Well, if you haven't noticed I like to play around with flashlights. I've always been into gadgets, but lately flashlights have grabbed my attention mainly because it is a way to play with the latest and greatest in LED technology. Something about the fact that these new LED's can generate so much light, while using far less power than incandescent bulbs, is interesting to me. It is fun to keep up with the technology and realize we are getting closer to the point where LED's will light our homes, our streets, replace our car's power hungry headlight bulbs, etc.
For now flashlights are still a useful thing to have around the house, on your keychain, in your car, etc. I would be surprised if people didn't have a flashlight or two around their home somewhere, incase the power goes out, etc. Take the recent events with hurricanes. Millions of people were without power, and some probably still don't have power from Ike. What kind of flashlights are these poor souls stuck with? Battery hungry incandescent flashlights that start to dim minutes after turning them on? Maybe they are lucky enough to have some form of LED flashlight, but unless they have something with cutting edge technology it probably isn't that bright and may not last as long as something newer.
So I thought I would recommend some basic flashlights that use cutting edge LED tech which are very efficient and provide long run times, more light, etc.
For those who want a keychain style flashlight, I recommend the Fenix E01. This light will run off any 1.2v-1.5v AAA battery and it will run at full power for 10-12 hours before dropping to a dimmer mode that will still put out useable light for an additional 10+ hours. I have one and I got over 40 hours of light out of a single battery. Now this light isn't extremely bright, it's about 8-10 lumens. The light it puts out has a purplish tint to it. This is designed as an emergency light that will give you enough light to get around in the dark.
It's available in a bunch of colors here:
It runs $15 shipped (free world wide shipping). It's a tough little sucker too, with a hard anodized coating, water proof, etc.
For those who want something a little more exciting with a lot more output check out the Fenix LOD, which is listed on the same page. I keep one of these on my key chain, and our forum mod Osamarama (Sanjay) also picked one up and has been having fun with it. At $46.50 it may not be for everyone, but it's a fun little flashlight that will impress people when you fire it up on TURBO (high). You can run rechargeable NiMH AAA's in it. You can read the specs here:
There are some special batteries available that can turn this 75 lumen flashlight into a 200 lumen flashlight, but it will void the warranty and you do run some risk. If someone gets this light and is interested in super charging it with a 3V lithium ion AAA, PM me. :)
There are all kinds of other cool flashlights on that site as well, but I just wanted to point out these two as they are small and easy to carry on your keychain and may help out when you find yourself in the dark. :)
This isn't intended to be a sales pitch. I am simply trying to pass along some helpful suggestions from what I've learned in the world of flashlights. After hearing about some of our users going through Gustav, Ike, etc, I wish I had done more to recommend things like this that may have helped them out.
Earthshine
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