#4 FOURSEVENS Quark Smart QSL !

[ronniepudding]

Sorry, I don't know of a way to turn off the nightlight feature without using the app. TMK, app is also required to turn off unwanted modes (e.g. strobe, SOS, etc.), set auto-off timer, and set low battery warning threshold.

 

[dc38]

It's nice, but not really my speed...

 

[subwoofer]

Sorry, I don't know of a way to turn off the nightlight feature without using the app. TMK, app is also required to turn off unwanted modes (e.g. strobe, SOS, etc.), set auto-off timer, and set low battery warning threshold.

It seems that way unfortunately, you really do need the app to have true control over these lights.

For me the most important aspect is to reduce excessive parasitic drain. This means turning off the RF and flashing of the side switch. Now I've been able to play with the app a bit on a borrowed ipad, I've found the following:

The side switch will only stop flashing if you are in the settings page for the light (with RF on) and then turn the RF off using the ten taps.
-if you toggle the RF at any other time, it starts the side switch flashing again.

When turning the light off, the side switch stays on for 60s. To stop this you must use the app and set the nightlight setting to 0s (it was already off).

So now I've got the two lights setup as I want, I just hope they don't reset and go back to default. If they do, I'll need the app again. We also don't know how long that app will stay in the app store as the new management might get rid of it.

A real pity it is so app dependant and iphone exclusive for the finer details. These have a lot of potential.

 

[hiuintahs]

Thanks for putting this information together! We bought a bunch of these lights for employees for Christmas, so I put it all in a document and made a PDF that we can send to everyone..........

Sounds good. Glad it helped out. Just know that the lumen values are what I measured and will likely vary from flashlight to flashlight.

This is a great post from @hiuintahs with what could be the main reference set of instructions for the Smart lights. If @hiuintahs is happy to maintain the original post http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...-Smart-QSL-!&p=5161815&viewfull=1#post5161815 or perhaps it need to be reposted with updates.

...............It seems that way unfortunately, you really do need the app to have true control over these lights.........

Well guys, I don't have the light anymore so any further experimenting to verify non-Bluetooth operation can't be done by me. I don't mind if someone would like to copy and paste what I have already written into another post to maintain...............maybe even include the Bluetooth control along with it. I could then delete mine so that it doesn't get confusing.

 

[kalel332]

Does anyone else find hard to turn on this light? I find hard to press especially the tail clicky.

 

[nnasko]

Does anyone else find hard to turn on this light? I find hard to press especially the tail clicky.

Hi, I suppose you are using prime CR123A battery, which sometimes is a little bit shorter and the back button is difficult to engage.
You have 2 options there:
1. To put a small strong magnet on the back of the battery. This will extend the battery just enough for the back button plunger to be able to catch it when you press it.
2. To put something (a small piece of folded paper or cardboard for example) between the gold spring and the button plunger (under the gold spring)- see the picture. Be sure that this paper is not blocking the contact between the gold spring and battery when you close the cap - it will insulate the connection preventing the flash to start.

 

[Woods Walker]

Does anyone else find hard to turn on this light? I find hard to press especially the tail clicky.

Sometimes when not used for an extended period the light doesn't like to be turned on. Takes multiple tries then it will light. Once on it goes on and off easily. The smart quark IMHO is much less "smart" than the old trusted Quark Pro and Tactical. The Smart sometimes violates the principal rule of this gear classification. Produce light immediately. It can brick for 3 minutes when changing batteries if the timing is off as well. I really tried to experiment for uses of the smart features but mostly found their application too buggy to be of real field use. At least for me anyways. It was well worth the 20 bucks to play around with and is now a house light. I like some of the UI features as well. It doesn't go into the woods with me because offers no real advantages, actually disadvantages to my other 4/7s lights. All of that is IMHO and do applaud the project. Innovation is never a straight line up.

 

[Woods Walker]

Anyone else notice the low voltage operation is not that good. The Smart can't use the same battery the Knight or MD1 (the diametrical opposite of a smart light and much better at being an actual tool).

What hurts it's low voltage performance is the technology. It resets (a function of the smart tech) on ....you guessed it bright strobe which can't be powered by low voltage it seems. That initial burst seems only to then allow the light to be turned on maybe once to low for a micro second before it crashes...red light....bricks..... If it can be reset and battery changed from a fresh back to the dead it will then run low. I think the driver can do it based on that test but the technology (unless I am misunderstanding) seems to once again get in the way. Granted low battery preference is a clue to change the battery but the number one rule of a flashlight is to produce light and the Smart seems to find innovative ways to defy this rule. Though it's all over and was a bucket of fun playing with this light I do wonder what the heck 4/7 was thinking with setting the most annoying mode as default? You could go back and read posts from the annoyed users getting strobed over and over again. It's a mystery and added a host of problems totally unnecessarily. Why not low as the default? The low and moonlight modes were 4/7s calling card. I will never get that aspect. Maybe it was a production mistake? Seems so obvious... I don't know. Any thoughts?

 

[wpnsmith]

Gotta say, I was never able to get mine to work reliably, so in terms of a device I can use to make light when I can't see, it's not very useful. Not even sure where mine is any more, threw it in a drawer and reduced my stress level. Good thing it wasn't expensive. Oh, wait...

 

[bluecrow76]

If nothing is going to happen with this product line, I really wish they would release the source code for the light firmware and the Bluetooth API to interface with the light. I would love to hack together an updated firmware that makes the light functional for normal human beings in its default mode, instead of that stupid strobe mode. We bought a ton of these for employees last Christmas and no one uses them because the default light modes are just useless and the parasitic drain kills batteries so quickly. Even if they take the time to reprogram the lights, the lights always seem to reset when the light is disassembled to replace the battery.

 

[archer6817j]

@bluecrow76 do you happen to be a software engineer? Right now the main problem is the original developer is unavailable and I haven't had the time to find someone new.

I agree that the default mode should be normal and not tactical.

When did you purchase the lights? The drain from the Bluetooth should be minimal...in the micro amp range.

 

[subwoofer]

@bluecrow76 do you happen to be a software engineer? Right now the main problem is the original developer is unavailable and I haven't had the time to find someone new.

I agree that the default mode should be normal and not tactical.

When did you purchase the lights? The drain from the Bluetooth should be minimal...in the micro amp range.

There is the option to program the lights by tapping the switch. I found the instructions on CPF somewhere. The programming I have done seems to have persisted through battery changes and when leaving the light with no battery for some time.

I also noted high drain, but this seems to be linked to the default flashing light in the side switch rather than the bluetooth. Took me a while to get this to stop.

 

[archer6817j]

The side switch is the night light and the on time can be adjusted or turned off entirely.

 

[subwoofer]

The side switch is the night light and the on time can be adjusted or turned off entirely.

Being an android only user, I've not had any easy way to do that. I had to find the non-app way to set it up.

If the android app had ever been released I'd have posted a review, but it never was.

 

[archer6817j]

If the android app had ever been released I'd have posted a review, but it never was.

Yeah that's an issue when the light was originally developed the android API was not up to par. It's probably fine now, but the problem remains finding the talent and paying for the development.

Do you happen to have the manual programming link? It's been lost to the ages and I can put it up on the website if you could help me locate it

 

[maukka]

Do you happen to have the manual programming link? It's been lost to the ages and I can put it up on the website if you could help me locate it

I haven't been following the software side of the Quark Smart for a while, but here's something.

 

[Woods Walker]

I wish they would dumb the light and put a standard clicky. I liked the multiple UIs but was always fighting the technology and tail cap to make it work.

 

[subwoofer]

Yeah that's an issue when the light was originally developed the android API was not up to par. It's probably fine now, but the problem remains finding the talent and paying for the development.

Do you happen to have the manual programming link? It's been lost to the ages and I can put it up on the website if you could help me locate it

Hi @archer6817j

I think this is what I was referring to, and it is in this thread:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...-Smart-QSL-!&p=5161815&viewfull=1#post5161815

I may have copied everything into a document as there might be more, so if I find it I'll repost that.

 

[DaveAnderson]

Man am I glad I hit this thread. I found my Quark Smart QSL-X sitting on my desk at home and wondered why I never really used it. The tailcap switch doesn't work (never has). I thought the light was only designed to work with the side button and that just didn't work as well as I could not switch modes and get the stobe on demand. I'm hoping that the replacement part is still available. If not - were there any work arounds?

 

[archer6817j]

Man am I glad I hit this thread. I found my Quark Smart QSL-X sitting on my desk at home and wondered why I never really used it. The tailcap switch doesn't work (never has). I thought the light was only designed to work with the side button and that just didn't work as well as I could not switch modes and get the stobe on demand. I'm hoping that the replacement part is still available. If not - were there any work arounds?

Unfortunately the light is very sensitive to battery length. It may only work properly with disposables. Just to check, you can unscrew the tailcap in small increments and see if that creates enough clearance for the button to move.