Amazon brand vs Name brand

[PCT]

Hey guys, for the 2 weeks i have been bouncing between buying a pair of cheap amazon brand LED/HID. Thinking of doing HID in low beams and LED in high beams. But for the life of me, as soon as i am about to pull the trigger on something like hakari, auxito, lasfit, fahren, or sealight. Im like do i really want to put a cheap bulb in, or should i spend the money on something like GTR, Morimoto, or Diode Dynamix.

Currently what i am leaning to, Morimoto 55w HID 5k Lowbeam, and Hikari compact (halogen style bulb fitment issues on HD highbeam housing) for high beam.

 

[CanRebel]

if it's Amazon brand/prime. you usually have at least 30 days to return it.

 

[NJMOPAR]

When I did HID lows/LED highs in my 2010 I went with Fahrens for LEDs and HYB 55W CANBUS-safe ballasts with Xtremevision 6000k bulbs for the HIDs.
Both were bright & no errors.

 

[BossHogg]

Im like do i really want to put a cheap bulb in, or should i spend the money on something like GTR, Morimoto, or Diode Dynamix.

The real struggle with this or most purchases of almost anything is defining the line between cheap and inexpensive. There are cheap quality lighting kits that are well marketed costing more $$$, then there are quality lighting kits that are less expensive than the cheap kits. Our job, which is almost impossible, is to figure out which offers the quality we expect at a fair price. Then add the complexity of buying online where we can't touch or feel the product.

You are expecting that the brands named offer better quality bulbs/LEDs but do know that as fact? They certainly offer solid marketing but what about the quality of the parts, are they any better than, for example, Amazon-branded? How many manufacturers are there globally that manufacture HID bulbs, LEDs, and ballasts, not many.

The only answer I have is to do your due diligence and don't let the cost influence your perception of the product's quality. I don't have an answer but as a past purchaser of lighting kits, I found reading reviews almost worthless because the reviewer is talking about their purchase with nothing relative to like products. I seem to opt for the middle-of-the-road pricing and to date, have not been disappointed with my purchases.

As an afterthought, I watch YouTube's Project Farm content provider. He tests like products as they would be used in typical everyday applications. While arguments can be made on some methods of testing, it is obvious the cost of an item, the country of origin, and the brand name of the item are poor predictors of the results.

 

[Fatbob Frank]

if it's Amazon brand/prime. you usually have at least 30 days to return it.

Unfortunately they usually fail around day 34...

 

[shrubs]

I would figure on how annoying a product failure would be especially at the wrong time.
Save a few $, and saddle yourself with stress may not be a great strategy.

On items that could fail at the wrong time, I opt for a known product, and if $ is an issue, I try to find some sort of discount, then buy. If I have to wait, so be it.

 

[mikeru]

I would try to figure out how their customer service/tech support is, since that's who you could be dealing with if something doesn't work as advertised. There's nothing more frustrating than trying to deal with some knock-off manufacturer that won't return calls, has phone support that barely speaks your language, or that you can't reach at all. Not to mention the hoops you might need to jump through to return them or get a refund if they fail outside of Amazon's return period.

 

[star_deceiver]

I used these in my 2019 3500 reflector low beams. Had them in for 2 years until I traded the truck. Never an issue from -42F to 110F.



I tried the same brand same lumen in 9005 for the 1500. They work awesome in the reflector high beams but the projector low beams are garbage! Quite dim with a hot spot in the darkness and absolutely useless and blind in the rain whereas these same bulbs in the high beams light up 2nd daylight. I put some better halogens back in my projectors and all is good once again.