LED flashlight manufacture and trends

Has any of you realized the trend most manufacturers are going into for their lights lately? Side switches! And why am I not excited with it? I am not sure of it myself, but I seem to think that it is kind of lame that one manufacturer just have to copy from the other manufacturer, and in the end everybody produces the same stuff. No innovation at all if you were to ask me.

Well, on hindsight just look at how everyone started utilizing tail switches when tail switching was associated with being tactical and cool.

Came another period in time everyone started producing lights that does mode switching by tightening and loosening the head. Seems like the "in" thing then. To be honest, I still kind of like this method of changing output.

Then we come to a period where suddenly everyone is into magnetic control ring lights and whatnot.

Today, side switches. I could be wrong but I believe Zebralight was the first to have implemented side switches for LED lights (I know about Maglight but I mean LED lights). Then everybody seems to be following suit. Surefire with the R1 Lawman, Spark, Jetbeam, Fenix, Klarus, Nitecore, Niteye, and so on. I am kind of getting bored with the "I see, I copy, I do" mentality. Wondering if this is what you guys are feeling? Don't you wish to see something more innovative from the manufacturers? What difference then does it make if every light has a side switch, an XM-L T6, and crenelated bezel?

I think I get what you mean....and to a degree I even agree with your observations. However I feel that with simple products like flashlights, which leave little room for radically different designs to work....how many different ways can you build a flashlight economically that will sell...the moment one manufacturer hits upon a design or feature that suddenly sells millions, well everyone wants a slice.

You are obviously quite young....as I can recall a time not so very long ago when all flashlights in the market utilized a side mounted switch. Some of the models you mentioned have a side mounted switch in addition to the tail switch. The side switch controls modes where as the tail switch controls power. I think it is a good thing to have diversity in the models offered, to have options. I may not choose a light with a side switch myself but I do not think that everyone should be limited to my choice alone.

pjandyho said:

I could be wrong but I believe Zebralight was the first to have implemented side switches for LED lights (I know about Maglight but I mean LED lights).

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Romisen RC-P3 is even older...

Ok, they are not "premium", but they exist

I agree that there is way too much copying going on in flashlight "design". I tend to like side switches, so I'm not so upset that many companies are copying that trait, but other copied traits do annoy me.

FYI: Pelican & UnderwaterKinetics had popular side-switched LED lights years before I even heard of Zebralight or Romisen. I would be almost sure that others did as well.

I like it in the Klarus NT and ST lights where they use head lose/head tight with mode memory on one and not on the other so you always have moon light but not the flashy modes and on Zebra light lights but I don't like the ones that are just used as a clicky to swap through all the modes.I think

I think old Pelican and Mags lights are different from the recent release of multi-mode cylindrical lights with side switches. Company's like Zebra light do what they do and make money on it, where larger companies like jetbeam and Fenix seem to have a light for every category and copy others to fill that niche, sometimes they improve on it and others they don't.

lightfooted said:

You are obviously quite young....

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I am but a humble 38 this year sir , neither old nor young.

ScaryFatKidGT said:

...but I don't like the ones that are just used as a clicky to swap through all the modes.

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I think you just nailed what I was trying to say! I just forgot to mention this point.

I think the trend to huge XM-L emitters in super small hosts with small reflectors is a technological dead end. These 'floody monsters' are a real yawn - short runtimes, no throw - not practical in my book. Give me a 1 x CR123 light with a matched small emitter (eg. XP-G) in a small reflector - practical, better throw makes for a smarter choice. The noobs chasing big lumens and big emitters in pocket lights are steering this whole hobby in the wrong direction. If you want/need big lumens, you really need to buy a bigger light so practical runtimes and sufficient heat sinking can be achieved. Anyway, who needs 400+ floody lumens up close? If your new shiny 'high output' light doesn't have both practical runtimes and sufficient heat sinking, it's merely an expensive toy.

James....

yes, seems that everyone seems to be doing the same thing, but its not just in lights............ I went to an auto show an sat in one of the porsche suv and it was terrible. But their cars are amazing for what they are. They just make what sells........... I sort of think the trends around cpf seem to influence the major production lights.

jimmy1970 said:

I think the trend to huge XM-L emitters in super small hosts with small reflectors is a technological dead end. These 'floody monsters' are a real yawn - short runtimes, no throw - not practical in my book. Give me a 1 x CR123 light with a matched small emitter (eg. XP-G) in a small reflector - practical, better throw makes for a smarter choice. The noobs chasing big lumens and big emitters in pocket lights are steering this whole hobby in the wrong direction. If you want/need big lumens, you really need to buy a bigger light so practical runtimes and sufficient heat sinking can be achieved. Anyway, who needs 400+ floody lumens up close? If your new shiny 'high output' light doesn't have both practical runtimes and sufficient heat sinking, it's merely an expensive toy.

James....

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I agree with this and disagree I have both kinds of lights. But I don't think that high output small lights are wrong, just different. I say this with an HDS rotary as an edc. But if we limit what is to be made, we would not have progression.

jimmy1970 said:

I think the trend to huge XM-L emitters in super small hosts with small reflectors is a technological dead end. These 'floody monsters' are a real yawn - short runtimes, no throw - not practical in my book. Give me a 1 x CR123 light with a matched small emitter (eg. XP-G) in a small reflector - practical, better throw makes for a smarter choice. The noobs chasing big lumens and big emitters in pocket lights are steering this whole hobby in the wrong direction. If you want/need big lumens, you really need to buy a bigger light so practical runtimes and sufficient heat sinking can be achieved. Anyway, who needs 400+ floody lumens up close? If your new shiny 'high output' light doesn't have both practical runtimes and sufficient heat sinking, it's merely an expensive toy.

James....

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Idk I really love my Quark X but yeah I'm really drooling over the XP-G2

I appreciate people replying to my thread, but I despise people taking the opportunity to advertise irrelevant products in my thread. What has landscape lighting and portable lanterns got to do with LED flashlights?

pjandyho said:

I appreciate people replying to my thread, but I despise people taking the opportunity to advertise irrelevant products in my thread. What has landscape lighting and portable lanterns got to do with LED flashlights?

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The spammer has been banned, post like this should be reported and the staff will take care of the problem - Norm

Norm said:

The spammer has been banned, post like this should be reported and the staff will take care of the problem - Norm

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Thanks Norm!

I think we will be seeing more lights with multiple heads like the XT20 in the future. They will play with different reflectors on a single light for optimum beam shapes.

jimmy1970 said:

I think the trend to huge XM-L emitters in super small hosts with small reflectors is a technological dead end. These 'floody monsters' are a real yawn - short runtimes, no throw - not practical in my book. Give me a 1 x CR123 light with a matched small emitter (eg. XP-G) in a small reflector - practical, better throw makes for a smarter choice. The noobs chasing big lumens and big emitters in pocket lights are steering this whole hobby in the wrong direction. If you want/need big lumens, you really need to buy a bigger light so practical runtimes and sufficient heat sinking can be achieved. Anyway, who needs 400+ floody lumens up close? If your new shiny 'high output' light doesn't have both practical runtimes and sufficient heat sinking, it's merely an expensive toy.

James....

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Most of those small EDC lights with big lumen output are multi mode. They don't have to be run on max all the time until they get hot. Having more output than the light can sustain is useful for momentary usage.
The side switch thing does seem to be the trend the last few months. It seems every small side switch flashlight I own has turned on in my pocket unexpectedly. If one of the small side switch lights turns on at max in a pack and gets hot there could be a problem.

igoman said:

I think we will be seeing more lights with multiple heads like the XT20 in the future. They will play with different reflectors on a single light for optimum beam shapes.

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I am not sure what is in the horizon but I do hope it is interesting.

Lou Minescence said:

The side switch thing does seem to be the trend the last few months. It seems every small side switch flashlight I own has turned on in my pocket unexpectedly. If one of the small side switch lights turns on at max in a pack and gets hot there could be a problem.

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Agreed. I don't really feel secure throwing the Surefire R1 Lawman in my bag. Even with the tailcap locked out, the light is still fully operable via the side switch. Silly design if you ask me.

While I agree with the OP that there is a lot of copying of ideas....


The side switch thing is all about demand. People were crying for side switches, and the manufacturers responded :thumbsup:

I think that some of the "copying" is because it's likely that many/most of the brands of Chinese flashlights are all made at the same factory as "OEM" for different brand names.

You don't see this "copying" by US manufacturers, but you do see it in US based brand names which have Chinese lights OEM manufactured for them, and sold under their brand names.

Regarding trends, I definitely see trends to keep up with the newest LED technology, and I think that is a necessity for all flashlight makers. But the switch locations and magnetic ring control, and stuff like that, are basically marketing approaches. They try different features, and see what catches on. Then the other brands tend to play along with the market trend, for as long as it lasts.

Regarding the discussion above about Zebralight starting the recent side-switch trend, that might be so. But, I don't think that people were buying the Zebralights for their side switches. They were buying the Zebralights for the small size and the high output on one Eneloop, and maybe some even liked the complex UI. But the side-switch and its problems were "accepted" because they wanted the other features. So if other makers went to the side switch because of Zebralight sales, I think they made a mis-judgment of why people bought Zebralights. IMO.