Smith & Wesson Galaxy 3 LED...don't waste your money

[medicmerlynn]

I was at Academy a little bit ago and saw this light… (Academy is a sporting goods store for those who don't know)… It was originally $15 and for the holiday it was marked down to $6 so I thought what the heck…

The package is a clear plastic over a cardstock flyer. The light is aluminum, which is about the *only* thing it has going for it and runs on 2 AA Energizer batteries, which are included.

It has a smooth reflector with 3 LEDS and is fixed focus. It has a side-click on/off switch which is easy to operate but makes the light a bit cumbersome to maneuver without holding it what I would call 'traditional' style I'm used to with much larger, older lights.

The light that comes out is a depressively insulting mock of Smith & Wesson craftsmanship. I'm an avid hunter and shoot quite a bit. Let's just say they need to stick to guns. I don't have a meter but the light is about the same as my P3D Q5 on low with a much wider hotspot that seems to fade out of existence. The P3D is much tighter and seems to throw a bit further.

The color of the Galaxy is a pronounced cool blue, at least to my eye, which is okay but I prefer warmer color renditions. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this light yet but was thinking about keeping it in the glove box as an emergency light… The more I think about doing this though, the more I realize it would probably struggle at even that.

Overall, the light is depressing. I easily expected more from Smith & Wesson. My final thoughts… it is DEFINITELY NOT worth the $15 and paying $6 is still a bit of a stretch. I will be looking for a glove box light from one of the other big names…

Smith & Wesson Galaxy 3 LED - :thumbsdow

(PS – I hope this review was a dramatic improvement over my first P3D Q5 review… please let me know)

 

[Gunner12]

It is much better then your P3D review before cleaning up.

Thanks for telling me about a light I should avoid(any chance of returning it?).

 

[medicmerlynn]

Gunner12, I was thinking about returning it... but it was only $6... and it would honestly cost me that in gas just to get back up there so I'll probably just keep it. I'll probably throw it in a drawer or the gun cabinet or utility closet to use when the power goes out around the house...

 

[Bonky]

keep in mind S&W doesn't actually make anything other than guns. Like the S&W knives, they just license the name to marketers who usually throw it on cheap imported stuff that's marked up about 10X.

I bought a few S&W knives at a dramatic discount for $10 a knife. Decent quality for that price, but usually S&W knives go for $30-$50. Definitely NOT worth it at that price.

S&W has a fine reputation (generally) for firearms but their other stuff is usually crap.

 

[jefflrrp]

I have the 3-LED light you were talking about, and another 3-LED w/ a red LED. I find them adequate for house purposes. Good soft beam, enough to go around a darkened house without waking anybody up. They work, but for only that purpose.