(This is a copy of the article on UN)
Well, they have been saying "N-Strike vs Vortex" for quite some time; to accompany/rival the much anticipated N-Strike Rayven CS-18, Nerf have released the new Vortex "Lumitron" as part of their new "Light It Up" series. Unlike the Rayven which was a completely new blaster design, the Lumitron is essentially a repainted Vortex Praxis, only with an all new "Firefly tech" 10 round clip and sans stock. Given we've already reviewed the Praxis, this review will on the whole be a pic spam bar a few comments, but I've gone nuts with the ol' camera, so enjoy the photos!
As far as the actual blaster is concerned, other than the paint job, the blaster is pretty much identical to the Praxis. The only differing part is the name plate, that says "Lumitron" rather than "Praxis"; this is raised and part of the plastic btw so they'd have had to alter the mould slightly to accommodate this. Other than that, we've all examined it carefully and it's the same blaster. That being said, I MUCH prefer the Lumitron's colour scheme- though it's a personal preference thing:)
On to the discs. They pretty much look and feel the same as the traditional XLR green discs, only the centres are a translucent/clear plastic and the discs themselves are a white foam. The foam has been treated with glow in the dark material, but only at the top of the foam, not the full disc. The inner ring can also glow in the dark, but it appears to only glow on the underside rather than the top.
The main draw card to the Lumitron is the new Firefly tech clip. It's a 10 round clip, but size wise it's similar to the 20 round clip of the Nitron. The reason for the added size is to accommodate the batteries- 4AA batteries to be exact. Just like with the Rayven CS-18, there's a switch on the side of the clip that turns on a blue light that shoots through the tube and exposes the discs to a blue LED.
The interior of the clip uses clear plastic, to allow for the light to shine through down the shaft.
Now, just a few pics of various combos because I don't really need to get into performances as they're very much the same as the Praxis:)
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| Lumitron obviously takes the standard Vortex clips too. |
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| Clip works with all Vortex blasters, making them "Light it up" |
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| The name plate of the Praxis- raised. |
Lumitron's are due out in March, but no doubt they'll be out earlier than that. I personally like it over the Praxis because of the colour scheme and the Firefly clip is tough. I also prefer my Praxis sans stock anyway, so this is a good alternative. Depending on the cost, I'd recommend it, although I am a tad disappointed Nerf took the easy way out and did a repaint rather than create something new and awesome. Ahh well.:P
CREDIT TO URBAN TAGGERS FOR THE ARTICLE
