I have bought and given away a couple PrincetonTec Blasts and quite a few Photon II MicroLights.

I would ask my aunt or my mom or my sister-in-law if they needed a light to see their car door locks at night. I told each that the batteries are replaceable and to just ask me when the lights begin to dim and I'll replace the batteries.

The only one who is still carrying both the Photon II and the Blast WITH HER is my sister in law. She says her girlfriends are jealous because their husbands won't buy them keychain lights (!).

Neither my mom nor my aunt still carries their lights.

Here's an abbreviated instant replay of the discussion:

What happened?

Well, the light went dead.

Where is it? I'll put in new batteries.

Oh, I threw it away.

I said not to do that.

Sorry, I forgot.

INSERT MY AUDIBLE GROAN HERE.

Take note that the women who did not listen and threw the Photon II's away are over 65.

The woman who did listen and still has her lights is under 35.

Take from this what you will.

Hi Craig,

I'm new here and am a woman over 35 years of age. At first, I took a bit of offense over your age/gender related remark, but decided there may be something to it.

I'd say that it has to do with prior "training" and expectations that we women learned over our lifetimes. Up until not too many years ago, the division of household chores was fairly cut and dried. Taking care of household equipment was often the man's job.

Your mistake with your older female family members may have been in offering to change the batteries for them. You really should have gotten their attention and explained they they would be needing to change the batteries from time to time, and they would need to do it ALL BY THEMSELVES!

I know this sounds a bit funny, but I'm very serious. You'd be doing them a favor by giving them both the flashlight AND the set of expectations that go with it. We females are never too old to be retrained. <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I was not really referring to ALL women "of a certain age." Basically only my own relatives.

If I had said THEY would have to change the batteries, they would have declined the lights.

My mom learned to work the stereo my dad bought in the 1980s only after he died. I am always setting the clock on her new stove because she does not read owners manuals. She also never learned to work the VHS recorder my dad bought in the 1980s. The only reason he bought it was because it was on sale. It had three heads. Yes, that's right. Not two heads. Not four heads. Three heads.

My mother is an admitted technophobe who still refers to the stereo as the Hi-Fi. Grin.

*hands Craig a flak jacket* Just kidding ... sort of ... my experience with "guy stuff" has been that you have to do all the "stuff," like changing batteries, but the women in your life are more likely to keep it if you can put it in context for them - Yes, honey, this may save your life someday, and it cost more than ----- *fill in blank* because you're worth it and I wanted you to have the best.
Or .... not ..... <img src="images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

I have many MANY flashlights, I have many friends and relatives. I give good flashlights to folks who recognize them and cheap flashlights to folks who will break / misplace / throw out these useful items. My approach is to provide something cheap and easy to carry, if it is with them a month later integrated into their EDC then they may get something more valuable / useful / functional next time. I simply don't have the $$$ to have these items thrown out.

Two Christmass ago I gave all the guys in my extended family the little finger lights that the web sight said military pilots used strapped to thier fingers to read maps. They looked neat and were cheap. Mine is right next to my 'puter as I speak. One brother-inlaw found it useful when doing those nasty IT under the desk re-wiring jobs he found himself doing while working the Hell-desk at PCConnection. All the rest lost. Guess who got the Kershaw blade this Christmas.

I gave my wife an ASP keychain saphire light. She still has it four years later. It still works. These lights are momentary and not all that bright but they just don't use up their battery - ever! I have given her many others and they are either lost in the junk-drawer or floor of the car or glove-box or ??????

Why would I buy her a Photon III for 4 times the price?

When my parents helped me move cities a couple of months ago, I ended up navigating. It was dark for most of the journey, and instead of using the cab's roof light (which my Dad didn't want me to use because he was driving), I used my Photon II to see the map. A conversation followed on why I carry one, which resulted in my Mum asking for one for Christmas. She now carries a light on her keyring.

I reckon that if a person SEES how useful something is, they're more likely to carry it/use it/look after it.

I will certainly send out follow up notes about the 6 Photon IIs I gave to my family at Christmas.
We are a disposable society!

For years, I carried a flashlight in my handbag. This was ONLY because I frequently had to use an elevator and was fairly phobic about getting stuck in there without light. I felt pretty silly for doing this, and even had several female friends laugh about my lugging along a flashlight. They pointed out that most elevators have emergency lights.

Once I started reading this site, I went back to carrying two different sizes of flashlights in my handbag. I check both lights fairly frequently. My new phobia is that I'll be caught with dead batteries. <img src="images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

A friend of mine bought a relatively expensive Lexan KFS (Knife-Fork-Spoon) set, and made the mistake of lending it to his teenage daughter for a camping weekend. Yup, you guessed it - she threw them out before she returned home. After all, they were "plastic", and therefore disposable, right?

Women of all ages do stupid things. (Of course, we men never do anything stupid, right? <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />
---------------------------
Q: How many real men does it take to change a light bulb?

A: None. Real men aren't afraid of the dark.

(From "Real Men Don't Eat Quiche")

Speaking of a live demonstration being the best sales tool, I've probably "sold" well over a dozen people on getting a Micra and a Photon/Pulsar. First, there's skepticism or curiosity, then amusement, then desire. They gotta have one! Put a Fox 40 mini and a Photon on the keyring for the Micra, and you've got my main urban convenience tool!