since 2003. Quasar in the UK, Ireland, Europe and Asia remains supported by Quasar UK (now Quasar Manufacturing LTD). In 2001 Quasar Manufacturing Ltd (once Quasar UK) took over Q-ZAR and Quasar Trade Marks for UK, Ireland and Europe and in 2005 released a new version named Quasar Elite (Q-Zar Mark VI version) with revised software and hardware. In 2009 Quasar Manufacturing started testing Mark VII Wireless Q-Zar equipment. Laser Light Entertainment and Quasar Manufacturing made arrangements to distribute Quasar Elite Wireless in the United States (from the end of 2011 on), replacing previous equipment. Hardware Quasar vests have been revised a number of times (Mark I to VII). The original system used a strap based vest, metal housed front and back sensor areas and a hand-held pistol. The back sensor contained the battery, the front sensor contained the CPU and speaker. The pistol was small and contained few parts. A major revision was the Mark IIIB system which moved most of the electronics into a larger and heavier two handled gun. The speaker, battery, display and CPU were all moved to the gun, leaving the front and back as sensor only areas. The strap based vest was retained. Prior to the international launch of Quasar as Q-ZAR the vests were redesigned again (Mark IV). The gun shape was retained, however, it was remoulded in a lighter plastic, greatly reducing the weight of the gun. In addition, the strap based vest was dropped in favour of brightly coloured plastic body Armour style vests. Two systems were developed for Q-ZAR as its next generation system. Neither of these systems made it to production. The first system was discontinued possibly because of Q-ZAR defaulting on a payment. The second system, IQ, was in development when the company collapsed. After the collapse of Q-ZAR, Quasar Manufacturing withdraw remaining Q-Zar available stocks from United States market, keeping up basic components production, to give support to open European sites. In 2005 Quasar UK renamed themselves Quasar Manufacturing and launched Quasar Elite (Mark VI), which used a smaller gun and body armour to accommodate younger players. In addition, Quasar Elite changed the green equipment to blue to assist those with color blindness. The new version dropped the elasticated side straps in favor of seat-belt style straps with buckles as these were found to be more durable. In 2009, Quasar Manufacturing started projecting Quasar Elite Wireless Equipment