet peeve - THE BATTERY CARRIERS ARE TOO SMALL! I have no choice but to use unprotected batteries in some of my lights due to size limitations. I wish manufacturers would take note of the fact that 18650 batteries have gotten quite a bit larger. If they are worried about batteries rattling around, provide some spacers instead.
1) tactical… i am SOOOOO sick of everything being “tactical”. The only thing i can see “tactical” ACTUALLY means anymore? is the switch is on the tailcap.
2) tailcap switches? are a fine thing… if the light is truly about “hand sized”… if its a 1x18650 light? it makes sense… it does NOT make sense on a 3-D light, lol… i have an otherwise “pretty cool” 2x18650 light that i really like? except, its a little awkward to swing it out the window to sweep house numbers, and manipulate the tailcap switch. ANy light once it hits a certain size? the side switch makes more sense.
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in general? i would LIKE to see something loosely resembling a standardization. I dont expect all manufacturers to lego? but… if i buy a “z9” light from company A… i should be able to count on buying a drop in pill “for a z9” from company B… and expect it all to work.
specifically? I am into Infrared Illuminators… i need them for night vision. WHY i cant have anything resembling a selection of emitters to choose from? i dont know. As it is right now? The oslon 8516s is about the only game in town… and? like magic, all vendors claim not to know anything about the bin numbers on the oslon IR 8516s…
(yeah right, lol…)
the WHOLE rest f the LED industry has BIN numbers? and no one seems to realize the oslon 8516s has BIN numbers for brightness too? tell me another one… its RIGHT in the data sheet… kinda hard to miss it, actually.
Kickstarter flashlight scams. :Sp
1. Glued threads!
|(
When a 20mm noctigon almost fits in the pill.
Gotta +1 that.
It holds true for flashlight bodies too. Shaving a mm here and there shouldn't be done at the expense of having to shop by trial and error for batteries to power the damn thing.
A perfect example is my Olight S10. Great light but rendered non waterproof by Keepower 16340s because the tailcap can't screw down far enough to meet the O-ring. I really couldn't give a rodent's furry little bottom if making it 5mm longer removed some kind of "I've got this really small light" bragging rights.
Variation- power output from lowest to next mode. 20lm, and then 500? really?! how about 20> 150> 500?
Plastic reflectors.
Very hard to clean lens (low quality AT coating - film)
Non lubed threads - squeaky.
PWM modes.
Overheating> (bad heatskin bad build quality) only ~2 mins on max.
What I absolutely hate with a passion is glued threads |(
In addition to everything mentioned above, better heatsinking, better soldering, centered LED’s, forward clicky, artifact free/clean lenses and reflectors, better job anodizing, especially on the higher priced lights.
More tacticool than tactical. I would much prefer a side switch over a tail cap switch.
I’m fond of side switches. It need to be metal though since rubber on the side can get torn up.
I've said the same thing in another thread. There should be at least three buttons. An on/off, and separate up and down buttons. Separate up and down buttons would also work for infinitely variable output. The next step would be pressure sensitive buttons so that ramping speed (or maybe acceleration) would vary depending on how hard you press the button.
Control rings can serve the same function, but are terrible in dirty environments.
How about some quality belt holsters. Everything I’ve seen is close to garbage.
The old jetbeam pouches rock ,, so do fenix and sunwayman /// way too many cheap pouches .
- lack of cigar grips ...
No one sells them ..and if perchance someone did ...they seem to forget they are a piece of rubber...Not diamonds .
-How about lights that ALmosT TailStanD .. Why make a teeter totter Tacticool tailcap ?
-Slides on chargers that don't bind ?? (crazy thought I know .)
Reflectors that don’t focus properly the leds, lack of 32mm copper mcpcbs, protected batteries and shipping cost from USA to Europe.
Manufacturers not declaring brand of UV emitters or optic. For higher power and 365nm wavelength it’s a crucial selling point.
It’s IPX8 not IPX-8! There is no dash in ingress protection standard. But it’s usually marketing copypasta anyway and probably just splashproof. :zipper_mouth_face:
No AA/14500 or good small drivers
Next mode memory, I hit 3 of those in a roll last year. :Sp