After finding how much I enjoy my Quark AA2 Tactical and experiencing the usefulness of this little gem, my friend and I decided to buy a couple of lights in this category for our wives to carry in their purses. After doing some research and realizing that neither of the women would use or need all the modes of the Quark, we decided to give the less expensive JetBeam and Klarus a try. I called Goinggear up to order three of the Jetbeam BA20 lights but after talking to the salesman and asking if they carried any lights in the same category and price range, he suggested that I take a look at the Klarus P2A as well. Very similar in size, weight, performance and UI. I ordered two of the Jetbeams and one Klarus. Very good service from Goinggear as the lights arrived in only 2 days from Georga to Utah. Shipping was free as the minimum was reached with this order and was shipped by Priority Mail.
Both lights have similar feel with the Jetbeam having a little more aggressive knarling. The rear clicky switches feel exactly the same. I decided to do some testing against these two lights using the Quark as a comparison.
First off, the Quark is about 1/3 inch shorter than either of the other two. Both the Jetbeam and Klarus have the ability to tailstand but both are very wobbly. The surface has to be smooth and level. The Quark being a tactical model will not tailstand. The advantage goes to the Jetbeam and Klarus here.
An advantage goes to the Quark in the areas of knarling and pocket clip. The Quark also comes with a holster as the other two don't. The Quark has a slightly more solid feel to me but not by a big margin.
The clicky switch takes much more pressure to click on the Quark than the other two which both have a very soft feel to the clicky button and switch. Although I'm not sure, I imagine the switch would last longer and be a little more durable in the Quark but I really don't know.
The beam tint of the Quark is warmer than either the Jetbeam or Klarus with the Jetbeam being a little warmer than the Klarus. In the daylight the Klarus at it's listed 245 lumens looks to be a little brighter than the second place Jetbeam with it's 270 lumens or the Quark with it's listed 205 lumens. There is not a lot of difference between the three. At night I tested all three shining on an old shed that is a measured 65 yards from my front porch. The Klarus had a slight advantage in throw at that distance. The Quark has the most spill and a smoother beam at closer distances but all three are very similar. As far as the total light output of the three, I would give the Klarus a slight advantage because I personally like throw lights. I was able to see a building 113 yards away with all three lights with the Klarus having a slight advantage here also. In my opinion, this is very good performance from all three of these lights and better than I expected when I bought them.
On low mode the Klarus is listed at 20 lumens with a burn time of 33 hours.
The Jetbeam is listed at 30 lumens for 35 hours.
As a comparison, the Quark was set on the medium setting and is listed at 22 lumens for 24+ hours. In reality, I could tell almost no difference in any of these three with the exception of a slight difference in tint. The only advantage here would go to the Quark as it has the ability to be programmed into other modes in its secondary spot.
Where I really got a surprise was in the burn time comparison and the heat generated by these three lights each set on high mode.
I loaded each light with two freshly charged Eneloop 2000 NiMh batteries.
I was very surprised that the Quark got much hotter than the Jetbeam or Klarus. Not just a little bit hotter but much hotter. The Jetbeam and the Klarus never did get much more than warm and both were about the same.
The Quark shut down to low mode after 1 hour and 10 minutes. Both the Jetbeam and the Klarus were still going strong.
The Klarus started to get noticeably dimmer at about 1 hour and 40 minutes.
The Jetbeam started to get noticeably dimmer at 1 hour and 43 minutes. Both were far superior to the Quark in burn time.
I didn't do a test on low mode as all three have very long burn time in this mode.
Conclusion
If I could only own one, it would probably be the Quark simply because of the extra modes available. However, the High and Low modes on the Jetbeam and the Klarus are about perfect in my opinion and would fill about 90% of my needs. Anyone who needs a moonlight mode will want the Quark.
Also to be taken into account is that both the Jetbeam and the Klarus cost $40 and the Quark cost 1/3 more at $60.
My wife will never need or use the extra modes that the Quark has so for her and I'm sure for many others, either the Jetbeam BA20 or the Klarus P2A would be the best choice.
If I had to choose between the Jetbeam and the Klarus, I would give a slight nod to the Klarus. For those who like a little warmer beam, the Jetbeam might be for you. In my opinion, there is hardly a speck of difference between these two lights.
Heck, after a little time with all of these lights, I might even find that I prefer the Klarus over the Quark. The longer burn time, slightly longer throw, tailstand ability and the much cooler body temp. not to mention the lower price of this light just may give it the nod over the Quark. All three look to be excellent lights,
Both lights have similar feel with the Jetbeam having a little more aggressive knarling. The rear clicky switches feel exactly the same. I decided to do some testing against these two lights using the Quark as a comparison.
First off, the Quark is about 1/3 inch shorter than either of the other two. Both the Jetbeam and Klarus have the ability to tailstand but both are very wobbly. The surface has to be smooth and level. The Quark being a tactical model will not tailstand. The advantage goes to the Jetbeam and Klarus here.
An advantage goes to the Quark in the areas of knarling and pocket clip. The Quark also comes with a holster as the other two don't. The Quark has a slightly more solid feel to me but not by a big margin.
The clicky switch takes much more pressure to click on the Quark than the other two which both have a very soft feel to the clicky button and switch. Although I'm not sure, I imagine the switch would last longer and be a little more durable in the Quark but I really don't know.
The beam tint of the Quark is warmer than either the Jetbeam or Klarus with the Jetbeam being a little warmer than the Klarus. In the daylight the Klarus at it's listed 245 lumens looks to be a little brighter than the second place Jetbeam with it's 270 lumens or the Quark with it's listed 205 lumens. There is not a lot of difference between the three. At night I tested all three shining on an old shed that is a measured 65 yards from my front porch. The Klarus had a slight advantage in throw at that distance. The Quark has the most spill and a smoother beam at closer distances but all three are very similar. As far as the total light output of the three, I would give the Klarus a slight advantage because I personally like throw lights. I was able to see a building 113 yards away with all three lights with the Klarus having a slight advantage here also. In my opinion, this is very good performance from all three of these lights and better than I expected when I bought them.
On low mode the Klarus is listed at 20 lumens with a burn time of 33 hours.
The Jetbeam is listed at 30 lumens for 35 hours.
As a comparison, the Quark was set on the medium setting and is listed at 22 lumens for 24+ hours. In reality, I could tell almost no difference in any of these three with the exception of a slight difference in tint. The only advantage here would go to the Quark as it has the ability to be programmed into other modes in its secondary spot.
Where I really got a surprise was in the burn time comparison and the heat generated by these three lights each set on high mode.
I loaded each light with two freshly charged Eneloop 2000 NiMh batteries.
I was very surprised that the Quark got much hotter than the Jetbeam or Klarus. Not just a little bit hotter but much hotter. The Jetbeam and the Klarus never did get much more than warm and both were about the same.
The Quark shut down to low mode after 1 hour and 10 minutes. Both the Jetbeam and the Klarus were still going strong.
The Klarus started to get noticeably dimmer at about 1 hour and 40 minutes.
The Jetbeam started to get noticeably dimmer at 1 hour and 43 minutes. Both were far superior to the Quark in burn time.
I didn't do a test on low mode as all three have very long burn time in this mode.
Conclusion
If I could only own one, it would probably be the Quark simply because of the extra modes available. However, the High and Low modes on the Jetbeam and the Klarus are about perfect in my opinion and would fill about 90% of my needs. Anyone who needs a moonlight mode will want the Quark.
Also to be taken into account is that both the Jetbeam and the Klarus cost $40 and the Quark cost 1/3 more at $60.
My wife will never need or use the extra modes that the Quark has so for her and I'm sure for many others, either the Jetbeam BA20 or the Klarus P2A would be the best choice.
If I had to choose between the Jetbeam and the Klarus, I would give a slight nod to the Klarus. For those who like a little warmer beam, the Jetbeam might be for you. In my opinion, there is hardly a speck of difference between these two lights.
Heck, after a little time with all of these lights, I might even find that I prefer the Klarus over the Quark. The longer burn time, slightly longer throw, tailstand ability and the much cooler body temp. not to mention the lower price of this light just may give it the nod over the Quark. All three look to be excellent lights,