Best loaner/gift lights under $15

[7tisix]

Looking for suggestions for loner or gift lights for non-flashaholics. My niece almost lost one of my nice lights last night and I have lost light due to loaning in the past.

 

[parang]

armytek zippy

 

[xxo]

Gift: Mag Solitaire LED.

Loaner: cheap 6 Volt lantern that's hard to lose and you won't miss if it does get lost.

 

[Burgess]

Sofirn C01 and Sofirn C01S models
(both 1xAAA) are similar, and VERY handy and useful.
Inexpensive, also.

Their small size makes it Easy to EDC,
so people will HAVE it when they NEED it !

I load 'em with Energizer L92 Ultimate Lithium cells

 

[3oni]

The BLF 348 was my go-to in this category, but I've run out and it's discontinued. Such a great little light!

The ThruNite Ti3 V2 is a nice little light, right at the top end of your budget, and AAA is perfect for non-enthusiasts. (Which is not to say that enthusiasts don't like AAA, too!)

I haven't tried either of them yet, but I love Convoy lights and they make AAA and AA lights that hit your price point (the "AAA Flashlight" and T2, respectively).

If by loaner you mean a light you can let someone use for a little while, but not long enough that they'll have to worry about recharging the battery, a Convoy S2+ running either 1x18350 or 1x18650, with the 7135x3 driver, on mode 12 (100% only), might be a good option. The button does what folks expect, and it's not such a hand-cannon that you have to worry about it setting stuff on fire.

 

[Burgess]

Gift: Mag Solitaire LED.

Loaner: cheap 6 Volt lantern that's hard to lose and you won't miss if it does get lost.

Perhaps 3 or 4 years ago, Wal-Mart had a Clearance Sale
on all their Maglite Solitare LED flashlights for $ 7 each !

I bought several of them at this Bargain Price !

 

[Timothybil]

Sofirn C01 and Sofirn C01S models
(both 1xAAA) are similar, and VERY handy and useful.
Inexpensive, also.

Their small size makes it Easy to EDC,
so people will HAVE it when they NEED it !

I load 'em with Energizer L92 Ultimate Lithium cells

I don't think the C01 is available anymore, but I like and have several C01Ss.

 

[Timothybil]

Nitecore Tubes are still available, and like the Sofirn C01 are only $10 USD. A little more expensive but very nice is the Nitecofe TIP. I recommend the high CRI verson.

 

[abeazar]

I have purchased several similar flashlights from Ebay that I gave to my family members over the past few years. About a year ago, we purchased 60 to give to our employees.

Check out the following:

20000LM Police Tactical T6 LED 5 Modes 18650 Flashlight Zoomable Lamp Light USA | eBay

Adjustable Focus: Can Zoomable. Power by: 2x 18650 Battery(include). Suitable for 18650 Li-ion for 2pcs batteries. Wide beam, great for lighting the path, intense spot penetrates deep into the darkness.

www.ebay.com

If you buy two for $17.99, not a bad deal. I have been using a similar model for the past 5 years and it has never failed me, while I have never dropped it. So for $9.00, if it were lost, not a major loss. I gave one to my grand daughter last Christmas as a gift. I will have to check with her to see if she still has it.

 

[3_gun]

Sofirn S11c. Solid light & inexpensive at $11 w/18650 battery(or was). Levels are, ML 1L / L 30L / M 300L / H 1000L w/shortcuts from OFF to ML & High + a strobe that I never use & it has memory too. Add in a pocket clip & magnetic tail cap = a deal that's hard to beat

 

[CaptainPicard]

Thrunite has a 10 pack of the Ti2 on their website for $29.99. Very small, built well enough, runs on a AAA, single mode. I couldn't think of a more perfect thing to gift, and you don't have to worry about explaining modes. The Sofirn C01/C01s would be a great option as well.

 

[krypton king]

Looking for suggestions for loner or gift lights for non-flashaholics. My niece almost lost one of my nice lights last night and I have lost light due to loaning in the past.

Under $15 is a bit tricky, but if that's the cut off, I would be looking for clearance or Black Friday deals.

I picked up several Energizer and Coast brand lights (50-600 lumens) on clearance at my local ACE hardware over the summer, all for less than $8. I I got 5 lights for $20. All of them run on AA batteries.

Last year, Home Depot ran a Coast deal - two 440 lumen AAA poly lights for $20. They're really bright and I use them often - a great deal if they do it again this holiday season.

Wal Mart often discounts lights. I picked up several Mag Lite Mini Pros (330 lumens) for $8 back in March. (They were clearing out Maglite products). I also found a local seller on FB marketplace selling new ML50L (3 cell C) in blister packs - $13 each or two for $20. I've seen similar discounts for this model on eBay, etc. On the topic of MagLite, the ML25LT (2 cell C) is a popular model for $20.

Stay away from Chinese lights on Amazon. Also, I don't know much about Harbor Freight quality, but their lights have a lot of positive reviews. That might be your best deal, especially since they offer 20-30% off coupons frequently. Costco also bundles Duracell branded lights (500 lumens) for $15 when they go on sale, but they tend to only last a year or two.

Bottom line - wait for Black Friday.

 

[Burgess]

I don't think the C01 is available anymore, but I like and have several C01Ss.

Seems like a couple hundred C01 still remain in stock --
(in various colors, except Black)

6.98US $ 20% OFF|Sofirn C01 Special Mini Led Flashlight Aaa High 95 Cri 3400k Led Keychain Hat Light 6 Colors - Flashlights & Torches - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

 

[sween1911]

If you look in Walmart near the automotive stuff, there's usually a bunch of different neat lights, pocket clips and magnets and zoomies and such. I forget the brand, they're like black, white, and red.

 

[Poppy]

Looking for suggestions for loner or gift lights for non-flashaholics. My niece almost lost one of my nice lights last night and I have lost light due to loaning in the past.

I like the Convoy S2+ so much that I have a bunch of them. I'd loan one out in a heart beat. If it doesn't come back, that's a lesson to me. I don't gift them because that means I have to get a battery for it, and a charger.

Home depot defiant flashlights are good for the price. They also make good loaners.

Actually a flashlight gift to a non-flashaholic, is a pretty ho-hum gift. I have gifted 2 D cell led lights from wallmart, with the explanation that they are good in a power failure, to tailstand them. They are big and bulky enough to not get lost in the junk drawer.

I am also a proponent of plug in the wall outlet, auto on power failure lights. They can be had at the home depot, or wallmart, or on amazon for about $10. See Here

 

[Timothybil]

Seems like a couple hundred C01 still remain in stock --
(in various colors, except Black)

6.98US $ 20% OFF|Sofirn C01 Special Mini Led Flashlight Aaa High 95 Cri 3400k Led Keychain Hat Light 6 Colors - Flashlights & Torches - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

Hadn't looked there - I was at Banggood. The C01 is nice if what you want is a nightlight style single-level light. I bought several when they came out, but I much prefer the C01s with the second brighter level.
I tried gluing in a magnet but the magnets I bought appeared to barely be strong enough to hold the light, and any jarring would make them let go. The trit slot is nice, but at the current price of trit tubes, I decided to not try.

 

[bykfixer]

Energizer lights.

 

[Poppy]

Actually pretty close to your budget @ $18.99 I bought one of these Dr. Prepare COB lights, and liked it so much I gave it away, and bought another for myself. Lynx_Arc did a very nice review:

Interesting and useful COB LED 2x18650 magnet work light I bought.

I don't have pics for this but here is an Amazon listing of the light. I bought mine on Ebay and got one with Orange trim for about $1 less it says China on the listings of this item 9000 lumens COB is keywords for this light there and on ebay it can be bought in up to 4 different Colors Red...

www.candlepowerforums.com

 

[fuyume]

I can't think of a light good enough for me to give as a gift to someone for $15.

My Fenix E12 v2.0 is about the minimum I would consider acceptable to give as a gift, and I obviously endorse it as it is my EDC flashlight. Regular price is $26.95, but I bought mine with a 20% discount coupon, and Fenix periodically has sales, so I paid $21.56 for it.

$25 seems reasonable to give as gifts, to me. Years ago, I bought a bunch of NOS Gerber knives on eBay for about $20 a piece, and gave them as Christmas gifts to my brother, my cousins, and the guys in my band. They were the Gerber Pro-Guide II series caper and skinner knives. I got about a dozen of them. I kept a set for myself, of course.

I would not give as a gift anything I was unwilling to trust my own life to.

 

[chip100t]

Personally, I would only gift lights that run on primaries to a non flashaholic, along with a pack of lithium primaries.