I just got a look at Nichia's current PDF on the NSPW-500BS. They rate the Lot S at 9,200 mcd typical, 11,000 maximum! Now I know why the CREE 5,600 that I have are not as bright compared to the Nichias!
Well Cree 5600's aren't as bright as nichia 5600's as it is. I don't know why, I don't know who's is the more believable rating, but lots of people have said that the cree whites just don't live up to the nichias.
That's at 20 ma. Yes, these are whites. The Lot R are rated at 6,400 mcd at the same 20 ma. Who says you can't get something for nothing! (Of course, you can't, so the S lot must also put out less heat!)
Even though this is good news, it probably is a projection of things to come rather than an actually available item , otherwise, people like ARC would start putting them in their lights
Those Nichia ratings have been in place for months now and the NSPW500BS b2S LED's are commonly shipped by Nichia. It wouldn't surprise me that the current run of Arc AAA's have these LED's in them.