I myself am becoming hooked on the incan lights. I didnt really get into this hobby heavy until right when leds were becoming popular. I stayed an led man for many years, but now that the fascination of the leds is wearing off, I find myself wanting better color resolution and a warmer beam. There are a few High CRI lights out there. Well, maybe just a couple. But Im just finding the light from an incan preferable now as I look more for better lighting characteristics rather than just raw horsepower. And a low output incan seems to light up just as well as a hopped up led can. You cant get more High CRI than real light. At least not yet.
Do you think incandescents will remain popular?
- Thread starter Brasso
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HotWire
Flashlight Enthusiast
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Yup. Hotwires are the way to go. Read about them here. Use the search engine. Consider making a simple ROP first. You will be glad you did. Bright light & good color rendition. Look in the incandescent stickies and look for ROP incan mods. Good luck!
Imon
Enlightened
I'm a big incan fan myself but I think asking incan lovers if they think incans will last is asking a question to which the answer is already known. I don't think it'll remain (as) popular in the future. I think the number of people who buy incandescent lights will continue to shrink until it reaches a point when you have only the die-hard fans remaining (such as myself 
)
Actually, I think we're close to that point right now - funny too since on a lot of flashlight you see at the store will have "New! LED technology!" written on the packaging.
Even among flashaholics the sharp divide is clear to see - at this current moment in time the LED Flashlight board has 140 viewers and the incan board only 9 viewers.
So I think it's sad that incans don't get as much love as they deserve but we shouldn't fool ourselves into thinking they'll remain popular. :sigh:
)Actually, I think we're close to that point right now - funny too since on a lot of flashlight you see at the store will have "New! LED technology!" written on the packaging.
Even among flashaholics the sharp divide is clear to see - at this current moment in time the LED Flashlight board has 140 viewers and the incan board only 9 viewers.
So I think it's sad that incans don't get as much love as they deserve but we shouldn't fool ourselves into thinking they'll remain popular. :sigh:
nightcacher
Newly Enlightened
Now with batteries having higher capacities it's making run times a lot longer. I have a 12/20 watt duel bike light that needs a new battery pack. A new 12 volt battery pack is around $150 so I'm going to look at rebuilding my old one using 18650's. Guess I will need a new charger also.
jellydonut
Enlightened
I don't think they're going to remain popular. Popularity, however, is not a particularly good measure of anything except potential for high sales.
Big V8s aren't popular in cars any more - doesn't stop dragsters and NASCAR Cup cars from using them. (with carburetors and iron blocks, even) It's going to remain a notable niche, I think.
Big V8s aren't popular in cars any more - doesn't stop dragsters and NASCAR Cup cars from using them. (with carburetors and iron blocks, even) It's going to remain a notable niche, I think.
KiwiMark
Flashlight Enthusiast
LEDs are great, they use less power and produce more light, they are what I buy for EDC because they are smaller & lighter for the amount of light they produce.
But around home I almost never grab an LED light - I prefer the output from my incans. Sure, they don't fit in my pockets and they need big batteries to get a decent run time, but why do I care about that for an 'around the home' light? My Mag 2D ROP low has a run time around 2 hours and puts out plenty of nice tint, high CRI light - what's not to like about that? When I go camping I take LED lights & at least one incan - the incan CRI & tint just works better with the greens & browns in the bush.
For the general public the LED lights seem MUCH more popular.
For me incandescents will remain popular for a VERY long time!
But around home I almost never grab an LED light - I prefer the output from my incans. Sure, they don't fit in my pockets and they need big batteries to get a decent run time, but why do I care about that for an 'around the home' light? My Mag 2D ROP low has a run time around 2 hours and puts out plenty of nice tint, high CRI light - what's not to like about that? When I go camping I take LED lights & at least one incan - the incan CRI & tint just works better with the greens & browns in the bush.
For the general public the LED lights seem MUCH more popular.
For me incandescents will remain popular for a VERY long time!
hoongern
Enlightened
When it comes to hand-held flashlights, definitely a no. Incans will not stay popular at all. When you say "popular", it generally refers to the general public.
However, that does not mean that incans won't stay good, or preferred by certain individuals. I definitely prefer them myself for many tasks, but it's inevitable that they will become less popular over time - given the advancements in LEDs.
Now, if the question was "will incans remain high-performance and cutting edge" - I would generally say yes. Especially when it comes to light quality.
However, that does not mean that incans won't stay good, or preferred by certain individuals. I definitely prefer them myself for many tasks, but it's inevitable that they will become less popular over time - given the advancements in LEDs.
Now, if the question was "will incans remain high-performance and cutting edge" - I would generally say yes. Especially when it comes to light quality.
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calipsoii
Flashlight Enthusiast
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Popular with the general public? Probably not.
Popular with flashlight enthusiasts? Definitely.
As efficient as LED's are, there's something to be said for the rich colors a good incandescent light gives. Photographers, museum curators and art exhibitors know this. Whether manufacturers will continue to produce (or even support) incandescent flashlights is anyone's guess. A few months ago I would have said "yes!" but now that Surefire's discontinued the incan A2... :thumbsdow
Popular with flashlight enthusiasts? Definitely.
As efficient as LED's are, there's something to be said for the rich colors a good incandescent light gives. Photographers, museum curators and art exhibitors know this. Whether manufacturers will continue to produce (or even support) incandescent flashlights is anyone's guess. A few months ago I would have said "yes!" but now that Surefire's discontinued the incan A2... :thumbsdow
afdk
Newly Enlightened
:thumbsup: Still like my UK-SL6, very bright hot spot running on 6 C cells. This was my first high quality light!
Chrontius
Flashlight Enthusiast
Who are you kidding?
There will always be room in the dollar store for plastic 2D incans sold without batteries.
There will always be room in the dollar store for plastic 2D incans sold without batteries.
I spent some time with a SureFire LEO Rep today.
We talked about "hotwires". He said SF is heading toward mostly LED's.
He thinks they will still make the incandscent bulbs for a long time, as nothing penetrates darkness like a "hotwire"...
Me I am going to stock up on hotwires for my favorites, and shift over to LED,s for my everyday carry use, 2 main lights one with one 123 battery the other with two 123 batteries, both will be SureFire, with 2 light levels, "saving" my hotwires for the woods, where their color rendition is a big plus when tracking blood. I have found the Blue LED WORTHLESS for tracking blood. It might be just my eyes, but it does not work for me...
The M6 however works GREAT for tracking blood.
We talked about "hotwires". He said SF is heading toward mostly LED's.
He thinks they will still make the incandscent bulbs for a long time, as nothing penetrates darkness like a "hotwire"...
Me I am going to stock up on hotwires for my favorites, and shift over to LED,s for my everyday carry use, 2 main lights one with one 123 battery the other with two 123 batteries, both will be SureFire, with 2 light levels, "saving" my hotwires for the woods, where their color rendition is a big plus when tracking blood. I have found the Blue LED WORTHLESS for tracking blood. It might be just my eyes, but it does not work for me...
The M6 however works GREAT for tracking blood.
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KiwiMark
Flashlight Enthusiast
Who are you kidding?
There will always be room in the dollar store for plastic 2D incans sold without batteries.
Maybe, but the cheap lights in the supermarket are LEDs now and the cheap lights at the hardware store, also LEDs.
For really cheap lights:
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/black-flashlight-keychain-22000mcd-10-pack-1253
That's under 45c each for an LED light with batteries.
I am glad I have a stockpile of ROP bulbs and also a bunch of Osram bulbs, though I might think about buying a bunch more of my favourite hotwire bulb - the Osram 64458.
jayflash
Flashlight Enthusiast
Monocrom is probably correct. I suspect the cost of incan lamps will eventually eliminate all but the costliest, most specialized, flashlights. I've several, otherwise, nice incan lights that I cannot justify paying as much for the lamp as the light originally cost. Getting only a few hours from $15 lamps isn't worth it for me. OTOH, I'm still using an E2e, and G2 because I got a deal on the lamps and my M6 because ... it's an M6 -- to heck with its LA cost.
With us? . . . Yup.
Everyone else in the world? . . . No.
But screw them. What do they know?
Exactly. I second your opinion.
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