Surefire E1B Backup

The E1B is a flashlight designed to be used as a backup light for law enforcement and related jobs. The light features a Cree LED with TIR optics and two levels of output using a single C123 battery.

The switch of the E1B is new for Surefire lights, it is a clickie switch that goes to high mode with the first click and to low mode with a second one. A light press of the switch without clicking from off gives you momentary maximum mode. This is probably intended to provide maximum light quickly in case of need but it is certainly a problem if you just need low light and want to preserve night vision.

The light runs for about 1.3 hours in maximum mode providing about 80 lumen of light in low mode it will last for about 35 hours at 5 lumen which is good enough for reading and general navigation.

The pocket clip is bidirectional meaning that you can clip the light bezel up or bezel down depending on your preferences the body in anodized aluminum type III is very strong but has been streamlined so it won't be agressive with pockets or clothing this is a good detail if the idea is to keep the light clipped for very long times and use it in case of need. The clip is also very strong and unless something terrible happens the light won't be lost.

This is not the brightest Cree light in the market and it is not the most functional light either but as a general purpose light or a backup light it is a very good option and its certainly brighter in high mode than many single cell lighs out there.

You can get it for $110 from BatteryJunction.

Photon Rex

The Rex is a rechargeable keychain light by LRI : the creators of the Photon Freedom.

The Rex features four bright white leds and the interface is very similar to the one in the photon freedom. The brightness can be regulated keeping the button pressed, when maximum it is about as twice as bright as the popular photon freedom. After the brightness settings there are four additional modes in the interface: a fast strobe, medium strobe, slow strobe and SOS mode.

The single button operation is easy and the button glows in the dark after being charged by direct sunlight or fluorescent light.

What makes the Rex so interesting is that it is rechargeable keychain light, to recharge it you have to insert the recharging kit into the Rex and then just plug the mini magnets at the other end to any 1.5v battery you have around. AA, AAA, C and D batteries work well, if you use rechargeable batteries then you have a complete rechargeable kit. Having an extra AA or even AAA battery around allows you to recharge the Rex anytime you need and anywhere you want. This curious recharging interface is like a hack but works well and it is very practical to be able to recharge the light using common batteries you can get anywhere.

The Rex is a lot bigger than a photon freedom, being about twice as big so if the freedom was fine for your keychain the Rex might be slightly bulkier.

A very interesting option for a rechargeable keychain light.
You can get it for $24 at LightHound.

Arc AAA UV

This is an UV (Ultra Violet) edition of the Arc AAA. It features a Nichia NSPU510CS 375nm UV LED powered by a single AAA battery, it can use lithium, alkaline or nimh rechargeable AAA batteries 1.5v.

The body is constructed from Type III Hard Anodized 6061 Aluminum and the interior is coated with chemkote for stronger corrosion reistance.

The switch is a twisty at the head, twist the head for simple on-off activation, o-rings make the light water reistance up to a hundread feet. Runtime with an alkaline battery is about 5 hours to 50% power.

UV lights are useful in many applications where objects need UV wavelengths to flouresce, like detecting counterfeit, scorpions, body fluids and others. Exposure to UV light is potentially harmful to the eyes so this is not a light to play. If you need a keychain UV light the Arc is probably one of the most durable versions you can get it will last forever in your keychain. If you don't need a very rugged light you have several options much cheaper and with similar runtime and output so this one probably makes sense only for those that use an UV light every day.

You can get it for $40 at ArcFlashlights.

Energizer Folding Lantern

The Folding Lanter is a very oddly shapped flashlight made by Energizer powered by four AA batteries.

The light has the case for the batteries and then a folding arm that holds a plastic difusser with three 5mm white leds embedded. A three way switch let's you choose from a high beam, low beam or off mode.

The light can be used folded or unfolded in different positions, there is a low quality plastic mirror at the back of the main body to improve the brightness when the light is closed. Despite it's supossed flexibility we fail to see how the folding arm and the design can be useful besides just putting the light inside a tent or a room for ambient illumination.

As expected the beam is just flood and works well to illuminate a tent or a small room, the runtime is excellent ranging from 100 hours on high mode to 200 hours in low mode. This makes this light an economic alternative for ambient illumination and a good backup device if you can be in potentially dark areas for a long time.

Construction is all plastic and seems to be solid, there is a plastic flap at the end of the main body with an attachment point for a lanyard, carabiner or something similar. With the 4 AA batteries the light is quite heavy the best way to carry is probably to just put it inside your packl and use it when you need it.

You can get it at retail stores like Wall Mart for around $10.

LiteFlux LF3

The LF3 is a programmable EDC light featuring a SSC P4 LED using a single C123 battery.

The light is turned on and off with a twisty mechanism, there are two positions marked P1 and P2 that are used for different levels and for programming. Going from P1 to P2 and back to P1 or P2-P1-P2 produces a "switch" the number of times you "switch" selects the mode of operation.

The LF3 has two programmable brightness settings and one variable brightness mode, since the variable brightness mode has memory we can say it has 3 brightness levels. It also has two programmable strobes, two programmable SOS modes, battery level indication and battery discharge protection. Operation and programming is identical to the LF2 we have previously reviewed.

It can use primary or rechargeable 123 batteries without any problem, the light is regulated so once set to a level it will keep at that level regardless of the battery status. Runtime is about 40 minutes at 100% brightness and more than 7 hours at 25% brightness.

The beam is excellent with a good compromise between throw and flood, the brightness at 100% using a rechargeable battery is really amazing, probably around 150 lumen. Since all the levels can be programmed you can set a low mode as low as you want and use it for reading or navigating the house at night.

The LF3 is built in HA-III aluminum, it is very strong and will resist drops and impacts, it doesn't have a pocket clip but can be attached to a lanyard or splitring, it comes with a diffusser and red, amber and blue filters.

The LF3 is a solid EDC light, it is very bright, offers several modes of operation and is completely programmable, the quality is excellent and for the ones that like a programmable versatile light this one is really superb.

Also available for CR2 batteries (LF4) or for AA batteries (LF5). You can order from Liteflux via CPF for $52.

Streamlight Stylus Pro

The Stylus Pro is the new upgraded version of the popular Stylus penlight by Streamlight. The changes are big, the light uses a new LED and AAA batteries now.

The Stylus pro uses a 0.5 watt LED powered by two AAA batteries, the output of the LED goes thru an optics system called "MOS" for Micro-Optical-System ending in a polycarbonate lens.
The total output goes up to 24 lumen with a runtime of 7.5 hours.

The switch is a forward clickie at the back of the pen, push lightly for momentary activation or push more to click it for constant on. It works very well with a good tactile response. The tailcap can be unscrewed to lock the light preventing accidental activation.

The body is made of grade II anodized aluminum, it is shockproof and waterproof using orings to seal it. The pocket clip is long and very strong and will work fine in any kind of pocket. The clip also features a small hole to attach a lanyard or a splitring. Lanyard is not included. The total length is 5.3''.

The beam offers a strong hotspot with plenty of sidespill, it is probably good as a general illumination tool and will be a big improvement compared with the old version.

Compared to the old stylus the pro version is bulkier because it uses AAA batteries but it is also amazingly bright if compared and the runtime is really very good. If you are looking for a very slim penlight you should go with the original version, if the size of the pro is good to you then don't hesitate because the performance is really improved.

You can order from LightHound for $19.

Fenix P3D RB100 Premium

This is an improved version of the Fenix P3D we have previously reviewed. The only difference is that the LED emitter has been upgraded to a LumiLeds Rebel 100 Led to make the light even brighter.

The P3D has 2 modes of operation selected twisting the head of the light, in each mode you can cycle thru different levels and modes clicling the tailcap switch. In the first mode, you start in the lowest brightness level, then medium, then high and the SOS. In the second mode you start in turbo mode and the next level is the strobe. You can go to Turbo or Minimum from any mode just twisting or untwisting the head. We have previously commented we like this user interface a lot and we still do.

With the new R100 LED the performance of the P3D is as follows: Minimum mode is 11 lumen with 65 hours of runtime, medium is 50 lumen with 13 hours of runtime, maximum is 112 lumen with 5 hours of runtime, turbo is 200 lumen with 1.8 hours of runtime. This figures using primary C123 batteries since rechargeables should not be used.

In Turbo mode the P3DR100 is just amazing, the amount of light it produces will outperform probably any other light you have seen, unfortunately the light gets quite hot in Turbo mode so you should not use it for more than five to ten minutes in turbo to avoid damaging the LED or the batteries. Never leave the light in Turbo without holding it because your hand is the heatsink that disipates the heat from the body.

The new Rebel LED is not only extremely bright but it also has a very white and warm tint that is certainly more pleasant to the eye than the tints we have seen in other LED lights.

With the six levels of operation ranging from 11 lumen to 200 lumen and with runtimes reaching 65 hours the P3Dr100 is an excellent EDC light that is probably one of the best general purpose flashlights at the moment this review was written.

You can order for $70 from Fenix-Store.

Dyno-Mite Keychain Light

The Dyno-Mite is a keychain crank activated light that uses no batteries and requires absolutely no power source to operate.

To use the light you crank it using the lever on the side and after one minute of winding you get 5 minutes of light from the two 5mm Leds.

The light is of course not bright but is a perfect backup light and a very nice gadget to have in your keychain, specially considering that this is a light that will always work if needed.

The Dyno-Mite is 1.6'' x 1.22'' x 0.6 '' (40 x 30 x 15 mm) and weights just 15 grams so it is perfect for a keychain, it has a small attachment hole for a splitring or a small lanyard. A keychain is included.

Construction is solid and the internal parts are simple are well constructed so with normal use this light should last a long time.

You can order for $7 from EssentialGear. Available in blue, red, green, silver, black and gray.

Streamlight MicroStream Penlight

The MicroStream is a single cell penlight powered by a AAA battery. The light uses a 0.5watt high flux LED. The total length of the light is 3.5''.

The Microstream uses a propietary optics system called "Micro Optical System" to focus the beam in a strong hotspot. The lens is made of polycarbonate.

The body is made of grade II anodized aluminium, with orings to make the light waterproof, the light claims to be shockproof and is very strongly built, we really think it will resist drops and impacts without a problem. The pocket clip is long and very strong, can be used to clip the light to a shirt pocket or a pants pocket without a problem, it has good tension and will not break. Attached to the clip is a small attachment point in case you want to use the light in your keychain.

The output is about 20 lumen for up to 1.5 hours of runtime, the beam is very strong and useful for a light of its size, great to inspect places, find missing objects and the normal things you can do with a keychain light.

Since the light is small and uses only one AAA battery it is in our opinion more a keychain light than a penlight and if you are looking for a strong hotspot portable mini searchlight this is probably a very good idea.

You can order from LightHound for $16.

Surefire G2 LED

This is a new version of the Surefire G2 using a SSC P4 LED instead of the incandescent lamp in the regular Surefire G2.

With the LED the G2 can produce up to 80-90 lumen and the runtime is 12 hours, the light is not regulated so the light will get dimmer as the batteries are consumed. It uses two c123 primary batteries.

The body is made of Nitrolon polymer, extremely strong and resistant to all sorts of impacts and falls. The lens is polycarbonate with anti reflective coating.

The switch is a tactical lockout switch, you can press for momentary activation or twist for constant on, untwisting the tailcap a few turns locks the light to prevent accidental activation.

The beam is a good combination of throw and flood, the reflector is textured to make the beam of the led smooth without artifacts, this means the throw of the light is slightly compromised to make the beam more even. Compared to the incandescent version this throws less but produces more light in total output.

With a very long runtime the G2 is a good all-around flashlight that needs very little or no maintenance at all, it never needs a new bulb and can run for many hours with one set of batteries, the beam is good for indoor or outdoors use.

You can read more at Surefire's website or order from OpticsHq.

Novatac EDC 120P

The Novatac EDC is the sequel to the HDS EDC line of flashlights, the light uses a SSC P4 LED capable of up to 120 lumen and has different levels of brightness that can be programmed. It uses a single 123 battery.

The light has four modes of operation, each mode can be programmed to a selected brightness level or a signaling function. From Off you can go to primary mode pressing the tailcap switch or to max mode doing a click-press. Once on you can change primary/secondary with 2 clicks, you can go to minimum mode via 3 clicks or to maximum doing a click-press. Each of this four modes can be programmed so we call them maximum or minimum just because it is the factory default.

To program enter the mode you want to change and do a click-click-press, you will be able to change the brighness level with 22 levels available, if you continue past the maximum level you will be able to assign a disorienting strobe, emergency strobe or SOS to the mode. This means that if one of your modes is the strobe then you have only 3 brightness levels to set. Since you can program and reprogram the light on the fly quickly this is not a big problem. From an options menu you can also program a locator beacon and other settings that can be set on or off depending on your preferences. Programming is very flexible and simple to do without a manual.

The light is bright reaching 120 lumen but is not as bright as other single cell Cree LEDs in the market. It can run for about 20 minutes in maximum before dropping to a lower level, all the brightness levels are regulated so the intensity won't change as the battery gets depleted. It can use any type of C123 batteries. This is good if you find a level that is perfect for your activities since it will keep constant.

The beam is a good compromise between throw and flood, the tint of the LED in our test model was blueish / purple. The interface is very easy to use but can be a little annoying with the click, double click, triple click and click press getting confused sometimes.

The body is constructed in HA-III aluminum resitant to scratches and impacts, the lens is polycarbonate glued to a bezel with slight crenelations to know if the flashlight is on or off. The light comes with an optional pocket clip that to our taste wasn't very good, it didn't seem to be very solid and it was too bulky and protruded a lot from the light body.

We found the Novatac 120P and excellent EDC light very flexible and easy to set to your own personal preferences, the maximum brightness is not incredible and the runtime is a little short, the tint was poor and the pocket clip is not very good, for the price we think it is either a love or hate flashlight that will be very good for those that like programmable lights with many options, other users that focus more on the output and performance than a list features might be disappointed.

You can order from LightHound for $150.

Streamlight Sidewinder

The sidewinder is a strange looking utility flashlight, the body is shaped in a rectangular form with an articulated head that can rotate, in the head we can find a white .5W white LED and three 5mm LEDs, the 3mm LEDS are red, blue and the third one can be either green or IR depending on the model.

The light uses a rotating knob to select the LED to use and a switch to select the mode for the LED being used, it has 4 brightness levels 5%, 20%, 50% and 100% that can be rotated keeping the on/off button pressed. With a double click in the switch from Off a strobe function is activated.

The sidewinder uses two AA batteries and the runtime on maximum brightness is 7 hours for the white led, 10 for the green, 12 for blue and 14 for the red one. In minimum brightness it can go for over 100 hours. The white high mode is about 20 lumen.

The beam of the white led is a floody warm white excellent for a tasklight, the color leds have artifacts. We liked the user interface and the ability to use 4 levels or a strobe on the 4 LED colors. The body made of polycarbonate plastic is extremely strong featuring a very good clip at the back. The head can be rotated 180 degrees to point where you want if you use the light attached to a vest or pack. We found the rectangular body very compact and useful for pockets, straps and even belt carry and the light is strongly built and very useful as a tasklight or utility light.

You can read more from Streamlight's website or order for $50 from BrightGuy, available in coyote tan and olive green bodies with blue-red-IR or blue-red-green leds.

Terralux Ministar5 Extreme for C and D Maglites

The Terralux Ministar5 is a dropin module for C and D cell Maglites, there are two versions: the TLE-6EX for 3 to 5 cell lights and the TEL-6EXB optimized for 2 or 3 cell lights.

The dropin changes the incandescent bulb in the Maglite to a SSC P4 LED, a very efficient and bright led capable of producig 140 lumen of output. Runtime is variable depending on the number and type of cells of the original light.

The module is regulated so the light output will be constant regardless of the state of the batteries, when the batteries are almost depleted output will decrease to offer some useful light for some hours, this avoids getting no output at all suddenly and is a good idea because carrying spare C or D batteries is heavy.

The beam is excelent and retains the original Maglite focusability, the throw is as good as in the incandescent beam or longer and the sidespill is useful. The overall brigtness of the dropin greatly exceeds the incandescent version so brightness, runtime and lifetime are improved at the same time making the upgrade an option to consider if you already have a C or D Maglite in your kit.

You can get it for $25 from Lighthound.

Freeplay Sherpa

The Freeplay Sherpa is an emergency flashlight that can be used without any power source using a hand crank to charge the light.

There are many hand-crank lights in the market and most of them are fakes, this one is for real. You have two ways to charge the flashlight, the first one is winding the hand crank, 2 minutes of winding will give you 50 hours of good light and up to 80 minutes of dim but useful light.
The second method is charging in an AC, a 24 hour charge will then give you 20 hours of light.

The light uses an array of 7 leds and has two brightness levels, one for maximum brightness and a dim setting for long runtime useful inside a tent or at the camping site, you can always recharge if you need more light so using the high mode if needed is not a problem.

The beam is floody good for ambien illumination and as a tasklight, the reflector provides a good throw so the light will be seen from a good distance and can be used to signal your position in an emergency situation.

The sherpa is a good quality emergency light that really works, it has a very good relation of charge time and light time, on the downside it is a little big to be an emergency device, it is not regulated and it doesn't have a strobe or beacon mode to attract attention. If the ability to be able to charge and use a light is what really matters this is an excellent option.

You can get it for $33 from BatteryJunction.

Streamlight Stylus

The Stylus is a pen-shaped flashlight by Streamlight. Among the many penlights in the market the stylus has the distictive advantage of being one of the thinnest versions being as thin as a regular ball pen or a mechanical pencil, other products are bulky when compared to a pen.

The stylus has a button on the tailcap for momentary activation, you can also tighten the end cap for constant on mode when needed in a penlight momentary use is probably the most used mode so the button is very useful.

The light uses three AAAA (that is four As) batteries, not very common to find but not hard or impossible, the AAAA batteries have the same length as AA or AAA batteries but are thinner. Some models of 9v batteries are made of 6 AAAA batteries so in case of emergencies you can "attack" a 9v battery to get the AAAAs.

The beam is dim as expeced from the regular 5mm led in this light but useful as a small task light or for quick inspections, it has a long runtime of more than 50 hours. The total brightness for the white led version is 10 lumen. The pocket clip is more oriented to a shirt than a pocket because it is rather small, so it can be seen as the regular clip you can find in a pen.

The light is available in white, red, blue, green and UV LED colors and several body colors to choose. You can read more about it at streamlight website or order from EDCdepot for $14.

Surefire L1 Cree Version

This is a new version of the L1 flashlight by Surefire, the biggest change is that the LED is now a Cree LED replacing the Luxeon LED in the previous model, the body length is shorter making it even better for EDC. The inmediate result is a light brighter, with longer runtime and a more compact size.

The L1 uses a single C123 cell rechargeables can be used but the body may not be wide enough for protected cells, this probably means Surefire wants you to use primary cells and not rechargeables in this light. It claims 65 lumen in high mode and about 10 lumen in low mode. Those values are according to our tests underrated, we estimate around 85 lumens on high compared to other lights we have around.

Runtime is 1.5 hours in high and 16 hours in low mode. Since the Cree is a more efficient LED there is a marked improvement in runtime. When running on high the thermal protection might kick in dimming the light, this probably means that the L1 is designed to be used in low mode with a very long runtime with the high mode available when needed providing a good amount of light with great runtime and a burst mode available.

The beam is round and very smooth, with a long throw and usable sidespill, the lens is slightly frosted to eliminate beam artifacts and the light uses a TIROS optic to focus the beam so it is a light designed for throw with a lens that corrects imperfections diffusing the beam a little. The loss of light due to the lens frost is probably minimal.

The new Cree led is very bright so the new L1 will outperform many other LED lights, in terms of brightness the new L1 in high mode can compete with the L4 and it only uses a single battery.

The tactical two stage switch is easy to operate, tighten for low mode and keep tightening for high mode, the button can be pressed for momentary low/high when off or momentary high when you are in low mode. Unscrewing the tailcap will put you in lockout mode. You can also unscrew the tailcap to only allow momentary low avoiding a very bright light when not desired.

As in many other Surefire lights the construction is excellent in HAIII aluminium, strong as it can be, it won't get scratched or damaged by impacts. O-rings make the light waterproof.

The L1 is an excellent EDC light, very bright and with excellent performance in runtime, the two stages makes it very useful as an all-around light.

You can read more at Surefire's website retail price is $135, you can get it from OpticsHQ.

DexLight X1

The Dexlight X1 is a multi-mode flashlight using a single AA sized battery to power a Cree XRE LED.

The flashlight has two interfaces, a simple mode and an advanced mode. In the simple mode you cycle thru the different modes with a light press of the tailcap clickie the modes are 80% brightness, minimum brightness, then 100% brightness, 50% brightness, strobe and locator beacon.

To switch to the advanced mode you have to turn the light off for two seconds from minimum brightness, then turn it off and you are in advanced mode. In advanced mode you cycle thru the different modes with a light press of tha tailcap in the same way as in the regular mode but this time there are many modes to cycle: the first one is maximum brightness, then 15hz strobe then 5%, 10%,20%,30%,40%,50%,60%,70% and 80% brightness, then a 5hz strobe, then two SOS modes one with full brightness and one with minimum, then the locator beacon anc back to 100%. To leave advanced mode you have to turn the light off in one of the strobes for 2 seconds, then turn it on again.

Since the first two settings of the advanced mode are 100% brightness and the strobe it can be used as a tactical mode. The regular mode works fine for non tactical users.

The light can use either alkaline, lithium, ni-mh or 14500 li-ion batteries, with the 14500 li-ion the X1 is the brightest AA single cell light we have tested even brighter than the Fenix L1DCE. The beam is very white and has a very good balance of throw and flood without artifacts. It is also a good detail that all the modes work with the 14500 battery.

The construction is Ha-III aluminium in a gray-brown color, very strong and resistant to impacts and scratches. There are double o-rings to make the light water proof. The lens is a saphire window with AR coating.

In the package with the light you get a belt nylon holster, spare o-rings and some spare taicap buttons of different colors, our unit included a black one, orange, red and a GITD yellow one.

The locator beacon, not common in many lights emits a short flash every 10 seconds and can be used to locate the light in the dark, it can work for several days in this mode so it is useful to leave it on and find it at night when camping.

The Dexlight X1 is a very bright light, using 14500 batteries the brightness is amazing and the multiple modes provide great versatility with runtimes from 30 minutes to 9 hours, an amazing little light that we have liked a lot.

You can read more at Dexlight's website or order from DealExtreme for $45.

Pilot's Pen

This is a pen with a green led tip created for Pilots and other professionals that may need to write at night without losing adaptation to darkness.

The light is activated twisting the tailcap, just the basic on-off-on-off without brightness levels. Without the cap the tip of the light can be used to see where you are writing, the green light is very dim and won't affect dark adapted eyes.

Green is a good color since the human eyes will see many shades under green light and if you need to see a map you won't have a problem with red marked roads or other symbols. With the cap attached there is a small lens in the cap so you can use the pen as a small flashlight, the light is very dim and will be useful to check out a map, a list of instructions, flight plan etc.

A good pen with a good selection of color and brightness for night notes. You can get it for $7 from Pilot Essentials.

Lumapower MRV Revolution

The MRV "Revolution" is the new flashlight in Lumapower's LumaHunter series, a very bright light designed for outdoor activities.

The MRV uses a Cree LED and has several options for the batteries being able to use two primary C123 lithiums, two rechargeable 123 lithiums or one 18650 rechargeable battery.

The light comes with a choice of two switches, a tactical switch with momentary activation and twist action for constant-on or a reverse clickie switch. There is a GITD button that you can use with any switch too.

The MRV has two brightness levels selected twisting the joint between the battery tube and the heatsink (the nickeled part) there is a very low click when you switch from high to low or low to high. The operation of the low/high mechanism wasn't very good in our opinion because with so many joints it is hard to twist where you need, sometimes you untwist the tailcap or the reflector instead of the body-heatsink union, furthermore and the difference between high and low wasn't very noticeable. Maybe after lubing the threads the operation will be smoother but we would have liked a much lower low mode. It is our guess that a future two stage tailcap can solve this as Lumapower has done in the M3 model.

The beam of the MRV offers a very tight and bright hotspot with a surrounding corona offering plenty of sidespill light. The throw of the MRV is incredible, it can out-throw almost any other LED light and it can also win against some big incandescent flashlights as the surefire M3(!). From our tests buildings, trees and objects more than 200 meters away can be illuminated, it is almost hard to believe how bright the light is.

The construction is really excellent, the body is made of Ha-III aluminium and will not get dented or scratched unless something terrible happens, the reflector is very big and very smooth, there are double o-rings in the joints to make the light water proof, contacts are clean and every part shows quality details. The tailcap has two wings that can be used to let the light tailstand and to thread a lanyard or a splitring. The bezel is crenelated so it can be used to know if the light is on and may also be used for self defense if needed. There is a glow in the dark oring in the bezel that glows after the light is turned off, this helps finding the MRV in the dark. It has a very solid feel in the hand, from what you see in the picture expect it to be smaller than what you think and heavier than what you think.

Runtime in high mode is about 30 minutes on rechargeables 123, about 1 hour with primaries and more than 3 hours with a 18650 battery. So far the 18650 is the option we like for the long runtime and brightness. Regulation is better with rechargeable 123s where the light output is constant until it just turns off completely.

The MRV is an awesome light for outdoor activities with an incredible throw and excellent construction quality. If you are outside often you should really take a look at this flashlight.

You can read more and order for $120 from BatteryJunction.

LiteFlux LF2

The LiteFlux LF2 is a programmable AAA light with many different modes and gizmos. The light can use any AAA sized battery from 0.9V to 5.0V this means it will work on alkalines, lithiums, nimh rechargeables and it will also work with li-ion 10440 3.7v batteries for extra brightness.

The LED is a Cree XR-E; hands down the brightest LED in the market at the moment of this review. The body is HA-III aluminium with orings to make it water resistant and the lens is made of glass with AR coating.

The switch is a twisty working different than most other twisty switches since you unscrew to turn on and screw back to turn it off, this probably helps water resistance when the light is off, we may call this a "reverse twisty". From Off there are two positions when unscrewing the head called P1 and P2. From the factory P1 and P2 will give you two brightness levels to choose.

But this light has many more modes and each mode is programmable so how do you do that with a twisty switch with 2 positions?. The answer is very simple when you go from P1 to P2 and back to P1 or from P2 to P1 and back to P2 with less than 1 second between modes a "switch" is defined, emulating a "click" in a light with a clickie. The number of "switches" you do is used to program the light and access different modes. We will call a switch movement SW to explain the different modes.

SWx1 is standard mode with P1 and P2 brightness levels. If you do SWx2 you go into variable brightness mode, you use P2 to change brightness and P1 to fix it, you can do SWx2 to reverse the direction from low to hi or from hi to low. This is a great mode to use the level of brightness you need for any specific situation. SWx3 is the strobe mode, there are two strobes P1 and P2. SWx4 is SOS mode with two brightness levels in P1 and P2. SWx5 is a battery test mode, SWx7 is a demo mode, SWx8 is used to turn on/off battery overdischarge protection, SWx10 resets factory defaults.

Then we have SWx6 to enter the programming mode, we won't go into detail on the "how" but this is a list of what you can program: you can define the brightness of P1 and P2 in standard mode, you can define the brightness and frequency of the strobes in P1 and P2, you can define the brightness of the SOS mode for P1 and P2.

So you can, for example, define P1 as 100% brightness and P2 as 1% brightness. Define one strobe to be very fast and bright for self defense and the other to be very slow and dim as a locator beacon, etc. Many different options and the interface while strange is not bad when you get used to it.

When the light is turned off it remembers the last mode so it will be back when you use it again. Included as an accessory is a very nice diffusor head that makes the light great for reading, ambient illumination or as a beacon.

This is a great light if you like many modes and versatility we absolutely loved it. You can read more and order for $55 from LiteFlux website.