This light kinda ticks me off.....

Before I didn't think anything one way or the other about JetBeam, now they're on my "do not buy" list. Aside from subtle differences, this a copy of a M3T....

http://www.jetbeam.com.cn/links/pro/m1x.aspx


*Changed link to actual companies site instead of retailer*

so, whats the problem?

There are really only so many ways to shape a flashlight within certain form factors. If you aren't going to buy a whole brand of lights simply because one of their lights looks like another light from another company, then you might be missing out on a lot.

Isn't the SureFire an incandescent model????

Mjolnir said:

There are really only so many ways to shape a flashlight within certain form factors. If you aren't going to buy a whole brand of lights simply because one of their lights looks like another light from another company, then you might be missing out on a lot.

Click to expand...

Sorry, no, this is a blatant rip-off. The fins, body knurling, and brand markings are all design 'flourishes' by Surefire which aren't important to the functionality, etc.

Jetbeam basically copied the M3T body design wholesale and then added a few things to make it their own.

I was not interested in Jetbeam then, and I still am not now.

Mjolnir said:

There are really only so many ways to shape a flashlight within certain form factors. ...

Click to expand...

Exactly... trying to say it's a 'copy' is crazy; it is nothing like an M3T despite any cosmetic similarities. You want a handheld light, but it needs a big head because of the emitter... what do you get... this quite unimaginative but functional design. Who made the first complete straight cylindrical design? Was it a some design genius, no someone that just figured out the reflector was not much bigger than the battery and it would be economical to make. How many have used the design since? Crazy!

I see nothing similar but limited aesthetics. And honestly, how different do you expect a flashlight to look? Can you describe how you would design a 3 or 4 CR123A flashlight with a large turbo head so that it would look nothing like a M3T?

4 fins, lip, 2 fins.

Any other similarities? Not that I can think of :/. Sure, it'd be nice to see some kind of imagination in the design, but how could they get the fins in without being seen as copying SF? This isn't taking business from SF as this clearly isn't a copy- LED vs incan, but more a light that it could be argued SF should have released themselves.

Wow, you guys are looking at the bigger picture, of the overall shape.
That's not the problem.
Look at the design flourishes.
The way the bezel is textured.
The fins/ribs on the bezel-body join.
The logo and knurling placement on the forward body section.
The look of the tailcap.

If you do not see the blatant rip-off then you are not looking carefully at the little details. There may only be "so many ways" to make a 3x turbohead but certainly it seems OTHER COMPANIES are capable of doing just fine without copying the Surefire M3T look.

Anybody (manufacturers) can beef up specs, but some companies actually pay for designers to give their lights distinct looks. When others copy a very distinct look or design they are ripping off the work of the designer.

I came to the light... said:

I see nothing similar but limited aesthetics. And honestly, how different do you expect a flashlight to look? Can you describe how you would design a 3 or 4 CR123A flashlight with a large turbo head so that it would look nothing like a M3T?

Click to expand...

Start up a cad program and try to design your own 3 cr123 light; sure, it's not rocket science but I'll give you a half an hour max before you realize the amount of engineering that went into the M3t and odds are, your creation won't look anywhere even remotely close to one unless you were to blatantly copy either its functions, its aesthetics or both.

Ending up with similar results based on the same line of thinking is one thing, but this is just just obvious copying with little efforts to conceal it.

You are free to think and do whatever you want about it but I share carrot and KDOG3's feelings in that I won't support an unethical company regardless of how good their products are.

Flashlight:
1. Head
2. Body
3. Tail

Even if the design is completly identical, there are A LOT of difference in functionality:
Jetbeam: 450lms output / 100mins / $150
Surefire: 225lms output / 20mins / $330

I understand your guys's love for SF, and I have to admit they DO look alike. But it is also a fact that the M3T was released many years ago and uses relatively old tech (Incan), providing minumin efficiency compared to the Jetbeam. Yeah, it is almost a copycat, but it is a better investment and if I'm gonna buy a flashlight, sure I'll go for the most useful one.

not buying a light because of superficial design similarities does not seem like the best thing to do from a consumer standpoint. So it looks like a surefire. So what? Does it make it perform any worse? Does it make it break more easily? Probably not. Are you saying that the jetbeam is lazy because they copied surefire, and you don't want to buy from a company with lazy designers? I really don't care where the design from a flashlight came from, as long as it works and feels the way I want it to.
If they had copied some novel feature of surefire's I might feel differently, but it isn't as if fins and knurling are hard to design.

Flashlights are not art. They are tools, meant for a practical purpose. the design is a superficial aspect of the light that is only meant to make it look pleasing. Jetbeam is not some sleazy company just because they made a light with similar aesthetics to surefire. Unimportant outer design aspects may be similar, but the internals of the light seem completely different.
Take a look at cars: many manufacturers copy grill designs and overall shapes form each other, but ti doesn't change the fact that the cars are still different.

@ richard
While your reasoning is understandable, this is anything but some irrational brand-loyalism argument.

Other makers can offer the same package with the same mc-e efficient led that'll run for over an hour for three times brighter than an incan lamp for the same price without stealing someone else's design and I would immediately applaud their work.

People's care-meter is easily influenced based on who's on the receiving end of the whole deal. Would you also buy a perfectly new ipod at 50% off if you knew it were stolen from a truck?

imitation is the highest form of flattery. SF should be flattered. that light looks like an m3t no dought about that. they are still diiferent after all, pretty is as pretty does.
last friday i saw a mercedes 230 and i did'nt realize that it was'nt a BMW until i saw the emblem on the trunk. as long as jetbeam does'nt label the thing "safire" or something like that then no harm.

You shouldn't let a light tick you off, it is after all just a flashlight. WOOOOSAH, rubb you're ears and take ten deep breaths, you'll be ok.

Looking only at the aspect that we have one company copying the exterior design of another and selling a different product within these design parameters has different consequences, IMHO.

First ... the light can be confused with the SF offering. If this is intentional or not, it can cause issues for those who are less educated than we are.

Second ... the performance and perceived value of the two offerings will bleed into the other, meaning people buying this thinking it is SF and vice versa will think differently of the manufacturer, and not because of their own product, but because of the product of the other.

Third ... a company doing such a copy on purpose shows questionable business ethics. If they have no problem doing this, I can imagine a lot of other things they are also capable of.

I won't do business with such a company as this design copy's negative implications are not worth my money.
It's not like they couldn't have done it differently, they didn't want to. As a consequence, I don't want to have anything to do with them.

Just to point out the obvious copy to all those in this thread who are not familiar with the FS M3T:





bernie


P.S.: the head scallops are copied from the KT1.




P.P.S.: not that I wouldn't want that light. ... as it sounds very interesting and "just right" indeed.

It varies from person to person where you draw the line. For me, this is approaching it, but I'm going to cut jetbeam a break here. All of their other products offer a distinct design, unique features, and good quality construction. If they made several direct copies of newer Surefire designs, and or they copied more than the aesthetics, I'd probably lose a lot of respect for them, but after this long, there have been so many lights that looked similar to this, that I don't have a huge problem with it. If anything, this is good for surefire. I can't imagine they sell many M-4s anymore. So a good brand likie jetbeam copying one of their body designs just shows how iconic Surefire is and it kind of detracts from the reputation of jetbeam. Things would be different if they made a habit of it though.

I think alot goes to "intent". I think Jetbeam decided to use the M3T body type because of the MC-E. They want people to think: Wow, a SF M3T looking light that is brighter and cheaper. "That sounds good".

I think it is making money off someone elses design looks by making it your own. They know there is little SF can do about it. Let me ask this: If Pelican or Inova came out with the same light, do you think there would trouble in the air?

I suspect so.

This is just my 2 cents. I can understand the opposite opinions being expressed in this thread. It's good to hear from all points of view. YMMV

Kiessling said:

P.S.: the head scallops are copied from the KT1.

Click to expand...

Please! Although JB are getting a bit close to the mark by copying the general design of the M3T, I think saying the scalloping is a direct copy of another light is a bit silly. How many other lights are there out there with similar scallops? It is possible that 2 people, completely unrelated, come up with a very similar idea... in this case, scalloping can help give a form of anti roll if done properly (which I hope it is).