form vs function

it all seems a bit ridiculous to me. flashlight manufacturers advertising thier lights as tools. no frills. then why are all the 'tool' lights the coolest looking????????? i.e. RA, novatec, nitecore etc. lets face it. we all want the coolest light. argue that, i dare you. honestly, how many people heres lives depend on a flashlight? better yet, how many people here actually use the same edc for more than a year?

my vote form > function

But what is to say that the best function doesn't equal good form? Tools which work extremely well tend to look and feel good also.

fair enough. the only thing that seems a bit ridiculous is manufacturers turning thier nose up at form. i remember reading a post with the guy from arc doing that.

Marduke said:

But what is to say that the best function doesn't equal good form? Tools which work extremely well tend to look and feel good also.

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Totally agree.

Surefire's L4 is the light that fits my hand the best, and it is this ergonomic construction that also makes it look good.

Just because something looks cool doesn't mean form > function.

Look at a fighter jet, they look undoubtedly cool, but they were designed with function in mind, they just happen to look cool at the end.

The Novatac has a functional design, sure it looks cool, but it was designed to be a good flashlight not a cool one.

/\ i disagree with that statement. i believe novatec wanted the light to look cool. and without a doubt the government wants theyre best jets to look cool!

but i also agree: its not a mistake that devices that perfom well i think are cool, which is kind of hard to explain but i think that in itself makes me think it looks cool. is that what your saying?

arent good flashlights the cool ones?

perhaps cool is too loose of a term. but i dont know what else to use.


also noteworthy before we bring fighter jets into it, the form > function statement was based on flashlights only.

ClarkWGrizwald said:

/\ i disagree with that statement. i believe novatec wanted the light to look cool. and without a doubt the government wants theyre best jets to look cool!

but i also agree: its not a mistake that devices that perfom well i think are cool, which is kind of hard to explain but i think that in itself makes me think it looks cool. is that what your saying?


also noteworthy before we bring fighter jets into it, the form > function statement was based on flashlights only.

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So you're saying they sacrifice aerodynamics to make a jet look cool?

And I was using it as an analogy, not trying to throw the thread off track.

sometimes good form aids in function. there are times when form and function go hand-in-hand. of course, there are times where form and function are set worlds apart.

ClarkWGrizwald said:

...i dare you. honestly, how many people heres lives depend on a flashlight?...

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Many. Mine has. The lives and body parts of others have also depended on my lights, too. I may only assume from your OP that your life never depends on your light. That is allowed here but it's a real mistake to project your needs and experiences onto all other users. The world is quite a bit bigger than that.

ClarkWGrizwald said:

...better yet, how many people here actually use the same edc for more than a year?...

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Many. I do. Here's how it works for me -- I buy lights that will do the job and I don't buy crap. That means that two or more years later those same lights will still do the same tasks I bought them for regardless of what new lights are currently in fashon. As hard as it may be for some to imagine I do it this way intentionally. I call it...cool.

I for one do not buy lights from SF just for it being cool. I test them out and when I feel that they do not conform to my needs, I let them go. I do depend my lights heavily in my work so I do have specific needs which my current lineup are able to provide...............except for the M6 though, that for show only and it does look super cool doing it!

I dont get the lights mentionned as "form" optimized :thinking:
They all are more or less function optimized.

For a "cool" form optimized light, look at the ad up in the middle of the page, sometimes showing a Gatlight.
Now THIS is FORM optimized and probably looks "cool" to someone.

My find is, that its unnecesary impractical because of the added things and totally useless therefore.
imho its a better example of "form optimized"

ClarkWGrizwald said:

/\ i disagree with that statement. i believe novatec wanted the light to look cool.

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Novatac acquired the design off the shelf from HDS. The Novatac light is an "upgrade" of the HDS series, unmistakeably similar in appearance.

Function over form for me, in most cases.

Take the Photon ReX. I really dislike the form/looks of this light...BUT when it comes to function, I love it.

function >>>> form for me.

Beauty is skin deep, and, well, you know the rest.

I think we can all agree that function is the prime reason we flashaholics buy a particular light. The "cool" part is definitely in the eye of the beholder.

Geoff

My collection is fairly small due to the criteria for having them; each must fill a role. My dad taught me to "Always use the right tool for the job". So, function is king but form is also a function.
I EDC'd a Jetbeam MkIIx for nearly 2 years because of it's function/performance and for its [form] factor. It has not "saved my life" but it did save the day by helping me change a tire at night on a dark mountain road. A Jet I Mk IBS replaced it for the same reasons; functional (improvement) and identical form.
In the case of the RAW NS I just picked up, form was the first consideration. It's pretty, small and has green Trits. However, its form lends to its function in the way I use it. It lives on my night stand, looks great, takes up little space, can be found in total darkness, always turns on in low and can still illuminate the whole room on high. THE perfect shelf queen!

Form & function go "Hand-In-Hand".

If a light looks ugly to me I'm not gonna buy it... doesn't matter how great it can function.

Its just that I already have flashlights, if I'm buying "another one" then looks will definitely come in to play.

Luckily the good looking ones function pretty darn well around here.

Designing a light to look cool doesn't really affect function unless they just get plain silly.

Heat sinking fins have a very real purpose, but also make a flashlight look neat.
Knurling has a very real purpose, but gives a flashlight a "cool" appearance.
Various texturing in strategic locations serves a real purpose, but gives a flashlight character.
Anti-roll designs serve a purpose, but make a flashlight look more attractive
GITD tailcaps serve a very real purpose, and make the flashlight look more unique.

I live my life in the belief that every tool I carry with me could potentially save my life, or the life of someone around me. It's not a question of whether or not is does end up saving a life, it's a question of whether you have that tool ready if that situation arises.

Be prepared for "ifs"

Eric

I love a light that is both functioning well and looking awesome, but thats always a relative term, after all the old saying goes, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" I mean take the Ra Clicky for example, that thing is BUTT UGLY, but I know it will perform better than just about any comparable light, and because of that, its beautiful to me:twothumbs

Also, take the Nitecore D10, thats a light that does its job awesomely and looks very cool also. They are few and far between, but lights with good form and function are the best:naughty: