When I got my first EverLED I was quite impressed with the beam. I'm still impressed. I was impressed enough to get a second EverLED to find the beam quite green. So I contacted EverLED on Aug. 30, 2004 to see what my options were for replacing a bad emitter.
This is what I wrote:
Comments: I just bought a second EverLED to supplement the first one. The first one is great with a very nice white color. The second one is not the same in color. My son calls the color "turtle green" which is an accurate description. Ironically the EverLED is in a "Turtlelite". The second bulb also 'sputters' once in a while like it has a short in it. Is there a way I can exchange the bulb for a nicer white (with a bluish tint on the edge of the beam)? Just a white beam will do.
Thank you /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Reply:
Thank you for contacting LEDdynamics.
The EverLED flashlight bulb replacement uses a Luxeon I LED manufactured by Lumileds. We purchase these LEDs for the EverLED and have little control over what LEDs are supplied to us. Demand has been high for LEDs and if we are too fussy about the LEDs used, we would have no product to sell. We build and test each EverLED by hand to insure quality and performance, and one of the quality control steps is to check light output. A LED with a greenish or blueish tint does not affect performance but merely appearance. We apologize for this inconsistency but it is really out of our control.
If you EverLED fails or has poor performance, you may send it for evaluation for a free replacement. In order to receive full credit, the returned EverLED must be in good physical condition and have no chips or cracks in the lens. Send any defective EverLEDs to:
EverLED Returns
c/o LEDdynamics Inc
44 Hull Street
Randolph, VT 05060
Thank you for purchasing the EverLED.
My second email:
Hi Josh,
Thanks for the fast reply. There is not of that anymore so I do really appreciate it.
So if I understand it correctly your company only warrants the manufactured part of the light but not the emitter. I had the luck of getting a great white emitter in the first EverLED I bought, a stallion of a light and a nightly user. But the second was the "donkey" and I'll have to live with it; it will live its lifetime stored in a drawer for emergency use. So far it is 50/50 chance for me to get a good or bad light. That makes a single bulb far too expensive for me to buy in hope of getting a good or bad one. The next one, should I consider buying, would either be white or green.
Thank you for your time in answering my question. I'll pass the answer to my friends.
Enclosed is a picture of the two EverLED lights in Turtlelight flashlights.
Josh's reply:
I understand how you feel and we are frustrated as well. This has been an on going issue since we began manufacturing the EverLED over a year ago. It is only when a consumer buys two and compares them is there a complaint. I can't imagine that you feel the lesser of the two is only suitable for a lifetime in a drawer. The true benefits of the EverLED are not just the use of the LED but everything combined - battery life, durability, universal application...etc.
Have you purchased any other manufacturer's bulb replacements to see how they compare? I think you would still be quite impressed with your "bad" EverLED if you compared it to other manufacturer's products.
We have toyed with the idea of purchasing specific LEDs for use with the EverLED that are of more consistent quality but availability is limited and the cost is significantly greater. We currently reject about 40% of the LEDs sent to use as unsuitable for the EverLED. If we rejected any more, we would be left with not enough LEDs to build EverLEDs and our demand already exceeds our supply. One can only hope the LED manufacturers will eventually offer a more consistent LED with out a greater cost to the customer.
Thank you for your feed-back in this matter. I will use this to leverage our supplier for a more consistent quality of product for use with the EverLED.