Blue is probably the BRIGHTEST Photon, but that's an unusual color for my tastes... the whites, IIRC, are blues with a phosphor coating on the "lens" - so from a practical standpoint, white is the most usefully "bright". My EDC is red in my left pocket and turquoise in my right pocket. White is in my gear in my FAK. Hmmm - I suppose I could rig running lights for a canoe with those 3, now that I think about it, LoL... (port, starboard, and stern)

So far I prefer the Photon II. I have exactly one Photon III (recent production) and it died the first day I carried it in my pants pocket - apparently it activated. Have not had any such problem with the IIs. I would LIKE to use the IIIs - I like about 4 of the modes and they are possibly a bit more water resistant - but... VERY annoying that it turned on/stayed on the first time I carried it. YMMV.

Regards,

Tom