cme,
If it's any help, I've had a 9N for years, and I've been very happy with it. It has a 140 lumen main light, and a 20 lumen secondary lamp. The smaller light gets a lot of use from my duties and I have burned out two assemblies with the main lamp still functioning.
As a side point, I replaced the secondary lamp with a 3mm white LED. It puts out a fair amount of light for near field illumination, and it lasts more than 6 hours on a charge. Either way I think it's a great light. I think the main lamp is comparable to the field projected by the M3.
But the ergonomics of the M3 is better. It fits the hand better and is easier to use in almost every way.
Anyway, I hope that helps.