I think the greatest difference is a 100$ light in nice shape 6 years from now is worth about 20$..a 20$ light 6 years from now is worth 14$//So whats the difference ? $74.
The fenix LD-22 is worth the $27 paid for at wallbuys not the $54.
IMHO all lights are worth the cost of a decent host ,driver and emitter ...$25
Like ezarc says ...Whats the difference ??... about 70$
There’s quite a few thrunite owners that may disagree after the Christmas blow out….just saying. 
No one has mentioned impact resistance, but some of the pricey light are designed to withstand the impact of use on a firearm. That was a bigger deal ten years ago before LED lights, I suppose. I’d want to field test a budget light with a couple hundred rounds downrange before I’d trust it on a weapon mount. Come to think of it, I’d probably want to do the same thing with a $150 light.
That’s my point, I used to buy “quality” BOSCH products(I’m german), my last bought washer dryer cost me £550 around 7 years ago, I took out extended warranty, it’s been replaced under warranty twice, absolute crap tbh, expecting it to have Made In Germany on it. that too was made in Mexico, it’s not the Mexicans are bad just general quality cut backs imo, would never buy another, my mums old Hotpoint twin tub lasted 23 years!!
tabs
The difference is summed up nicely here:
Expensive gives you the right to be pissed off at the minor details they inevitably get wrong.
A lawyer parked his BMW and opened the door, when suddenly a truck came along and tore the door off. When the police arrived at the scene, the yuppie was screaming hysterically about the damage to his precious BMW.
“Officer, look what they’ve done to my Beemer!!!”
“Sir, please calm down!” said the officer. “Don’t you know that your left arm is missing? It must have been torn off when the truck hit you.”
“Oh Nooo!!” screamed the lawyer. “Where’s my Rolex!!!”
It used to be true that the more expensive brand name gave a significantly higher realized level of quality that simply would not let you down when the heat was on. That was then, this is now. It’s increasingly difficult to find brand name merchandise that’s held to a quality standard giving a higher level of dependability than some of todays budget brands. The playing field is becoming level, as it were, with the budget brand becoming better and the top brand becoming, well, not so much so. There are some exceptions to this, and those exceptions are almost hands down very successful because of it.
I’ve heard complaints about the age-old MagLite. No one’s heard me complain about em, cause every one I ever bought is still working perfectly, regardless of age or it’s use history. Even the ones I’ve uh, modernized. What I see now from the big brands, especially in the flashlight world, is the ability to give consistent repeatable quality. Malkoff drop-ins are this way. Not over driven, but consistently reliable utilizing some of the best emitters and tints available. Many of the budget lights have great issue in this dept, it’s a grab bag what you might end up with in-hand. Some of these companies will remedy that if you complain. Others? Not so much.
So it boils down to consistent high quality that’s repeatable and you can count on it being so. If you’re tinkering or playing and there’s a dozen lights backing you up, high quality might take a back seat to final price. When you only have the one light, or maybe a back-up, and your life is on the line…well then things are different, aren’t they?
I think it all boils down to a person's individual budget. A rich man may think a $200 flashlight is cheap and must be poor quality, where a poor man may feel that the $15 he spent for a light is way more than he should have spent. There's good quality and poor quality to be had in any price range, it's all about one's budget and ability to afford things.
For me, its all about expectation. And value, even if it’s perceived value.
In that critical application, I want the best that I own, nearly always a ‘better grade’ flashlight. But sometimes that critical application can be the most of something - like throw or flood - and that sometimes is one of my budget or modded lights.
But the other 95% of the time, it just has to be good enough. Sometimes that is the $15 Chinese wonder, sometimes its the $150 latest, greatest wonder.
((I went through this process years ago with backpacking gear, (and years before that motorcycles and track day tires…hmn, think about that!) and I found that I just had to be educated, realistic and do my homework on nearly any purchase and I would seldom be disappointed. ))
And be realistic, don’t ask or expect (or depend on) the bargain to perform at the same high level if you REALLY need it - would you take a $75 arctic rated sleeping bag to Everest - get real - but car camping during the wintertime, maybe and be happy and surprised and proud (and dollars richer) when it does okay.
A budget light is something you just paid for
A high-priced light is something you are wishing to have but could not afford yet
I think Brand play an important role.
For many people, high price means good brand, so they make the high price.
Besides, to maintain a good brand have to pay huge marketing fee.
I can’t believe you don’t know the difference. Do I have to draw a MAP? (see what I did there?)
OK, so some of it is like firearms. I know a lot of guys with $1k+ handguns that sit pretty in their safe until they bring them out to the range. Meanwhile, they carry a $500 Glock every day.
Alternatively, for me, I am unlikely to ever buy a a high-dollar light. It’s not just because I can’t afford it. I also like to have a project. I can pull apart a $6 C8 and replace everything on it, piece by piece, to see what it is I like about it, or how it performs when I change something. I can buy a light for under $20 and change the driver, grease the threads, resolder bad connections, and make a light I trust to carry every day. It’s a light with my signature all over it. Meanwhile, if I bought an expensive light, it would be done. It’s someone else’s work, and I dare not change it for fear of ruining it.
I hear people saying that you shouldn’t expect a cheap light to perform like an expensive one. I say it should be the other way around. You shouldn’t expect an expensive light to perform like a cheap one, but I can tell by the specs that many of them do.
I’m pretty much of the opinion above, but southcovekayak make the point that if somebody sees value in the extra $70 then over the 6 years mentioned that’s about $12 a year in enjoyment.
As always, go for what you see the value in. Just don’t say you get what you pay for - if you say that there is always someone prepared to sell you a sipik clone for $49 to prove you wrong. The correct statement is you pay for what you get. If you see the value in it, then pay your money.