 Led based flashlights... excellent! |
| Review Date: January 13, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Ricardo Valdez, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic |
I have had Fenix flashlights for a long time and it makes the greatest gift, batteries last so long and the led is for ever, if you take care of it... |
Great For Computer Work
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| Review Date: November 18, 2008 |
| Reviewer: William Rogers, Newark, DE USA |
I maintain computer hardware for my office, and sometimes it is hard to see details inside an enclosure once you've put everything together. This little guy is fantastic for lighting up those tight spaces. It's also very small and light, which helps with maneuvering the beam where you need it. Even on the lowest setting, the light is very bright compared to a conventional flashlight bulb, and I like the option of turning up the juice even more when I need it.
The body feels very solid and durable. My only complaint is a minor one: I don't like the twist-on-off control method. I'd prefer the precision of a button. |
WAY BETTER THAN THE PHOTON MICROLIGHTS
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| Review Date: August 9, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Robert F. Schatan, Georgia |
I bought one of the limited edition red ones left over from Christmas. Very likely it's the same as the black ones too. It's so powerful that I've found it'll illuminate a house a half block away! I used it a few nights ago at the shore to illuminate a bird over 100 feet away, it was amazing how it lit it up. It's tiny, nearly the size of a AAA battery. The AAA battery it uses lasts a very long time too so it's very cheap to run. I finally put in a new battery 6 months after I bought it. It still made usable light but not the dazzling brilliance that a new battery creates. It's been on my keychain now for over 6 months and the paint looks like new and it works perfectly. It's been in a swimming pool and it works perfectly. It's been dropped lots of times and it works perfectly.
This is way better than the Photonlight Freedom I used to carry that ate up expensive coin batteries two at a time. Another problem with the Freedoms is that they turn on in your pocket and you don't know it. It happened a lot and that meant frequent changes of the batteries, about once a month. The coin batteries are a pain in the career to put in too requiring watchmaker's tools to open it, pull out the batteries which are in a tiny metal "cradle". You then carefully align the Freedom inner two prongs to match the female connectors and press them in and hope you have gotten a good contact. Any pressure in your pocket turns it on and it stays on until the batteries you've just hassled over are run down.
With the Fenix you just unscrew the back, drop in a cheap AAA and screw the back in again. And it doesn't turn on in your pocket.
One of the Photon's big selling points with me was that it could signal with either a strobe or SOS pattern. That was very handy a couple times when I got locked in rooms to attract attention. The Fenix does the same thing but is far more powerful and longer lasting that the Photonlight.
Another problem I had with the Photonlight was that it was so tiny that it was hard to find at night on the keychain. Your fingers would miss it among the keys easily. Not so with the Fenix whose cylinder shape is easy to pick out and grab.
It's supposed to be about as powerful as a 3 or 4 D cell Maglight too. I haven't tested that side by side but it seems like it could be with a fresh AAA battery. It's amazing and it doesn't get hot like the Maglights.
About the only disadvantage I could imagine in comparing it with the Maglights is I don't think you'd hurt a badguy hitting him on the head with it. It's so light you won't notice it in your pocket.
My condolences to the Photonlight company....
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It's the best flashlight I've ever used.
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| Review Date: February 2, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Caveat Emptor, |
This flashlight is rugged, compact and extremely bright. I compared it to a triple-D-cell Mag I had, and it was brighter. Considering that it will easily fit in one's pocket, as it's barely larger than the diminutive AAA battery that powers it, it amazed me.
I bought this as a gift for my father who is a mechanic, engineer and all-around tinkerer. He often needs to peer into the dark crevices of machines. He loves it, and he is constantly showing it off.
For those who need to do things like tweak and repair electronic devices in dark, narrow places, this flashlight is ideal. |
This amazing tiny flashlight will transform your life!
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| Review Date: November 16, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Joshua G. Feldman, New York |
OK - mabye "transform your life" is a little much - but since I started carrying the Fenix L0D-CE I've found myself with new found capabilities in a wide range of situations. I've carried a Maglight Solitaire for years - but the Fenix L0D-CE, while basically the same size (it's a bit shorter and wider, but a trivial difference) is a totally different animal. The Fenix is amazingly bright, with fantastic throw and reach. As a network administrator I frequently need to illuminate jack labels in dark wiring closets, or see inside server cases in inadequately illuminated racks. The Fenix L0D-CE can do all that, but it can also illuminate across my yard, and light up the tops of my neighbors trees. On the lake it hits distant boats as well as any big normal flashlight (actually better than most). It's astounding. I find I pull it out when grilling steaks at night, and when hiking, and when doing house work. It's so tiny it lives on my keychain and is taken anywhere - so I have it all the time. It's so powerful I never missing having a big flashlight. It's pretty much the complete package.
Yet, I do have few quibbles and comments on the issues that come up with this amazing tiny product:
1) The on/off switch is the screw down opening of the case itself (the same you use to change batteries). When screwed down tight the light is on. To turn the light off you must unscrew it a bit. There are no detents, so it's up to you how much you unscrew it. If you unscrew it just the minimum, then pressure on the front of the unit turns it on. To make sure it doesn't go own accidentally you must unscrew it a tiny bit more. Turning it on and off within 30 seconds is how you select among the 5 different operating modes, medium, low, bright, flashing slow, and flashing fast. The whole business of using the screw closure as the on/off switch isn't the easiest or most ergonomic (it takes two hands unless you learn the trick of doing it single handed). That being said, this design means the screw closure is the only moving part - for better durability. If you unscrew it too much, however, you risk having it come apart in your pocket or having the O-ring not seal all the way. This isn't a big deal, but it's an issue you come to live with (that isn't perfection).
2) The battery choices: AAA alkalines work great and you get plenty of life out them (unless you use the high beam a lot - in which case you'll get about an hour). You can choose to get a rechargeable lithium (LC 10440) and charger, which I chose to do. There's a bit of controversy about the 10440 - it makes the Fenix L0D-CE even brighter - but in high-beam mode it can conceivably overdrive the Cree chip beyond its rated specs. I can attest that with a freshly charged 10440 running the L0D in high beam mode it scary bright and the front of the flashlight gets HOT. I choose to use the 10440 and just use medium and low mostly and enjoy extra brightness on those settings and the economy of a rechargeable battery. I haven't bothered with NiMH rechargeables (which I own) since the lithium works so well.
3) I got the black, and living on the keychain it gets a few scratches (I've had it over 6 months and it's just a few). There are some signs of wear along the bottom edge where the the ring lives. This is fine, I'm quite impressed with the longevity of the paint. Some folks have issues with this, but I'm not one of them.
4)You might argue that it can be too bright for task work. I find that in low mode it's just dandy for task work. Also, how can you complain when you gain all the flexibility of having amazing brightness when you need it for distance work.
5) The "donut" effect. The shape of the Cree LED's front lens makes a little dark dot in the exact center, but only at certain focal distances (1-3 inches, and 1-5 feet). The effect is so subtle as to be completely trivial. Enough said.
6) LED lights are cold in color - true. But, the Cree LED in this unit is very white - lacking the cold blue tint in most LEDs. There is a bit of blue in the very center. This is just a small price to pay for a pocket miracle.
Obviously spending this much on a pocket flashlight isn't for everyone. But for anyone who views a pocket flashlight as a necessary life tool, this one is the best and is WELL worth the money. Highest recommendation. |
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