^^ this
I gave a Wurkkos FC11 to my brother as a birthday gift last month. I think something like that with integrated charging and decent cell included is a reasonable compromise. But for the most part I agree.Personally, I would only gift lights that run on primaries to a non flashaholic, along with a pack of lithium primaries.
I also agree, that's one of the reason's why I felt comfortable gifting that Dr. Prepare light. It comes with 2-18650's with built in recharging.I gave a Wurkkos FC11 to my brother as a birthday gift last month. I think something like that with integrated charging and decent cell included is a reasonable compromise. But for the most part I agree.
Ive already gifted 2 of those to family members. Just wish the tint was more neutral.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.
Home Depot currently has flashlight deals at the front of the store. They have several Defiant brand deals and Coast deals as well. Defiant has good reviews but I've never owned one. As far as Coast, HD is selling a 1600 lumen zoomy for $20 (online it says 1400 lumens, but the in store ones are 1600); runs on 6AA. They are also bundling two 168 lumen (300 lumens on rechargeable) lights that run on a single AA battery for $20. I bought a pair and like them. Great size! Perfect as a loaner.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.
Definitely second the Tubes.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.