# budget is a funny word



## raggie33 (Jul 4, 2020)

to some of budget means under 50 bucks to me its under 20 bucks


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## Vemice (Jul 5, 2020)

Depends on your level of addiction.


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## ChrisGarrett (Jul 5, 2020)

Vemice said:


> Depends on your level of addiction.



For me, I kind of compare what I bought 8 years ago to what I can buy now.

Zebralight SC600: $95 shipped

Sunwayman V10R/V11R: $75-$80

EagleTac D25C Ti. Clicky: $78, et al..

To Convoys and Emisars, at between $13-$45.

Chris


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## Kestrel (Jul 5, 2020)

The flashlights I purchase (mostly used or closeout) do tend to be on the spendy side, but the fact that I only buy one every four years or so, spreads out the mathematics quite a bit.

Might work out to $5 per month ? Buying the opposite of budget lights, but I'm still spending very little overall lol - I have a *very* restrictive flashlight budget. 
A different sort of 'budget' - which was one aspect I thought of when I saw your thread title raggie.


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## novice (Jul 6, 2020)

This may be off-topic - and it is - but every year the BudgetWatchForum publishes a list of "the best budget watches under $1000". I did not accidentally add an extra zero, so yes, the word budget _is_ a funny word. I like watches, but that is why I don't even try to collect them.


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## RetroTechie (Jul 8, 2020)

"Budget" is a number (+ indication of what currency). For some people that number is very different than for other people.


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## Timothybil (Jul 9, 2020)

I remember when this forum started the concensus was about $50. Today, I think it would probably be between $20-$30.


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## ledbetter (Jul 9, 2020)

Another perspective is value over budget. I mean if you buy a malkoff, Surefire, or even a mcgizmo, and you use it but don’t abuse it, it’s probably going to keep its value and it’s easily upgradable. On the other hand, losing a convoy won’t break your heart or the bank. Personally I like stuff I can sell or give to my kids, and made in the USA


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## JerryM (Jul 15, 2020)

20 bucks is the limit.
Jerry


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## flatline (Jul 17, 2020)

It's a sliding scale for me. Budget for me is 50% or less of what the serious contenders in that class go for. So if the "quality" lights of a particular configuration sell for around $80, then if I find something decent in the same configuration for $40 or less, I would consider it a budget contender.


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## TILL-22 (Jul 20, 2020)

IMO the word "budget" gets misused, making it sound funny, like calling a 900$ watch a "budget watch" as another user said.

Budget = the amount of money you have foreseen to spend on something. So a "budget" can be anything between a $20 budget for a flashlight and $200.000 for a new house.


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## Kestrel (Jul 20, 2020)

The thing is, budget can be either a noun or an adjective - so they certainly can be used differently.


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## richbuff (Aug 27, 2020)

The cost spectrum that flashlights occur on is getting wider. It used to be that budget makers made budget lights, but now we have budget makers quickly jumping into larger lights that are not budget price class. Imalent, Lumentop, Astrolux/Mateminco and suchlike come to mind. In the past, Fenix, Nitecore and Olight were the large light leaders. Then Acebeam, and then Imalent and others entered this area. Overnight, a newish budgetish name enters the non-budget price tag market. Haikelite, a newish, budgetish name, is coming out with a 3 x SBT90.2 non-small size 3 x 21700 non-budget priced light. What word in the English language can adequately describe the position that this maker and this item occupy on the flashlight price tag spectrum?


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## Katherine Alicia (Aug 27, 2020)

I weigh the term "Budget" by how likely my bank manager will want to have a word with me


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## cratz2 (Sep 27, 2020)

To me, a 'budget light' is one that isn't too pricey, that sees quite a bit of real use. 

A $50 or $60 light that gets regular use is more budget friendly than two or three $20 lights that usually get left at home.


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## ledbetter (Sep 28, 2020)

Budget is just a euphemism for cheap! But there are many useful cheap lights available in this golden age of led lighting. My new favorite cheap light is a aaa sofirn with a high cri led. Great for attaching to a ball cap while at the Bobby Q checking the steaks.


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## bykfixer (Sep 29, 2020)

When I was a kid the word "cheap" was a way to describe things in a negative tone. Lousy tippers were called cheap. Shoes that fell apart the first few days, or other such non reliable objects were labeled cheap. It was another work for junk. Another was disposable. 

The word budget was used to describe items of similar value to name brand items but at lower cost. House brand coffee for example was referred as "budget brand" coffee. To this day I see budget brand flashlights as ones like Eveready, Rayovac, Ozark Trail or Dorcey. Those aren't the only budget brands though. Once upon a time Rayovac and Eveready were the undisputed best but competition forced them to become makers of "cheap" products. Yes, junk. They also had premium models like Sportsman and Captains. Often those were used by police and other first responders until the alluminum sprinkler pipe was used for flashlight bodies. 

One day the definition of cheap became a way of describing the price of something. I remember my parents correcting anybody who used that word to describe something inexpensive. But times had changed. The meaning of words tend to evolve over time. Example is #. To me it means pound. To my kids it means hashtag. Cheap tv's for example are typically just as good as higher priced ones made in the same factory of the same parts where cheap ones go left to be stamped brand X, and the premium ones go right to be stamped brand Y. Same goes for many flashlights these days. A CREE is a CREE in a Streamlight or a Dorcey. 

Now take the flashlight for example. In the beginning it meant the electric candle that ran for a few seconds before the carbon bulb filament gave out. When tungston was used the weak link in the chain was the batteries but the word flashlight remained. Now we have budget lights and premium lights called flashlights. $5,$50 or $500, insert battery, push button, out comes light.


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## 325addict (Oct 2, 2020)

Yes, as others stated with other goodies than flashlights, I also have one: jackets! And especially good down jackets to keep me warm. Some people regard anything above $100,- for a jacket "too expensive", I regard anything BELOW $200,- a budget jacket. For me, a good one starts at $400,- to $500,-. Topping off at $6000+ (!) for my most expensive one (Bally nappa down coat).


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## Olumin (Oct 7, 2020)

325addict said:


> Topping off at $6000+ (!) for my most expensive one (Bally nappa down coat).



Imagine the amount of lights you could have gotten for that!

Best you don’t think about it, or you won't be able to sleep next night.


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## dmattaponi (Feb 26, 2021)

Without going into all of the nuances and definitions of the word, I’ll bring it down into the dollars and cents of it for me when it comes to actually opening my pocketbook...a budget flashlight to me will range up to around $30.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## cave dave (Feb 26, 2021)

For me it depends what you are getting for the dough. A titanium light might be "budget" at $100 like the FW3a. And a big powerhouse light can and should cost alot more than a single mode AAA light. 

I think almost all the Fenix brand lights are "budget" even though the costs vary widely depending on what you get. Below that are bargains or cheapies. 
I think the current 4Sevens lights are not budget lights, but still can represent a good value if you value their design and engineering choices. There are certainly lights that give you less, while being much more expensive.


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## dmattaponi (Mar 1, 2021)

I do agree with a number of other comments in this thread. Budget is a word that combines price and utility, and so the dollar amount can vary depending on a combination of factors, not price alone.

My budget flashlight experience began in 2009 with Fenix. I would consider Fenix a budget brand across the board. I bought quite a few Fenix lights (probably at least a dozen). They were okay, but I wasn’t crazy about them...usually because I didn’t like their modes of operation on the lights in my price range...but due to their price, I could afford to play around and experiment with them.

After Fenix I bought a few budget Lumentop flashlights (again I would consider this brand a budget line in general), none of which were very good, and were quickly relegated to desk drawers and out of the way places. I am glad these were cheap, because I didn’t like a one of them because of their glitchy-ness.

In 2016, I discovered Thrunite, another budget brand (probably the most budget brand out of the three (Fenix, Lumentop, and Thrunite). All of my Thrunites (dozens) have been very affordably priced. This is the brand though that I have found most satisfying when I combine my my most desired features in a everyday use flashlight for home, car, and edc.

So I would consider all of the flashlights I’ve purchased since 2009 as “budget” lights...yes, price is still a primary criteria, but the price does vary a bit based on model and features. My budget lights have ranged in price from $5 to $50ish...but up to around $30 is ideal.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## wjv (Jun 14, 2021)

I like Flatline's definition.



> Budget for me is 50% or less of what the serious contenders in that class go for.


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## Dave_H (Jun 22, 2021)

To me, budget is $10 or less, odd exception. There should be a class for best budget "dollar store" lights. There are some amazing little items for the price.

Dave


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## greenpondmike (Jun 26, 2021)

I used to consider sofirn as a budget brand, but they have gone up on their prices on some their stuff.


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