xenon bulbs

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That's a good point made above, I will forward my pictures to Osram and see what they say.
 
Just noticed the posts are switching between D1S and D2S, the D2S is listed on Orsam's page as coming in pairs with the hard box also in two models 5000k and 5500k.

Do you have high res pictures of the genuine Orsam bulbs so we can compare ?
 
I don't have any no, I merely compared them to videos/threads on various forums (Googled) to see the differences. As noted, the only difference was that the centre glass ball has discoloured salts inside whereas the genuine ones are clear.

I'm tempted to get the new Philips Xtreme Vision ones in the future though, going by a few posts they appear to be brighter with a bigger hotspot compared to the CBI.
 
I'll be returning one of mine as its blown within 7 days. Hopefully it is just the bulb and not a more serious underlying issue.
 
When you say bigger hotspot, do you mean an actual brighter spot in the beam pattern? If so, isn't the whole point of the projector/HID combination to make a completely even pattern?
 
As in the hotspot where beams converge and it's brighter in that are of focus:

NkhfBTi.jpg
 
An update, guys.

Osram got back to me about my question on the fake Xenons. It does seem then that those £73 ones on Amazon "May" be genuine because Osram said:

Thank you for your web message.

I would like to correct one point, the discolouration referred to is not a reliable way of differentiating fake bulbs. So far, I have not seen any fake bulbs if they are supplied in our sealed plastic boxes.

We can offer the option for you to send your bulbs to us and we will check them out for you. If you wish to send them in, we have the following Freepost address that you can use:

Freepost RTKA-YATA-YSZX
Osram Ltd
Osram House
Waterside Drive
Langley
SLOUGH
SL3 6EZ

We will check them and return them to you within 4 working days.


Best regards

Keith Raftery
Technical Sales Manager

OSRAM Ltd
OSRAM House,
Waterside Drive,
Langley,
Berkshire SL3 6EZ
Tel: 01753 484173
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So what do we know for sure? We know that different regions can and do have different retail packaging designs on their boxes, this shouldn't be used as a tell for fake bulbs. Osram is saying the discoloured salts aren't an indicator of a fake so this puts the many of the comparison videos/forum threads about it into a mix too as far as discolouration goes.

By all accounts, as you guys saw from my earlier photos, those Amazon ones were near 1:1 other than the salts colour but if the discoloured bit isn't an indicator of a fake then they can only be genuine given everything else checks out surely?

I feel bad now for potentially getting a bargain genuine bulb taken off Amazon due to them investigating a potential fake :o

I suppose the only option now is if anyone else does get them once they are back up, then send them to Osram at the above address and wait 4 days for the AOK.
 
I've just bought a new Xenon bulb (Osram Xenarc D2S) to replace my failing one. I have no idea where people are paying over £100 for a pair of bulbs. Powerbulbs have these for £29.95 each at the moment.

Looking at yours mrk, i'd say they are probably genuine. The sheathes that cover the wire outside the bulb comes right to the top, the printing on the packaging looks to be of a high quality and clear and the colours appear to be deep and not faded. The Chinese seem to be able to produce all sorts of products, but my advice to them would be to invest in some decent printers as quality of the colours and writing is usually the biggest giveaway.

http://www.powerbulbs.com/blog/2014/11/how-can-i-tell-if-my-xenon-bulbs-are-real-or-fake

I figured paying £29 for a genuine xenon bulb (which are the same as the ones supplied by BMW) it makes no sense whatsoever to save a few quid and chance having cheap Chinese tat.
 
The £100 ones aren't the same as the regular Xenarc ones.

It's always best to replace them in pairs as well, unless you're not fussed about the difference in output and colour temperature between the two.
 
I haven't had any confirmation or reply back from the seller as of yet but I've returned them and Amazon refunded me so all is well in the world once again. If they were genuine then surely the seller would be quick to chim in and proclaim that rather than remain silent and have a counterfeit claim against it?

Either way, I now have the Philips X-treme Vision set and they're rather bright indeed.

My stock bulbs were Philips Vision which sell for £30-£40 per bulb. These X-treme versions were £70-£80 each but powebulbs did a combination discount.
 
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mrk said:
If they were genuine then surely the seller would be quick to chim in and proclaim that rather than remain silent and have a counterfeit claim against it?
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Maybe, or they just couldn't be bothered with the trouble. You were evidently convinced they were fake so nothing they could say would have likely persuaded you otherwise.
 
Not necessarily, it was only after responses here that I asked the seller and I simply asked if they were genuine and nothing more using the Amazon contact system. If a business is unwilling to respond to customer queries that simply require a yes or no answer then I'd rather have my money back and shop elsewhere anyway. Fake or not, principals account for a lot.
 
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