The XO and the T2 are more or less identical lights. The big differences are the T2 has a clicky-type tail cap and the body is knurled. The output and thrown on these lights should be nearly identical, modulo differences in the LEDs from the luxeon lottery.
I think both of these are pretty good general purpose lights. They are more geared towards throw, but they do have useful sidespill. (It has lots of rings, which is distracting to those of us who like to stare at flat white walls, but really is not a problem in actual use.) As for 36" at 72", iirc, that's pretty close. I'll grab my XO later and try it out just to be sure.
You could do close work with this light, although it's a bit bright. It does have some useful sidespill, although as I said, it's more of a throw-light. It runs a long time in regulation, that would be a plus in an emergency situation. It's plenty of light for walking around at night. I own 3 of these (XO), and have given a couple of them out as gifts. Had the T2 been readily available at the time, I'd likely have picked it instead. (I like clicky switches - but that's purely a personal preference.)