Sunwayman M20A - actual max 180LM??

Hi,
i was reading some reviews of sunwayman's M20A and was quite happy. but one thing is bothering me. selfbuilt's detailed review of this light specifically states that this light only has a max output of only 180 lumens...which is way way less than what is claimed by the manufacturer ie. 220 lumens. a loss of 40 lumens is a big setback for an EDC.
i was especially disappointed because jetbeam's PA20 claims 230 max lumen whereas in selfbuilt's test it is giving 240 lumens of output!!

can anyone confirm this issue? should i be concerned about it?

selfbuilt's detailed review can be found here.

The reviews are 2 years apart.
I think his testing methods were the same though.
If you want some lumens, what about the new Nitecore EA2.
Very bright with a bunch of throw.

wow, that light sure is bright! but along with brightness i am also looking forward to a very compact and thin flashlight, which sunwayman M20A is. ea2 gets broad on the head.
but gordo tell me whether i should be concerned about the 180 lm revelation ?
again if u see for ea2 the manufacturer claims 280 lms max whereas the tests above claim 375! are these test 100% reliable? i mean thats 95 extra lumens, meaning an extra edc

shobhitk said:

wow, that light sure is bright! but along with brightness i am also looking forward to a very compact and thin flashlight, which sunwayman M20A is. ea2 gets broad on the head.

Click to expand...

The SWM M20A head is smaller, but the EC2 is much shorter.
SWM M20A , 23.2mm head diameter , 150mm length
Nitecore EA2 , 25.4mm head diameter , 131mm length
Here is a size pic of them next to each other.

shobhitk said:

but gordo tell me whether i should be concerned about the 180 lm revelation ?
again if u see for ea2 the manufacturer claims 280 lms max whereas the tests above claim 375! are these test 100% reliable? i mean thats 95 extra lumens, meaning an extra edc.

Click to expand...

I believe Selfbuilt's data is accurate when compared to other lights he has measured.
So I would compare his numbers to his other numbers,
but I would not be so much concerned with comparing his numbers to manufacturer's numbers.

The lumen/lux data is just one of several criteria to consider.
What is it about the Sunwayman that appeals to you,
is it the body styling or maybe it's cheaper?
All my lights have to have a good clip so I can EDC in my front pocket.
The SWM has that hideous clip on style that should be abolished.

If you wanna get those extra lumens, get some Sanyo XX Eneloops (rechargeable)
Your light will stay brighter longer.

thanks for the informative post!
there are actually a few things about the SWM that are appealing to me:

1) exceptional styling and very solid build ie. good quality finish
2) very thoughtfully spaced modes with great runtimes, if you see Jetbeam PA20 runs for 16hrs @ 16 lumen whereas M20A runs for 24hrs @ 70 lumens! and it also lasts 2.5 hrs @ Max whereas pa20 lasts for 1.5 hrs
3) no issue of parasitic draining in M20A

i have no issues with the clip, seems good to me and if it bothers i will simply detach it....ONLY issue is 180 lumens; one of my most imp. requirement was that the light should be above 200 lumens at Hi.