In praise of the Olight M30...

Ray_of_Light

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
May 11, 2003
Messages
1,150
Location
West Midlands, U.K.
I wanted to share this.

I own my Olight M30 not by choice, but by chance. I mean, I didn't voluntarily bought it.
When I received my Olight M20 Titanium, which I voluntarily bought, I was dissatisfied and I decided to return it. I was faced with a choice: get the money back, or get some other lights in exchange. As a good flashaholic, I went for the second solution; I decided an exchange with some other lights available at the local Olight reseller. Among the lights I got in exchange for the M20 Titanium I had returned, there was an M30 Triton.

I wouldn't have ordered the M30 willingfully. I already own two TK30, so I didn't need another MC-E light. In addition, by looking at the reviews here on CPF, I understood the M30 used low frequency PWM to regulate the brightness, and I have always been a firm oppositor of PWM regulated LED lights, because I am very sensitive to the flickering.

Also, the M30 has a parasitic drain, and I avoid to buy lights having this standby power consumption. With a large collection of lights, always kept fed with batteries, I had in the past some displeasing experiences coming from light having standby drain.
(Later, I measured this drain to be very little... 2 uA, about half of the consumption of the protection PCB of a Li-Ion cell).

When I received my M30, I was favourably impressed from its low weight and the compact form factor. Also, the beam proved to be extremely well balanced for indoor use, and very good for outdoor medium distance spotting. The MC-E LED isn't driven hard as in the TK30, but the M30 emits a respectable amount of light.

Now, despite the number of lights we may have at home, when you are outside or on the move, a light is only good as long as you always have it with you. We all know that the need for a powerful light arise casually; while usually you bring a powerful light with you only on a planned basis, because of its weight and size.

Well, I have found that the M30 fullfills this magic spot. It is lightweight and relatively small, in its 3 x 123 (or 2 x 18500) configuration. It fits seamlessly in my carry bag, together with cell phones, pill boxes, swiss knife, IDs, replacement spectacles, contact lenses fluid, and the like.
Actually, it replaced a SF G2 with P60, which I had in my bag since immemorable time.
Yes, now I always have the M30 with me, when I am on the move.

The facts that the M30 uses PWM, it has 2 microamps of parasitic drain, has no flat regulation on 3 x 123, emits an audible noise from the tailcap, and has no lockout - suddendly - are of no importance to me anymore. Due to its small size and weight it can be with me ALWAYS, and having a powerful MC-E light source available at any moment makes me feel very very comfortable.

I may well order another one.

Regards

Anthony
 
Last edited:
Top