Ok, where do I begin. I have never had any experience with JetBeam flashlights before, but my first impression is not good.
I purchased both the WL-S1 and WL-S2 flashlights. Right off the bat, the marketing material, and descriptions on the boxes are terribly misleading. I had an idea this would be the case, but I was still curious about the expanding tube on the WL-S1, so I went ahead and bought them for $40 each. Each light by themselves doesn't seem bad for $40.
I'm going to try and explain this as best I can without being confusing.
Starting with the WL-S1. This light comes with the shorter tube. This tube will only accept a single CR123, 16340, AA or 14500. The light worked well, and max lumens is 770 with a 16340 battery. Not the 900 lumens on the box. It's really cool how the tube expands to accept a single 14500 or AA. Also, the spring in the tube keeps the AA snuggly in place. There is no rattle whatsoever. I've been looking for a light like this because I like the performance of the 16340, and I like that I could pick up an AA battery at any store and still have a useful light in a pinch. No extra extension tube needed. The drawback to this light is that the head is awfully large for a single CR123/AA light. Also, when the tube is expanded I'm not so sure how that affects the waterproof rating. There is definitely some space between the tubes. All-in-all the S1 isn't so bad.
Things get worse with the WL-S2. This light has the longer tube. The tube only accepts 1x18650 or 2xCR123/16340 batteries. Supposedly you get 900 lumens with 2x16340 batteries. I say supposedly because when I put my Eagletac 16340 batteries in the light it would just flash quickly and not work. I tried some Tenergy RCR123 batteries and the same thing happened. I tried some Duracell CR123 primaries and they worked. (900 lumens) The difference in size between the three battery types were minuscule. So, I don't think it's the size of the batteries. Also all three battery types rattled in the tube like crazy. I feel they could have made the spring a little stronger to accommodate this. My Eagletac 18650 battery worked just fine, but at a lower lumen output of 790. A small difference in my opinion, but worth noting. When I switched the tubes between the two light heads, the results were the same. The marketing material claims it can handle 2x16340, so I don't understand why it would flash and then not work.
Another thing to mention is the misleading packaging. If you read either box, it says each light will work with any combination of 1xCR123/16340/AA or 18650 or 2x CR123/16340/AA. Obviously, this couldn't be further from the truth. There's no mention of needing separate tubes. As I said, I suspected this going in, but I guarantee a lot of people will be misled.
A few more observations.
Selling the larger head with the smaller tube doesn't make any sense. If you want a single CR123 light, you most likely want it to be compact. The larger head would have made more sense on the larger tube. It boggles the mind to try and understand what they were thinking.
JetBeam really gave no thought to how they were selling these lights. OR, they want to "force" people to buy each light and then configure each how you want.
The included manual is very poorly written. I don't know if that's just a JetBeam thing or not.
JetBeam are misleading their customers in a few ways. As I mentioned only one configuration can achieve 900 lumens and as shipped one of the lights will never achieve that in spite of what the box claims. The marketing material on their website actually mentions three configurations. I assume the smaller head with the smaller tube will eventually be sold also. This is the configuration most people would want I think. Again, of the three configurations they show, only one will achieve 900 lumens, yet JetBeam has no problem plastering 900 LUMENS on each box.
The bottom line is there are really two flashlights being sold. For all intents and purposes, one is a 1xCR123/AA light, and the other is a 2xCR123/1x18650 light. Guess what? I have a few lights I could pair and be able to use all the batteries mentioned in their marketing material. Can I swap the heads and tubes with them, no. Is that really that useful? Maybe. I'm sure there are some differences in throw and flood.
I may be nitpicking more than anything, but you can't deny that the marketing is quite misleading. Nothing new with these companies, but this time seems a little egregious. What I would like is the WL-S2 with the shorter tube. The real story here is the expandable CR123/AA tube. Everything else is the same old story, but JetBeam tried to make it bigger than it is. I would have respected them more if they sold the heads and tubes separately, and been more clear on the output for each configuration; including what batteries you use for each.
Curious as to what others think...
Sent from my iPad using Candlepowerforums
I purchased both the WL-S1 and WL-S2 flashlights. Right off the bat, the marketing material, and descriptions on the boxes are terribly misleading. I had an idea this would be the case, but I was still curious about the expanding tube on the WL-S1, so I went ahead and bought them for $40 each. Each light by themselves doesn't seem bad for $40.
I'm going to try and explain this as best I can without being confusing.
Starting with the WL-S1. This light comes with the shorter tube. This tube will only accept a single CR123, 16340, AA or 14500. The light worked well, and max lumens is 770 with a 16340 battery. Not the 900 lumens on the box. It's really cool how the tube expands to accept a single 14500 or AA. Also, the spring in the tube keeps the AA snuggly in place. There is no rattle whatsoever. I've been looking for a light like this because I like the performance of the 16340, and I like that I could pick up an AA battery at any store and still have a useful light in a pinch. No extra extension tube needed. The drawback to this light is that the head is awfully large for a single CR123/AA light. Also, when the tube is expanded I'm not so sure how that affects the waterproof rating. There is definitely some space between the tubes. All-in-all the S1 isn't so bad.
Things get worse with the WL-S2. This light has the longer tube. The tube only accepts 1x18650 or 2xCR123/16340 batteries. Supposedly you get 900 lumens with 2x16340 batteries. I say supposedly because when I put my Eagletac 16340 batteries in the light it would just flash quickly and not work. I tried some Tenergy RCR123 batteries and the same thing happened. I tried some Duracell CR123 primaries and they worked. (900 lumens) The difference in size between the three battery types were minuscule. So, I don't think it's the size of the batteries. Also all three battery types rattled in the tube like crazy. I feel they could have made the spring a little stronger to accommodate this. My Eagletac 18650 battery worked just fine, but at a lower lumen output of 790. A small difference in my opinion, but worth noting. When I switched the tubes between the two light heads, the results were the same. The marketing material claims it can handle 2x16340, so I don't understand why it would flash and then not work.
Another thing to mention is the misleading packaging. If you read either box, it says each light will work with any combination of 1xCR123/16340/AA or 18650 or 2x CR123/16340/AA. Obviously, this couldn't be further from the truth. There's no mention of needing separate tubes. As I said, I suspected this going in, but I guarantee a lot of people will be misled.
A few more observations.
Selling the larger head with the smaller tube doesn't make any sense. If you want a single CR123 light, you most likely want it to be compact. The larger head would have made more sense on the larger tube. It boggles the mind to try and understand what they were thinking.
JetBeam really gave no thought to how they were selling these lights. OR, they want to "force" people to buy each light and then configure each how you want.
The included manual is very poorly written. I don't know if that's just a JetBeam thing or not.
JetBeam are misleading their customers in a few ways. As I mentioned only one configuration can achieve 900 lumens and as shipped one of the lights will never achieve that in spite of what the box claims. The marketing material on their website actually mentions three configurations. I assume the smaller head with the smaller tube will eventually be sold also. This is the configuration most people would want I think. Again, of the three configurations they show, only one will achieve 900 lumens, yet JetBeam has no problem plastering 900 LUMENS on each box.
The bottom line is there are really two flashlights being sold. For all intents and purposes, one is a 1xCR123/AA light, and the other is a 2xCR123/1x18650 light. Guess what? I have a few lights I could pair and be able to use all the batteries mentioned in their marketing material. Can I swap the heads and tubes with them, no. Is that really that useful? Maybe. I'm sure there are some differences in throw and flood.
I may be nitpicking more than anything, but you can't deny that the marketing is quite misleading. Nothing new with these companies, but this time seems a little egregious. What I would like is the WL-S2 with the shorter tube. The real story here is the expandable CR123/AA tube. Everything else is the same old story, but JetBeam tried to make it bigger than it is. I would have respected them more if they sold the heads and tubes separately, and been more clear on the output for each configuration; including what batteries you use for each.
Curious as to what others think...
Sent from my iPad using Candlepowerforums
