Cyber Snipa Dog Tags

This novelty item combines a USB pendrive with a flashlight and a multi-tool in the shape of a dogtag chain.

The tool comes shaped as a dogtag with a chain, intended for neck carry but can certainly be used in a keychain with a shorter chain or a splitring.

The USB drive has 512MB of capacity and slides in and out from the tag. It has a normal transfer rate, nothing exceptional but is not bad either.

From the "case" sides 3 small tools can be opened, a small set of pliers, a flat screwdriver and a bottle opener. The small tools are fine, a little fragile but they are not intended as power tools.

The flashlight is activated pushing a button, it is not very bright but works if you need a light in a hurry and have this handy.

You can read more and order for $54 from this site.

JetScream Whistle

The JetScream is a survival whistle from Ultimate Survival, a company that has created and designed several interesting survival products.

The Jetscream is big (2.3 inches long) and flat, it has two holes to thread a cord thru like the picture shows so, it is a very good whistle for neck carry, but it is probably a little big for a keychain. It can also be carried from a backpack, a shoulder strap or just in your pocket. As a zipper pull it is too big. Remember the whole idea of carrying a whistle is to have it available in an emergency situation so neck carry is probably the best approach.

In order to produce the sound you don't need to use a lot of force, the harder you blow the louder it will sound so while it can certainly be used by small children it will not sound as loud as what an adult can do. The sound is quite acute and piercing, the frequency when tested resulted particularly good in windy situations and it was also good enough to be noticeable in an urban noisy scenario.

The JetScream doesn't have a pea so it will work without a problem if wet and the plastic material won't be a problem if the weather is very cold. The construction is very strong, we don't think the whistle can be damaged by hits or scratches and pressure will not crush it due to the flat design. It is a real solid whistle.

In conclusion the Jetscream is a loud whistle, bigger than other whistles we have tested but the flat design makes it useful. The sound is very good and met our expectations.

You can read more from UltimateSurvival or order for $5 from EDC depot.

Nite Ize S-Biner

The S-Biner is a double gated thin carabiner from Nite-Ize, the biner is available in 3 sizes. Size 2 "small" is 2 x 7/8 inches and can load up to 10lb (4.5k). Size 3 is 2 5/8 x 1 1/8 inches and can load up to 25lb (11k). Size 4 is 3 1/2 x 1 1/2 inches and can load up to 75lb (33k).

The gates operate smoothly enough to be easy to open and close but have enough strength to prevent being opened by accident. The double gate is useful in several ways, you can use one gate for your keychain items and the other as an attachment point or you can use the s-biner to connect items together.

The biggest problem we had with the s-biners is that even the smallest one is a little bulky for what we like in a keychain or to hang from a belt loop, they are quite noticeable. A smaller version would probably be better for a keychain, since the sizes offered are 2, 3 and 4 maybe there is a size 1 planned for a near future.

If the sizes are good to you the product is nice, works as expected and seems to be solid enough to live up to the specifications. Remember this is not a climbing product, just an accesory.

You can read more in Nite-Ize's website and you can get them from $2.99 in black, silver or spectrum colors from ZBattery.

NiteIze 1Watt LED Upgrade and IQ switch

NiteIze is popular for their Led dropin upgrade kit for MiniMags, the old version used 3 5mm LEDs, this new kit uses a single 1 watt LED. The IQ switch replaces the tailcap and provides a tailcap button and many new modes for your minimag.

Installation of the kit is fairly simple. For the LED upgrade you replace the bulb with the led, then you also have to replace the reflector with the included new reflector, both things are very easy. The switch just replaces the tailcap.

Once installed the IQ switch provides the following modes: maximum brightness (1 click), 50% brightness (2 clicks), 25% brightness (3 clicks), fast strobe (4 clicks) and slow strobe (5 clicks). The switch can also be used for momentary operation (press switch and hold,release to turn off). With the switch installed the light will turn off automatically after 15 minutes without a button pressed, this can be very good or very bad depending on your personal taste. The last interesting feature of the switch is that it has a locator red led that blinks every couple of seconds to locate the light in the dark, this is always on unless you "lock" the flashlight unscrewing the bezel partially. When the light is locked the switch does not operate.

The 1 watt LED is a lot brighter than the old NiteIze upgrade kit and is also brighter than other upgrade kits we have tested, it is certainly not near the brightness of the new MiniMag Led since the new light is a 3 watt led and this one is just 1 watt. The beam can still be adjusted/focused with the light bezel.

This is a good upgrade kit for a MiniMag, the LED upgrade is good and bright and the IQ switch adds some useful modes to the light.

You can read more and order for $20 from Nite-Ize's website.

Swiss Army Watches Night Vision Line

The Night Vision line of Swiss Army watches is a flashlight-watch hybrid. The small bulge you see in the 12 position is a LED flashlight activated by the button at the left of the watch.

One press of the left button illuminates the dial, a second quick press activates the frontal flashlight for 2 and a half minutes, you can turn it off pressing the button at any time, a third quick press activates a strobe mode for signaling. If you press and hold from off the flashlight will be on for 2 and a half minutes, this is called a quick search mode. Finally there is a very small red LED at the 6 o'clock marker that blinks every 10 seconds, this helps finding your watch in the dark if it is not on your wrist, or finding your wrist if you lose it.

The watch has two batteries, one for the watch and another one for the flashlight so if you use the flashlight a lot your watch won't be affected. There is also a LED light for the dial and the hands are luminous. The rest is just a simple quartz movement watch with date. Water resistance is up to 3atm the band is rubber integrated to the watch dial so it may be hard to replace.

You can browse SwissArmy.com or yur preferred watch dealer for different models and prices of this line.

Lumapower F1

The F1 is a stylish single cell light using a Seoul P4 LED powered by a single AA battery.

The F1 is constructed using a aluminium body and reflector and over this another strong aluminium layer with inserts. This makes the light good looking and helps dispate heat.

The F1 can use any AA battery including alkaline, lithium, NiMh rechargeable and 3.7v 14550 batteries as well. The brightness is around 60 lumen with a normal AA and might go up to 70 using a 14550 rechargeable battery.

The body is very well constructed with knurling near the head and a glow ring that helps finding the light in the darkness after exposure to a light source. The reflector is made of aluminium and produces a very smooth beam. The lens is a saphire window with anti-reflective coating.

The light is not regulated it will last for about 1 hour at full brightness and then drop down being usable for about 3 to 4 hours getting dimmer as the battery is consumed. The switch is a twisty, twist to turn on and untwist to turn it off. The total length is 3.39'' (8.6cm) with a hole in the tailcap to add a lanyard or a split ring. The light can stand on its tail for candle mode and surprisingly the head and reflector can be removed to use it as a lantern providing 360 degree illumination in a room.

We have the impression that the F1 is a light designed and manufactured with a lot of quality, there are little nice details in terms of design and usability everywhere. It is probably not the Ferrari of AA lights but a good formula 1 car.

You can order the F1 from BatteryJunction for $47.45

Princeton Tec EOS Headlamp

The EOS is a LED headlamp using a 1 watt luxeon LED powered by 3 AAA batteries.

It has 4 modes of operation, maximum brightness, medium, low and blinking mode. The modes are selected using a single switch at the top of the lamp head, press once to turn on in maximum mode, press again for medium, press again for low mode, again for blinking mode and again to turn off. If you let the light on for about 2 seconds a press will just turn it off, it won't switch modes.

The EOS can load either alkaline, rechargeable NiMh or lithium batteries, the runtime is 6 hours in maximum brightness, 12 hours in medium and 60 hours in the low mode. The blinking mode is useful for signaling or attracting attention and can be used for 50 hours.

One of the nice things about the EOS is that the output is regulated, regardless of the battery status the brightness will be constant at each selected level. A heat control mechanism prevents the LED from overheating if that happens the EOS automatically goes down to a lower brightness level.

The beam is strongly focused for throw, so even with a 1 watt LED the EOS will perform very well outdoors being able to illuminate your path and reach distant objects, for indoors activities or camping you will probably be better with a lower brightness setting since a strong hotspot will not be needed. According to the manufacturer the EOS is weather resistant and can be used up to 1 meter below water.

The headlamp is very easy to use and confortable weighting only 105gr you put it on and forget it is there, can run for a long time and is bright enough to compete with bigger and bulkier lamps in outdoor hiking and other activities. Definitively a very good option if you need a headlamp.

You can read more and order for about $35 from Princetontec's website.

Maxpedition Three by Five

The three by five is a small pouch by Maxpedition measuring as it name suggests 5'' by 3'' with 1.5'' of depth. The pouch is designed to be carried and attached as an accesory pouch to a backpack or a bigger bag but it can also be certainly be used as a standalone element.

The 3x5 has two compartments accesible via zippers, there is also a flat small unzippered pocket at the front that can be good for a card or some cash.

The main compartment's zipper can be secured with a button-lock to avoid unintentional opening of the pouch. At the back of the pouch there are modular attachment loops for a belt or to attach the pouch to something else using Malice clips.

The construction in reinforced Nylon is extremely strong, the zippers run very well and seem to be extremely strong. The pouch is good to carry a GPS, a small digital camera or some accesories that need quick access from outside of a backpack. It can also be used to carry accesories from a belt loop.

It is available in black, green, khaki and ACU camo for $20. Check it or order from Maxpedition.