Recommendation? Flashlight

S

Seth Green

Joined
Dec 6, 2013
Messages
2,782
Looking for a small to medium sized flashlight with clip and rechargable battery w charger. Under $200 new. Thanks!
 
Do you have any other preferences to help narrow this down? High-CRI, battery size, what small/medium are for you, etc.?

And are you looking for onboard battery charging (e.g., the battery or light has a charging port), or planning on also buying a standalone charger?

As a starting point, you can get an amazing 1x18650 EDC light with a wide range of emitter options for ~$80 from brands like Emisar, Noctigon, Lumintop, and ZebraLight. Add in a battery and a good charger for another $20-40 and you're still well under your budget. Take a look at the Emisar D4V2, Lumintop FW3A, and ZebraLight SC64c LE.
 
Dadpool said:
Do you have any other preferences to help narrow this down? High-CRI, battery size, what small/medium are for you, etc.?

And are you looking for onboard battery charging (e.g., the battery or light has a charging port), or planning on also buying a standalone charger?

As a starting point, you can get an amazing 1x18650 EDC light with a wide range of emitter options for ~$80 from brands like Emisar, Noctigon, Lumintop, and ZebraLight. Add in a battery and a good charger for another $20-40 and you're still well under your budget. Take a look at the Emisar D4V2, Lumintop FW3A, and ZebraLight SC64c LE.
Click to expand...
I don't know if I care if it's high CRI or not, didn't know that was a thing until a minute ago lol. Small to medium to me means I can put it in a pocket and carry it. Preferably it would have onboard charging, but that's not a deal breaker.

I'll check those out, thanks for the reply!
 
Seth Green said:
I don't know if I care if it's high CRI or not, didn't know that was a thing until a minute ago lol. Small to medium to me means I can put it in a pocket and carry it. Preferably it would have onboard charging, but that's not a deal breaker.

I'll check those out, thanks for the reply!
Click to expand...
Groovy, those should all be options worth peeking at.

I'll throw in one more now that I've got a bit more to go on: the Streamlight Wedge. It's ~$90, and the form factor is pretty unique -- it looks like an OTF knife. Not much throw, only comes in cool white (and low CRI), simple switch with "bright enough for lots of jobs" and "pretty danged bright," deep carry clip straight off a Benchmade. Clipped to the left front pocket of my jeans, that form factor really shines. Shorter, stubbier lights (like the three I recommended) always feel too round for clipped carry; I wind up dropping them into my pocket instead.

If you want to go small, I love my Peak Eiger. Add the momentary on lug switch and a Dark Sucks pocket clip, and it's a great little EDC. 1xAA, so charging is super simple.
 
"Small to medium" is a bit vague. Diameter and length are better indicators, as is battery size.

The Raptor RRT01 mentioned is a pretty decent EDC light. It'll use a 18350 (some packages include one with a charge port) or 16340. It's a bit long for a 18350, but makes up for it with its infinitely variable output. I have both the cool white and Nichia 219C high-CRI. The cool white has a tighter spot and throws farther, but that might be a bit limiting for EDC use since you'll mostly be using it for things closer to you. The 219C version is still pretty throwy with a tightish hotspot, and might still be a bit much for closer-in use. You can get extension tubes (x1 for a 18500 battery, x2 for 18650) but this makes for a very long light.

My personal EDC choice is a Lumintop FW3A with 4000K SST20 LEDs. I've also swapped the stock optic (frosted, medium beam) for the Carclo 10507 to increase the throw. The SST20/10507 optic combo isn't particularly throwy since the SST20 is floodier than Cree XPL-Hi that are more commonly used, and makes for a soft, floody spot (if that makes sense) that I find very useful for daily use. It will still throw light pretty far since the optics are focused and there's so many lumens, but the spot isn't so focused that a useful amount of light isn't so tight in one area that you're blinded up close. The FW3A is extremely short compared to other 18650 flashlights. However, the Andruil interface can be daunting and confusing even for nerdy hobbyists. Every once in a while I accidentally put it in some mode I can't get it out of short of doing a factory reset (a process which isn't explained in the instructions). You can put it in "muggle mode" to simplify things. Still, fun light, very useful, and puts out a crazy amount of light (gets hot though).

Fenix is a brand I've used for a long time, and trust. The sheer number of lights they offer mean that you should be able to find one that fits your needs. Olight has a lot of fans here (and elsewhere) for good reason, but the proprietary nature of their batteries doesn't appeal to me.
 
Seth Green said:
Looking for a small to medium sized flashlight with clip and rechargable battery w charger. Under $200 new. Thanks!
Click to expand...

For what purpose will you be using the light?

I like the Milwaukee Model #2105 penlight which is $20 at the home center. Uses 2 AAA batteries. It shines a wider flood beam with no hot spots, which you would use when checking out things which are close by. Like looking around an engine compartment, electrical panel, etc. Pocket clip, but no hat clip. You can get rechargeable AAA batteries, but I don't know how long they would last.
 
rycen said:
Sofirn SC31 pro
Emisar D4V2


both are well under your budget and full of features but you don’t have to use them
Click to expand...
Emisar d4v2 seems to be great option, from what little I understand about lights lol. Thanks for the suggestions!
 
As for high CRI vs white, there's benefits and trade offs with either. Most lights by the big brands will either be cool/cold or possibly warm, ranging from 5000K to 6700K. The brightest will pretty much always be pretty cold in temperature. They'll not only be actually brighter, but will also "seem" brighter next to a warmer light of equal brightness. If sheer lumens is what you want, you'll basically be limited to cold colors. CRI is "color rendering index", and relates to how your eyes perceive colors compared to natural sunlight. 100 is perfect, with a high CRI light being 90+.

The reason white LEDs (the ones used for flashlights, anyway) usually look so cold and unnatural is because they're actually blue LEDs (465nm wavelength) that are coated in phosphors that glow roughly 500-700nm wavelength. Similar to how red+blue+green = white, this creates a light that produces what we perceive as "white". The spectrum curve looks like this:

White_LED.jpg

Whereas the sun's visible spectrum is more like this:

sunlifght.png



Combined with the fact that your eyes see greenish light the best (which is why green laser pointers seem "brighter" than red ones at equivalent power), you should understand why white LEDs typically look so yucky and unnatural. White LEDs emit little green, we see green best, and most outdoor stuff (trees, grass, etc) is green. So nature with a white LED looks terrible.

High CRI flashlights attempt to correct this, and some do it very well. They do this by adding more phosphor layers that glow in wavelengths that offset the dramatic unevenness of the white LED's typical spectrum. Essentially, to round out the curve to closer match the sun. The trade-off is that a higher CRI light will almost always have less output than a comparable cold white LED (either in terms of brightness, or efficiency - ie: battery life). This might not be as much of an issue as you might think* (see below)

I have a Rovyvon Aurora A8X with a 5000K Nichia 219C (92CRI) which appears pretty white unless compared directly against something cooler, and it seems to do pretty well to my eyes. The 4000K 219C Jetbeam RRT01 looks better. I like my SST20 lights the best. The Nichia has some purplish tint shift in the side-spill I don't care for. That could just be because it has a reflector instead of a TIR optic.

The Nichia 219B and 219C (usually you see 219C) are more common, with the Luminus SST20 gaining popularity and availability. Cree has some high CRI LEDs as well, but these are very uncommon (not sure about Samsung). Note that both the Nichia 219 and Luminus SST20 (and some Cree) are available in colder temperatures as well, so make sure you're buying the right thing.

*It's important to understand that lumens aren't everything.

Firstly, the beam profile is every bit as important as the output. Apart from different optics (small vs large reflectors vs TIR optics), the LED is extremely important. Some LEDs are flat, some are domed, some are larger, some are smaller. Flat and small will have a tighter beam while large and domed will be floodier. For example, an 800 lumen Lumintop GT with Osram LED will greatly outthrow a 3000 lumen Fenix E35 (by a factor of 3 or so), but you're not going to want to read a map or be able to flood your entire yard with the Lumintop GT either.

Secondly, don't worry too much about having the brightest light. Apart from the beam profile differences, numbers on paper don't equate to perceived brightness. Your eyes detect light on a logarithmic scale, which is why you can see well in low light but aren't absolutely blinded by regular day light. That also means that while doubling 1 to 2 lumens or 10 lumens to 20 will have a significant difference, doubling 1500 to 3000 lumens won't have as much as a perceivable impact.

When it comes to choosing a light, that means you shouldn't worry too much about buying a 2000 lumen flashlight with features you like more instead of a 2500 lumen flashlight that you like less. A high CRI light will likely have a fairly significant drop in lumens compared to a regular version (of the same light), and/or a reduction of battery life. It'll be enough to be noticeable. HOWEVER, whether it's a big enough difference to matter to you, that's the important question. My SST20 FW3A is so damn bright that I don't mind that it's not quite as bright as my XP-L Hi one, and the color is so much better. Similarly, the 2 Jetbeams are both rated at 950 lumens, but the battery life is less with the Cree 219C.

A practical interface, a logical progression of outputs, beam profile, and simple comfort are more important than a few lumens on paper. I've eschewed otherwise great lights simply because the pocket clip sucked. Remember, it doesn't do you any good if you don't have it with you because it's inconvenient to carry.

Choosing a high CRI light vs a regular light could mean choosing between 2 different flashlights, although there's a number of lights that offer multiple LED choices. Mostly it depends on brand. One obvious solution is to carry 2 lights. For example, choosing a high output light as your "EDC" would make perfect sense, despite probably having a cool, lower CRI tint, if you compliment it with a small (perhaps keychain size) high CRI light. Myself, I actually carry 3 lights on my keychain. One is a Rovyvon with a 650 lumen "turbo" for sheer output, while the other is a Sofirn SC01 with a 95+CRI SST20 for when I don't need a ton of light and/or prefer natural colors (the 3rd light is a Nitecore TIKI 365nm UV).

I will say that once you get accustomed to a high CRI light, switching back to a cold/cool white will seem jarringly garish.
 
Planterz said:
"Small to medium" is a bit vague. Diameter and length are better indicators, as is battery size.

The Raptor RRT01 mentioned is a pretty decent EDC light. It'll use a 18350 (some packages include one with a charge port) or 16340. It's a bit long for a 18350, but makes up for it with its infinitely variable output. I have both the cool white and Nichia 219C high-CRI. The cool white has a tighter spot and throws farther, but that might be a bit limiting for EDC use since you'll mostly be using it for things closer to you. The 219C version is still pretty throwy with a tightish hotspot, and might still be a bit much for closer-in use. You can get extension tubes (x1 for a 18500 battery, x2 for 18650) but this makes for a very long light.

My personal EDC choice is a Lumintop FW3A with 4000K SST20 LEDs. I've also swapped the stock optic (frosted, medium beam) for the Carclo 10507 to increase the throw. The SST20/10507 optic combo isn't particularly throwy since the SST20 is floodier than Cree XPL-Hi that are more commonly used, and makes for a soft, floody spot (if that makes sense) that I find very useful for daily use. It will still throw light pretty far since the optics are focused and there's so many lumens, but the spot isn't so focused that a useful amount of light isn't so tight in one area that you're blinded up close. The FW3A is extremely short compared to other 18650 flashlights. However, the Andruil interface can be daunting and confusing even for nerdy hobbyists. Every once in a while I accidentally put it in some mode I can't get it out of short of doing a factory reset (a process which isn't explained in the instructions). You can put it in "muggle mode" to simplify things. Still, fun light, very useful, and puts out a crazy amount of light (gets hot though).

Fenix is a brand I've used for a long time, and trust. The sheer number of lights they offer mean that you should be able to find one that fits your needs. Olight has a lot of fans here (and elsewhere) for good reason, but the proprietary nature of their batteries doesn't appeal to me.
Click to expand...
I don't know enough about lights to answer that question. Something that'll fit in my pocket comfortably for a few hours.

Thanks for the suggestions! Fenix has a bunch of models to consider
 
Planterz said:
As for high CRI vs white, there's benefits and trade offs with either. Most lights by the big brands will either be cool/cold or possibly warm, ranging from 5000K to 6700K. The brightest will pretty much always be pretty cold in temperature. They'll not only be actually brighter, but will also "seem" brighter next to a warmer light of equal brightness. If sheer lumens is what you want, you'll basically be limited to cold colors. CRI is "color rendering index", and relates to how your eyes perceive colors compared to natural sunlight. 100 is perfect, with a high CRI light being 90+.

The reason white LEDs (the ones used for flashlights, anyway) usually look so cold and unnatural is because they're actually blue LEDs (465nm wavelength) that are coated in phosphors that glow roughly 500-700nm wavelength. Similar to how red+blue+green = white, this creates a light that produces what we perceive as "white". The spectrum curve looks like this:

View attachment 1612573

Whereas the sun's visible spectrum is more like this:

sunlifght.png



Combined with the fact that your eyes see greenish light the best (which is why green laser pointers seem "brighter" than red ones at equivalent power), you should understand why white LEDs typically look so yucky and unnatural. White LEDs emit little green, we see green best, and most outdoor stuff (trees, grass, etc) is green. So nature with a white LED looks terrible.

High CRI flashlights attempt to correct this, and some do it very well. They do this by adding more phosphor layers that glow in wavelengths that offset the dramatic unevenness of the white LED's typical spectrum. Essentially, to round out the curve to closer match the sun. The trade-off is that a higher CRI light will almost always have less output than a comparable cold white LED (either in terms of brightness, or efficiency - ie: battery life). This might not be as much of an issue as you might think* (see below)

I have a Rovyvon Aurora A8X with a 5000K Nichia 219C (92CRI) which appears pretty white unless compared directly against something cooler, and it seems to do pretty well to my eyes. The 4000K 219C Jetbeam RRT01 looks better. I like my SST20 lights the best. The Nichia has some purplish tint shift in the side-spill I don't care for. That could just be because it has a reflector instead of a TIR optic.

The Nichia 219B and 219C (usually you see 219C) are more common, with the Luminus SST20 gaining popularity and availability. Cree has some high CRI LEDs as well, but these are very uncommon (not sure about Samsung). Note that both the Nichia 219 and Luminus SST20 (and some Cree) are available in colder temperatures as well, so make sure you're buying the right thing.

*It's important to understand that lumens aren't everything.

Firstly, the beam profile is every bit as important as the output. Apart from different optics (small vs large reflectors vs TIR optics), the LED is extremely important. Some LEDs are flat, some are domed, some are larger, some are smaller. Flat and small will have a tighter beam while large and domed will be floodier. For example, an 800 lumen Lumintop GT with Osram LED will greatly outthrow a 3000 lumen Fenix E35 (by a factor of 3 or so), but you're not going to want to read a map or be able to flood your entire yard with the Lumintop GT either.

Secondly, don't worry too much about having the brightest light. Apart from the beam profile differences, numbers on paper don't equate to perceived brightness. Your eyes detect light on a logarithmic scale, which is why you can see well in low light but aren't absolutely blinded by regular day light. That also means that while doubling 1 to 2 lumens or 10 lumens to 20 will have a significant difference, doubling 1500 to 3000 lumens won't have as much as a perceivable impact.

When it comes to choosing a light, that means you shouldn't worry too much about buying a 2000 lumen flashlight with features you like more instead of a 2500 lumen flashlight that you like less. A high CRI light will likely have a fairly significant drop in lumens compared to a regular version (of the same light), and/or a reduction of battery life. It'll be enough to be noticeable. HOWEVER, whether it's a big enough difference to matter to you, that's the important question. My SST20 FW3A is so damn bright that I don't mind that it's not quite as bright as my XP-L Hi one, and the color is so much better. Similarly, the 2 Jetbeams are both rated at 950 lumens, but the battery life is less with the Cree 219C.

A practical interface, a logical progression of outputs, beam profile, and simple comfort are more important than a few lumens on paper. I've eschewed otherwise great lights simply because the pocket clip sucked. Remember, it doesn't do you any good if you don't have it with you because it's inconvenient to carry.

Choosing a high CRI light vs a regular light could mean choosing between 2 different flashlights, although there's a number of lights that offer multiple LED choices. Mostly it depends on brand. One obvious solution is to carry 2 lights. For example, choosing a high output light as your "EDC" would make perfect sense, despite probably having a cool, lower CRI tint, if you compliment it with a small (perhaps keychain size) high CRI light. Myself, I actually carry 3 lights on my keychain. One is a Rovyvon with a 650 lumen "turbo" for sheer output, while the other is a Sofirn SC01 with a 95+CRI SST20 for when I don't need a ton of light and/or prefer natural colors (the 3rd light is a Nitecore TIKI 365nm UV).

I will say that once you get accustomed to a high CRI light, switching back to a cold/cool white will seem jarringly garish.
Click to expand...
Thanks for all that info! That cleared up most of my questions/ignorance. I mainly want it to see at night on our property(300 feet long by about 200 feet wide), I won't need one for long periods.
 
FENIX LD12 - one AA. LD22 - two AA.
Use Eneloop rechargeable batteries

One of my personal favorites is the PD35. Great general purpose light.
Use two Fenix brand CR123 rechargeables or one 18650.
 
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AD7B3D41-D743-41CD-BBA7-D479D3D212E7.jpegLeft to right
mini champ
lumintop FW3A
Emisar D4V2
sofrin SC31 pro
 
Before ordering a light like an Emisar, Noctigon, or certain Lumintops, you should read up on them and the Andruil interface. If all you want is something simple, then these might not be what you want. In addition to the light you'll also need a good charger and the correct 18650 batteries, which are not your typical cells. These lights will only work with high-drain (you'll want 20A continuous or higher) unprotected cells. The lights themselves will have low voltage protection so overdischarge isn't an issue, but there's still other risks with unprotected cells that you should be aware of. The batteries themselves aren't always easy to track down either. And as mentioned earlier, the Andruil interface is not for the casual user.
 
rycen said:
Sofirn SC31 pro
Emisar D4V2


both are well under your budget and full of features but you don’t have to use them
Click to expand...
I have a Sofirn SC33 V2
2500 lumens in the palm of my hand. A bit on the floody side, which is what I need.
I've had zero problems with it.
 
Planterz said:
As for high CRI vs white, there's benefits and trade offs with either. Most lights by the big brands will either be cool/cold or possibly warm, ranging from 5000K to 6700K. The brightest will pretty much always be pretty cold in temperature. They'll not only be actually brighter, but will also "seem" brighter next to a warmer light of equal brightness. If sheer lumens is what you want, you'll basically be limited to cold colors. CRI is "color rendering index", and relates to how your eyes perceive colors compared to natural sunlight. 100 is perfect, with a high CRI light being 90+.

The reason white LEDs (the ones used for flashlights, anyway) usually look so cold and unnatural is because they're actually blue LEDs (465nm wavelength) that are coated in phosphors that glow roughly 500-700nm wavelength. Similar to how red+blue+green = white, this creates a light that produces what we perceive as "white". The spectrum curve looks like this:

View attachment 1612573

Whereas the sun's visible spectrum is more like this:

sunlifght.png



Combined with the fact that your eyes see greenish light the best (which is why green laser pointers seem "brighter" than red ones at equivalent power), you should understand why white LEDs typically look so yucky and unnatural. White LEDs emit little green, we see green best, and most outdoor stuff (trees, grass, etc) is green. So nature with a white LED looks terrible.

High CRI flashlights attempt to correct this, and some do it very well. They do this by adding more phosphor layers that glow in wavelengths that offset the dramatic unevenness of the white LED's typical spectrum. Essentially, to round out the curve to closer match the sun. The trade-off is that a higher CRI light will almost always have less output than a comparable cold white LED (either in terms of brightness, or efficiency - ie: battery life). This might not be as much of an issue as you might think* (see below)

I have a Rovyvon Aurora A8X with a 5000K Nichia 219C (92CRI) which appears pretty white unless compared directly against something cooler, and it seems to do pretty well to my eyes. The 4000K 219C Jetbeam RRT01 looks better. I like my SST20 lights the best. The Nichia has some purplish tint shift in the side-spill I don't care for. That could just be because it has a reflector instead of a TIR optic.

The Nichia 219B and 219C (usually you see 219C) are more common, with the Luminus SST20 gaining popularity and availability. Cree has some high CRI LEDs as well, but these are very uncommon (not sure about Samsung). Note that both the Nichia 219 and Luminus SST20 (and some Cree) are available in colder temperatures as well, so make sure you're buying the right thing.

*It's important to understand that lumens aren't everything.

Firstly, the beam profile is every bit as important as the output. Apart from different optics (small vs large reflectors vs TIR optics), the LED is extremely important. Some LEDs are flat, some are domed, some are larger, some are smaller. Flat and small will have a tighter beam while large and domed will be floodier. For example, an 800 lumen Lumintop GT with Osram LED will greatly outthrow a 3000 lumen Fenix E35 (by a factor of 3 or so), but you're not going to want to read a map or be able to flood your entire yard with the Lumintop GT either.

Secondly, don't worry too much about having the brightest light. Apart from the beam profile differences, numbers on paper don't equate to perceived brightness. Your eyes detect light on a logarithmic scale, which is why you can see well in low light but aren't absolutely blinded by regular day light. That also means that while doubling 1 to 2 lumens or 10 lumens to 20 will have a significant difference, doubling 1500 to 3000 lumens won't have as much as a perceivable impact.

When it comes to choosing a light, that means you shouldn't worry too much about buying a 2000 lumen flashlight with features you like more instead of a 2500 lumen flashlight that you like less. A high CRI light will likely have a fairly significant drop in lumens compared to a regular version (of the same light), and/or a reduction of battery life. It'll be enough to be noticeable. HOWEVER, whether it's a big enough difference to matter to you, that's the important question. My SST20 FW3A is so damn bright that I don't mind that it's not quite as bright as my XP-L Hi one, and the color is so much better. Similarly, the 2 Jetbeams are both rated at 950 lumens, but the battery life is less with the Cree 219C.

A practical interface, a logical progression of outputs, beam profile, and simple comfort are more important than a few lumens on paper. I've eschewed otherwise great lights simply because the pocket clip sucked. Remember, it doesn't do you any good if you don't have it with you because it's inconvenient to carry.

Choosing a high CRI light vs a regular light could mean choosing between 2 different flashlights, although there's a number of lights that offer multiple LED choices. Mostly it depends on brand. One obvious solution is to carry 2 lights. For example, choosing a high output light as your "EDC" would make perfect sense, despite probably having a cool, lower CRI tint, if you compliment it with a small (perhaps keychain size) high CRI light. Myself, I actually carry 3 lights on my keychain. One is a Rovyvon with a 650 lumen "turbo" for sheer output, while the other is a Sofirn SC01 with a 95+CRI SST20 for when I don't need a ton of light and/or prefer natural colors (the 3rd light is a Nitecore TIKI 365nm UV).

I will say that once you get accustomed to a high CRI light, switching back to a cold/cool white will seem jarringly garish.
Click to expand...
EXCELLENT explanations Aaron! Couldn't have said it better myself. :thumbsup:

Totally agree with that last line! I didn't think it would be the case before I switched to warm white, but it absolutely is!

(Incidentally, I also carry a Rovyvon Aurora A8X on a keychain. It's the Nichia/red/white/UV model, so I don't need a separate UV light. I find myself using the red LED quite a bit too. Quite bright for such a small red LED.)

Planterz said:
Before ordering a light like an Emisar, Noctigon, or certain Lumintops, you should read up on them and the Andruil interface. If all you want is something simple, then these might not be what you want. In addition to the light you'll also need a good charger and the correct 18650 batteries, which are not your typical cells. These lights will only work with high-drain (you'll want 20A continuous or higher) unprotected cells. The lights themselves will have low voltage protection so overdischarge isn't an issue, but there's still other risks with unprotected cells that you should be aware of. The batteries themselves aren't always easy to track down either. And as mentioned earlier, the Andruil interface is not for the casual user.
Click to expand...
Totally agree again. Lol. I actually get annoyed with the Anduril interface sometimes, if I haven't used it for awhile. Sometimes simple is better. Been thinking about getting a FW3EL for the simpler modes.

Also, the Fenix HQ is walking distance from my house... :cool: Between them and the Spyderco outlet also being close by, it is dangerous! :eek: 😂
 
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