Inova Microlight

Daniel Moore

Daniel Moore

Joined
Jul 28, 2003
Messages
2,790
I think these lights are pretty popular because they're cheap ($6.50), small, and seem like they'd work great for a keychain LED, but I personally hate them.

If you carry them in your pockets on a keyring, you'll notice that half of the time you pull them out of your pocket the light is on (and has been on for who-knows-how-long). The big button is just too sensitive. I prefer the switch mechanism of the Photon, but I had the Photon I which doesn't have a continuous switch, so I figured the Inova would be an improvement. Needless to say, my Inova finally died today after a steady decrease of output since I bought it not long ago at Target. I also don't care for the three-position switch (high, low, strobe)- I never thought that the single LED was too bright that I needed to dim it ;)

So now I'm going to have to pay a bit more and get myself a Photon II unless any of you candlepower guys think there's a better value out there. The Inova would be an awesome buy comparing its cost to the cost of the batteries they use, but the switch really ought to be recessed or have a different switch for a continuous beam like the Photon II's.
 
When I carried a micro-light I changed the switching to momentary-on. That way the light only stayed on so long as the button was pressed and if I needed it on longer I would just hold the button down for 15 seconds and revert it back to the hi-lo-blink mode.

You may also want to consider the 0.99$ "fauxtons" from Lighthound, good lights and a good source of cheap batteries. They also do have the constant-on switch.
 
I definitely recommend the fauxtons for $0.99 at Lighthound (slightly less if you buy in a large quantity). They are just Chinese copies of the Photon II, so you get the constant-on that doesn't engage itself in the pocket. I have these things in all kinds of colors stashed all over the place and routinely give them to people: everyone loves them.

I also recently went for even further savings by ordering them from DealExtreme. At $4.68 for a 10 pack with free shipping, I doubt you'll find any way to beat that price. The only thing is that you can expect to wait 1-3 weeks from time of order to receive them since they are coming from China.

So if you want quick service, I'd recommend buying a bunch from Lighthound. If you want the absolute rock-bottom price, buy 20 of them for DX like I did :D

I recently saw a comparison test of the fauxton and a real Photon on candlepowerforums where the fauxton was actually brighter. If I find the link I'll post it. The only caveat with the fauxtons is that they might be considered slightly less resilient. Between personally owning and giving these things away, I've seen a sample size of at least 40 pieces. In all of those, two failed: one died almost immediately upon use and one died after months on a keychain but didn't seem to be battery related. This doesn't bother me that much since I keep them around in such quantity. If the one on my keychain dies, I'll usually have another at hand on a jacket zipper pull, for example.

At such a cheap price they're worth a shot, especially since Lighthound throws one in free if you order over $50 (I think that's the number) worth of stuff from them. That's how I first got hooked on these little things :D
 
Every so often Circuit City sells these ridiculously cheap LED keyfob lights under their "house" brand, Nexxtech.

Good: Zero probability of leaving light on--it is strictly a "squeeze to turn on" switch.

Bad: Unlike your standard keychain lights, these are designed strictly as throwaway items. There is no user interface with the battery since the flashlight is literally stitched into a leather cover.
 
Every so often Circuit City sells these ridiculously cheap LED keyfob lights under their "house" brand, Nexxtech.

Good: Zero probability of leaving light on--it is strictly a "squeeze to turn on" switfch.

Bad: Unlike your standard keychain lights, these are designed strictly as throwaway items. There is no user interface with the battery since the flashlight is literally stitched into a leather cover.
Click to expand...

That may not be a bad thing. A lot of lights (with batteries) are cheaper than the price of replacement batteries.

Thanks for all of the recommendations!
 
If you order anything from lighthound you can get the 2016 batteries for $.29 each. Much cheaper than from Walgreens or any other store (usually $5 for 2).

The Fauxtons are alright to scatter around the house or cars, but you can't really rely on them to be working when you absolutely really need it. I've had a few (LH gives you a free one with every order) and they've all stopped working at one point. I just take the batteries out and put them in my real Photons.

If you want a keychain light that you know will work when you need it, get a Photon, or even a AAA light like an Arc or Fenix (bigger, but more battery life, and easier to find batteries).
 
I am just about to return a microlight under warranty. The button fell out after abouit 2 weeks of being on my key chain. I wondered why I was seeing flashes and it was my keys making contact and bypassing the switch button.
 
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