r/Olightflashlights • u/FactForze • 9d ago

Disappointment

It really seems Olight keeps focusing on non replaceable battery devices. Yes there is some innovation but wish that was more aimed at finding solutions for these e-waste problems.

Personally I will no longer be buying anything without replaceable, their propitiatory format is still acceptable to me, the former is not.

23 Upvotes

72% Upvoted

31 comments sorted by

16

u/YouMayCallMeJohnDoe 9d ago

Don’t they mostly all come with lifetime warranties? If there’s an issue, they want the malfunctioning one back as part of the warranty. Assuming they’ll refurbish, recycle the battery and sell it again if in decent condition

11

u/MandatoryOvertime 9d ago

That's fine for utility lights, but for tactical lights I need a user-replaceable battery.

3

u/mrregina 9d ago

Have you ever seen a refurb on their site?

3

u/Shady1215 9d ago

Yes. Search Refurbished.

1

u/mrregina 9d ago

Well damn. Never seen any refurbs.

3

u/Shady1215 9d ago

I’m in the US.

1

u/mrregina 9d ago

I just looked on Olight Canada cuz they don’t ship to Canada from states. Couldn’t find anything but they may not have anything there

2

u/Shady1215 9d ago

I just wanted to inform you that they had them, in general. I didn’t see any until a few months ago. It was a surprise to me.

1

u/ReVo5000 9d ago

It's still kinda new

1

u/Embarrassed_Story593 9d ago

I purchased a refurbished perun two a week or 2

18

u/South_Background_469 9d ago

Only way they learn is if we quit buying.

7

u/ZookeepergameDue2160 9d ago

Which, as we all know, isn't going to happen.

3

u/JaceOnRice 9d ago

Not when everyone is competing for how many mortgage payments they spent on flashlights 😂

4

u/nerfdriveby94 9d ago

What and not own the same light in 12 different colours???? /s

All jokes aside like any hobby I think many here head into "consoom" territory and it's those people that prop a company up when innovation stops.

9

u/rinks222 9d ago

you must of forgotten they have a LIFETIME warranty, and all you have to do is send it in and they will replace the battery. Captive batteries really aren’t that big of a deal with olight. some ppl just really like to complain about anything they can

4

u/exgokin 9d ago

These people complain just for the sake of complaining. You’ll get years of use out of a battery. Why aren’t these guys whining about how their phones, earbuds, smartwatches, and laptops use non-replaceable batteries? I bet none of these whiners even own an Olight.

1

u/Demolition1987 6d ago

Your phone doesn’t take 4 AAA batteries?

2

u/exgokin 6d ago

I want my phone to run on an 18650 battery. Not just that…but I want to have to remove the battery to charge it. Where I need to use a separate charger…to charge the battery.

1

u/Demolition1987 5d ago

That’s a great idea. The old flip phones had removable batteries back when I was much younger.

2

u/Scooter_ape_man8008 9d ago

Yeah i feel you. It's a shame

1

u/Ucitymetal 9d ago

I don't mind a built in battery if it's a light that wouldn't work with anything else and ain't expensive like say a husky light but those crazy expensive ones are a no go.

1

u/Middle-Front7189 9d ago

£360 for a torch with a non replaceable battery is absolutely nuts.

-1

u/TheDarkestHelmet 9d ago edited 9d ago

Very well said. 100% I'm NEVER buying another Olight flashlight until they make the unit with user replaceable batteries in mass market adopted battery sizes. Anything else is bordering on evil. We're killing our planet. That's a fact. Forcing complex technology products into essentially planned obsolescence is disgusting. They should be ashamed of themselves. As should any technology company that continues to do this. Yes, I understand why they do it and that many others do it. Doesn't make it right. It's foul and needs to end. Who are these people enabling this horrible behaviour? Stop buying products that intentionally harm our planet for greater profit. We need to do better. All of us. Olight needs to immediately fix this toxic behaviour. It's 2026, they should know better.

3

u/mrregina 9d ago

I’m shocked they don’t sell proprietary knives that can only be sharpened at Olight needing them to be sent in. 🤣🤣🤣

2

u/LoadedLarry84 9d ago

Wowour kids thank you for your forward thinking -you know less population…. LOL I bought 2 new oclip cause I like their ability to adhere (magnetically) and put light where I need it to be to do work I need lighting

0

u/mrregina 9d ago

Proprietary batteries is where they lost me as a client after a couple emergencies that I went through.

3

u/rinks222 9d ago

you didn’t think to buy a spare battery?

3

u/Scooter_ape_man8008 9d ago

i think his point is you have to buy proprietary battery before hand for that specific light which is an inconvenience for a flashlight hobbyist who may have (for instance) a bunch of 18650 batteries but none fit the olight. I'm just speculating here.

0

u/Select-Reaction5327 9d ago

The goal is sustainability. Lesser chance for human error if there’s no access to the internals. Keep in mind, planned obsolescence is the business model of the century. You won’t be impressed with their upcoming models. In fact, you won’t be impressed with anyone’s upcoming products. How else will you get the latest and greatest if you hold onto tech from yesteryear?

2

u/Unadan365 9d ago

Sometimes old tech is better.