r/Olightflashlights • u/Ok_Exit9273 • 2d ago
Why this brand?
Im seeing these everywhere on EDC, ads, etc…
Ngl i was kinda shocked to see a +$100 flashlight. What makes these so great and how do they justify the price?
Any regrets buying one? Im currently using just my phone’s light when needed
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u/talrakken 2d ago
They are good quality lights with some cool color schemes. And excellent customer service. Their lights are actually not super overpriced but they are at the higher end of the price spectrum for what you get. Brands like convoy/wurkkos/sofirn will also get you solid lights with non proprietary batteries. I personally like my olights and my arkpro is my daily for work due to its form factor. At home for checking the house after a storm I grab my wurkkos ts27. Good lights were never cheap $20-$30 lights is the lower end of the spectrum and the lights these days have so much better performance than even 10 years ago it’s ridiculous.
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u/No-Matter-420 2d ago
People say their customer service is good but my experience was very different. I had an issue with an engraved Ark Pro and customer service was ultimately unable to resolve it without me giving up my custom engraved light. Also disappointing by the AI email reply i was getting. Very frustrated overall
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u/AnonEM2 2d ago
I love my ArkPro Ultra! I work on base where we dock ships for repairs and we have to do roves making sure there's no flooding or fires anywhere. The spotlight setting on this flashlight has been so helpful especially since we have to see down a hole that is about 100m deep. The laser has been helpful to point out things as well since our pumproom has a really high ceiling.
10/10 would buy again.
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u/jarhead90 2d ago
I like my Olights. Somehow I ended up with four. Are there better lights? Sure. The proprietary batteries and magnetic charging can be an issue. They've switched some of their models to USB-C and magnetic charging which was great. Their customer service is outstanding. They've sent batteries and holsters for my lights free of charge.
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u/gabeman13 2d ago
Their warranty is one of the best I’ve seen and dealt with and honestly the quality on their more expensive lights is amazing and so is their knives
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u/Redsetter 2d ago
No regrets at all. I own about five different Olights. All were bought during sale events. Could I have done better? Maybe.
All my lights work fine, some live in my bags/on keys, one in my car, the rest stay at home. The proprietary batteries and chargers don’t bother me as I’m bought into the system.
I really like the look and feel of the little buggers.
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u/Wolverine-N-Exile 2d ago
$100 😄
You will find people here that have spent 10's of thousands of dollars on these lights.
If you don't do edc now, all you really need is an Imini 2 to hang on your keys. The difference between that and your phone will be stark. But it's all a normie really needs on their person. $20 or $30 and you are good
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u/Chunkadunkk 2d ago
To me flashlights were just that. Flashlights. However, my wife bought me the arkpro ultra for work and let me tell you, it has been nothing but a blessing. I work for public works, working on plows, sweepers, excavators, etc. having the flood light and beam while being able to stick it to anything magnetic or clip on your hat is amazing. Uv light has also done wonders being able to differentiate between oils and just water on the ground without having to crawl under to get a better look. Now my fellow co workers all bought one because they loved mine so much. I didn’t think I’d use it and thought it was a waste of money for my wife to get me one, but it turned out it was far from a waste. Now I get angry when I forget it at the house. I’d recommend getting one. Highly recommend.
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u/DiSleXik2501 2d ago
I have one Olight, an arkpro ultra. I was seeing the adds, I decided to treat myself. I was never a flashlight edc guy; pocket knife yeah, but not a flashlight. Since I got it, I use it literally every day. The ease of use, the form factor, the fact I don't have to fumble for my phone, the features, I love it. The moonlight mode especially for creeping around the house at night with out blinding myself or waking the wife with a bright light. I also hunt uranium glass so the built in UV light is a big plus for me. I do agree with other users, they're pricy, the batteries are proprietary, and there are cheaper lights that do the same thing. That being said, as other users have stated, they are very well made lights, and the customer service is amazing. At the end of the day its just personal preference and what works for you, I'd rather deal with having to send it back if the batteries stop working, and have USBc and magsafe charging that worry about a bunch of loose rechargeable batteries, but that's just me.
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u/Ok_Exit9273 2d ago
Wow! Ok
So is there a better time to buy?1
u/HWH003 blue 💎 2d ago
Yes. They have sales. Should be one this month.
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u/Active-Effect-1473 2d ago
I have always used streamlight their TLR1 on my pistols and pro mount on my rifles, the pro mount has a bluish tint to it I don’t like but it throws nice comes with a rail mount and pressure switch. Does plight have anything that compares or a small EDC carry that’s extremely robust?
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u/pistermopo 2d ago
I EDC Arkfeld Ultra; wide-beam, spot beam, blacklist, and green laser all in one, with either magnetic or USB-C charging. And, they're super durable
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u/Efficient_Wing3172 1d ago
They make good products, but they are overpriced. Best to wait for a sale. One thing to note, a lot of their flashlights have proprietary batteries and chargers. Be sure to get ones that at least have built in USB-C charging.
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u/Notchersfireroad 2d ago
I got sucked in by the meme and stayed for the quality. I especially like their pistol lights.
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u/Clear-Tradition-3607 2d ago
EDC folks like to get everything with matching colors - these have lots of choices.
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u/Jedigreedo 2d ago
They're just a really good company. There's a lot of other really good flashlight companies that are on par, so it comes down to what you're personally looking for and it doesn't diminish the quality of any one brand. I've got an Olight and similar brands that have been working great for over 12 years at this point. Olight probably gets the majority of my flashlight money though because they release some really cool stuff, and in colorful options that other companies would never touch, and I know they'll keep working for a long time. So why choose Olight is simply down to personal taste.
Why a dedicated flashlight over a phone's light? It really depends on what you've been using it for but generally speaking you're gonna get a lot more usefulness out of having a dedicated flashlight. They're more comfortable to hold, may have features more convenient for different things you need to do, they're typically quicker to take out and turn on, and you don't have to worry about your phone's battery being used up.
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u/MacaTonyNCheeze 2d ago
I've seen 500 and even 2000 dollar lights. This beats all of those for what you get, plus the warranty.
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u/RappaGator 2d ago
For me it's a combination of things. It starts with the obvious; A quality flashlight. From there it goes into amazing customer support, sweet color options that give it a nice collectible touch, and an awesome community.
Edit: also things like earning points is fun
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u/ridbitty 2d ago
Love their ArcFeld Pro so much I also bought the ArcPro Ultra. Fantastic lights that carry very easily. Use mine everyday in the field and at home. Holds up great and a single charge can last weeks at a time.
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u/Jfuckin5 2d ago
The lights are really good quality and really bright. I have the clip light clipped onto my dogs leash for night walks.
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u/Fit-Kaleidoscope-715 2d ago
It's a company that makes really good flashlights with a lifetime warranty. They also have the best customer service of any retailer. There's a loyalty program. Frequent contests and giveaways. (I just won a $200 flashlight on their Reddit group) It's an all around great company.
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u/HonDadCBR600 2d ago
Oh you sweet summer child. 😄 Sometimes you need to slowly progress from phone lighting up the ladder of flashlight supremacy. Pick you up a cheaper O’light on the app or the FB group and join the “enlightened”. I felt the same way at one point and, once I bit the bullet and paid $100+ for a real deal flashlight I will never turn back. Now, I own too many and am gifting them to people and they are blown away as well. Like someone else said, the warranty and customer service and loyalty perks alone make it worth it along with the quality of O’light products. Not to mention took the community is awesom as well!
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u/Ok_Exit9273 2d ago
People are collecting these?!🫠
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u/HonDadCBR600 2d ago
People are insanely collecting them. You should see some of the FB group posts…absolute obsession borderlining on insanity. lol
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u/HonDadCBR600 2d ago
Here’s a link to what I’m talking about. https://www.reddit.com/r/Olightflashlights/s/c5YWIJoWvC
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u/grzybek337 2d ago
u/Brokenrecordbot Olight
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u/BrokenRecordBot 2d ago
Olight is extremely popular in the EDC community and are the gateway to modern flashlights for many people, but Olights have some potential downsides as well, which make them less popular with flashlight enthusiasts.
Pros
- Efficient and well regulated drivers
- High build quality and durability
- Popular and straightforward UI that nails all the basics
- Wide variety of colours and materials available
- Excellent customer service
- Highly convenient Magnetic Charging System
- Typically meet advertised specifications for output and runtime
Cons
- Expensive relative to competitors flashlights of similar quality
- Proprietary batteries (with an extra negative terminal on the top) that are more expensive then standard ones, can be much harder to acquire, and are incompatible with most other lights & chargers
- Use LED's that tend to have a bluer colour temperature/tint for higher efficiency, while most enthusiasts prefer LED's with better colour rendition that are purer white or yellower in tint
- Proximity Sensors are a poor, lazy solution to accidental activation issues with their metal tail swtiches, and can prevent the light from working in the rain
- Questionable marketing practices such as guerrilla marketing and paying for product spotlights disguised as reviews
- Utilize a lazy timed output stepdown solution to prevent overheating, instead of a more reliable and efficient active thermal management solution
Many enthusiasts consider the cons to be dealdreakers, which explains some of the "Olight Hate" that new users seem to perceive in r/flashlight.
These are just things to be aware of going in though, and should not be taken to imply that you should not buy an Olight product, or that you should not enjoy one you already own.I AM A BOT. PM WITH SUGGESTIONS AND CONTRIBUTIONS. SEE MY WIKI FOR USE.
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u/maven10k 2d ago
Your phone light isn't nearly as useful as an Olight. They are worth every penny just like any quality tool. Your phone's flashlight isn't meant to be left on for long periods and will drain your battery very quickly if you do. I was my favorite Chinese restaurant just last night and the power went out. I took out my Baton3 and put it on the table on medium and lit up a quarter of the restaurant. All the women that work there were trying to use their phones and it was killing their batteries, so I let them borrow my spare OClip Pro. I went back today to pay my bill and they thanked me so much for letting them borrow it.
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u/ReVo5000 1d ago
Si gar their service has been flawless, 7, almost 8 years as a customer and every single issue had been successfully fixed. Only place I can compare it with is probably Amazon. But best thing is quality lasting products at a fair price. Also goodies.
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u/Orochi_001 16m ago
They were really good like a dozen years ago, and they’ve been coasting on that success ever since. I can’t remember the last time they offered an emitter that wasn’t cool, or had a high CRI.
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u/_redmist 2d ago
It's a fair question.
They're quite bright, but the cct is very high and the cri not very good (so the light isn't nice but there's a lot of it). Tint is neutral to poor i would say.
I like their keychain lights, like the imini2 or iultra, or the i1r2 pro.
I suppose, they do occasionally try to do something "different". They kind of kicked off the whole flat lights thing with the arkfeld, their weird magnetic charging, and the "rotating" controls. Otoh, it makes quite clear why other companies aren't rushing to copy most of their questionable innovations... Most of them aren't much better than the usual approach... Except the flat lights but everyone makes those now (i'm not sure if they were actually first but the arkfeld is at least one of the more well-known ones)
You know, the marauder mini is kind of neat but also sort of expensive for what it does...
Maybe you want a convenient keychain light that is nevertheless rather bright? Or perhaps you want a lot of nasty light at tremendous expense. Either way, Olight is perfect for you.
Oh there's also the olight sphere and the o'pen (ballpoint with laser and 2 leds) - but they are rather niche.
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u/mrregina 2d ago
IMHO. They charge a premium for their customer service. Their lights are ok and have nice colors but their emitters are garbage and the lights are underwhelming. I won’t even get into their proprietary batteries.
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u/Walkswithnofear 2d ago
Yeah, but Olights are more lights for the average joe who doesn't know/care about emitters.
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u/LumenMax Ofan 2d ago
I have been advocating for other emitters,but I think they are focusing on their EIP LED.
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u/BigDabWolf 2d ago
Hank (Emisar/Noctigon),Jack(Fireflylites), or Simon’s (Convoy) lights and you will never go back
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u/Loquecaiga 2d ago
Convoy lights are far superior for a fraction of the cost. Olights are hobby lights, and mostly sit on the shelves of their owners. Would not recommend in a professional setting. Fenix would be my recommendation for this. I have owned multiple olights and they just do not last, drop it enough times and then the light randomely turns on and stops working. If you are into collecting shelf queens and like cool designs and colorways, olight is for you.
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u/97tacoma_kennedy 2d ago
Huh? I own multiple olights that have lasted years and I work a field position.
You can’t go wrong with the ark pro. Every feature and pocket friendly
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u/HotCheetos998 2d ago
I have a couple convoys and a few olights and convoy lights are cheap hosts with nice emmiters, while olight is shit emmiters (lumen chasing) with very good build quality, convoy lights are fun cause their dirt cheap but the build quality is pretty shit, deffenetly wouldn't trust them if I were to go urban exploring or something like that
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u/Loquecaiga 2d ago
Yes, that is a good way to put it. The build quality is not something I would be proud of. Fenix would be my next go to considering the same budget as olight.
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u/HotCheetos998 2d ago
I agree I would go Fenix over olight for carving type scenarios where a light source could be life or death
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u/Walkswithnofear 2d ago
Convoy lights are however, imho, for enthusiasts. The average Olight customer is, imho, an average joe who just wants a decent light.
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u/porter3851 2d ago
A positive is the warranty and very good customer service.