AAA vs AA

Looking at the specs of most brands, the AA and AAA are very close...is there any real advantage to a AA over a AAA? I like the tiny AAA's but sometimes I wonder if a little bigger light might be more ergonomic...

Depends on your carry preferences and use. Although I carry a 123 sized light, I recently added an updated AAA to the keychain. For 80% of typical uses up close, the AAA is great. I'v got AA also but the slight size difference, I tend to want the AAA. Toss-up almost.

Two of my favorite formats. I like the AAA lights for being as small as they can be but still retain decent runtime from an easy to obtain cheap cell.

However, an AA has almost three times the energy capacity of an AAA without much notice in size difference.

So on one hand there are AAA lights that are as small as possibly can be while using a common cell - which is very cool. Then the rather large jump in capacity without too much increase in size for a great small light with extended runtime - a more practical light.

FlameOn said:

Looking at the specs of most brands, the AA and AAA are very close...is there any real advantage to a AA over a AAA? I like the tiny AAA's but sometimes I wonder if a little bigger light might be more ergonomic...

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AA's have 2.5x the capacity. i wouldn't call that "close"

AAA is best only for size, AA is best for capacity and since they almost always cost the exact same price if size is not an issue I almost always try and buy things that use AA over AAA so I spend less time on battery changes and batteries if they are not suitable for rechargeable use.

Most manufacturers underdrive AA batteries, and somewhat overdrive AAAs. AA batteries can take 2.5-3 times the current drain of AAA batteries of the same brand and chemistry. In one example, if an AAA battery in the Fenix LD01 can be drained to make 80 lumens, then 80 x 2.5 = 200 lumens. Since emitters in the X-lamp series are pretty much the same efficiency, thus the LD10 should be at least 200 lumens and the LD20 should be 400 lumens!

Using AA batteries is more size-efficient, as you need at least 2 AAA batteries to equal an AA and 2 AAAs is much larger than 1 AA. What slightly frustrates me is that some cheap light manufacturers opt for 3x AAA batteries, when they can use 1 AA with similar performance and smaller size.

Capacity , AA eats the AAA for breakfast ..

If runtime is un-important , and size weight is an issue , the AAA is fantastic .
Once you need some serious performance , its starts with AA .

What is it , 600mA VS 2600mA for rechargeables .

old4570 said:

What is it , 600mA VS 2600mA for rechargeables .

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I'm a total newbie what do you mean by this statement?

buy the EZ-AA (Nitecore) its AA-Power in AAA-Size.

garden said:

Using AA batteries is more size-efficient, as you need at least 2 AAA batteries to equal an AA and 2 AAAs is much larger than 1 AA. What slightly frustrates me is that some cheap light manufacturers opt for 3x AAA batteries, when they can use 1 AA with similar performance and smaller size.

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actually if a AA has even 3 times the capacity of a AAA, 3AAA would still have more power than a AA mainly because a boost circuit is needed which eats up the equality causing the 3AAA which is direct/resistored drive vs ~70% boosted efficiency for 1AA. but 2AA the efficiency is higher on the boost circuit usually and you have 2X the capacity also. I prefer 2AA LED lights over 3AAA for this reason with 1AA vs 3AAA coming down more to ease of managing/changing/charging convenience with batteries than performance.

AAA for the size and AA for the power and its a more common size.

AAAs are PITA. The only reason I still use em is dumb designers still using them - not only chinese.

Especially for flashlight use I'm sure wider and shorter is much more practical. For borth ergonomy and capacity.

old4570 said:

What is it , 600mA VS 2600mA for rechargeables .

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Track Terror said:

I'm a total newbie what do you mean by this statement?

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He means 600 mAh: the way you will see capacity described for rechargeable batteries.

However, I think the typical numbers are more like 800 mAh for an AAA and 2000 mAh for an AA in NiMH (a little more for high capacity cells).

garden said:

What slightly frustrates me is that some cheap light manufacturers opt for 3x AAA batteries, when they can use 1 AA with similar performance and smaller size.

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I have several torches that use three AAA cells ... They also can be used with a single 18650 cell.

My Solarforce L2i was easily converted to take a single 18650 and with a single mode dropin it is great for a house-torch ... It will tailstand which the standard L2 won't do ... I am certainly considering getting another L2i and putting in a three mode dropin (without the SOS and strobe) and will also fit it with a retaining ring instead of the tactical bezel ... I would also consider fitting a pocket clip and the bigger lanyard ring ... That would be my ideal modestly priced torch ... But I've got three Solarforces already ... There again my three are all in that nice sand colour , so a grey one would be nice.

I think that an iTP A3 will be my next buy , as it is slightly smaller than my A2 ... The A2 is an excellent EDC , but the A3 will be even easier to carry if you wear a formal jacket ... To go anywhere without a torch is worse than going naked ... At my age , I wouldn't like to do either.
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Lynx_Arc said:

AAA is best only for size, AA is best for capacity and since they almost always cost the exact same price if size is not an issue I almost always try and buy things that use AA over AAA so I spend less time on battery changes and batteries if they are not suitable for rechargeable use.

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My preference goes the opposite way. Most times I only need a quick stab of light for a few seconds to see what I'm doing. Or maybe a minute at most, if walking in the dark house. So I value comfortable carry over runtime. I generally only need to swap out a NiMH AAA cell every couple of weeks, no hassle at all IMO.

My main point is, I guess everyone has to make their own call on priorities and preferences.

I like AA batteries for their ability to handle high current draws more efficiently than AAAs (someone might have alluded to this earlier).

Rexlion said:

My preference goes the opposite way. Most times I only need a quick stab of light for a few seconds to see what I'm doing. Or maybe a minute at most, if walking in the dark house. So I value comfortable carry over runtime. I generally only need to swap out a NiMH AAA cell every couple of weeks, no hassle at all IMO.

My main point is, I guess everyone has to make their own call on priorities and preferences.

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hi neighbor,:wave: actually you are just agreeing with me, size makes for comfort for sure. I edc a fenix LD01-SS myself because of the size (comfortable in the pocket on my keychain). I tend to recharge my duraloop in it every few months to make sure it has at least an hour of runtime on medium (default). AA is best for a duty light that gets used a lot with long runtime sessions but AAA is the EDC king IMO.

I actually haven't used an AA light in a while. I understand their ubiquity and used to be a fan, but I use AAA and 123 lights more often now. AA is good for travel where you use the light a lot and don't want to mess with multiple battery types. Otherwise in this age of efficient multi-level LED lights, people overestimate the usefulness of runtime. The Fenix LD01 will run for around 8 hours in low mode--who needs more runtime than that? In high mode its runtime is much shorter, but the usual use of high mode is fairly short bursts. Even in high mode the LD01 still runs about an hour at 40+ lumens, comparable in both runtime and output to the Surefire E2e that was one of the favorite high powered EDC's of the late incandescent era.

I really like the LD01 and I just don't know of any AA lights with proportionate performance and comparable build quality. (Yes I know about the Q-mini series and they are ok but I like the LD01 better). Icon Rogue is a possibility but it is a rather large light. I like lights of minimal size for their battery configuration.

I like both AA and AAA. I have a Haiku 2xAA and a Preon II 2xAAA. I like having the longer body on my lights just my preference but the Haiku gets the most use the only problem can be if your pants pocket is a bit short but so far that has not been a problem. I just can't get comfortable with a single cell light the longer light is much easier to control for me.

An AA Eneloop weighs 26.3 grams and an AAA weighs 12.1 grams ... An iTP A2 torch weighs 22 grams and an A3 weighs 9 grams.

So the A2 with battery weighs 48.3 grams and the A3 is 21.1 grams ... Both are light in weight but the A3 is tiny when placed beside the A2 ... Personal preference for me is the A2 size , though the A3 size is great for formal occasions when you just don't want to be without a torch in your pocket.

If you only want a "just-in-case" torch , then the AAA is great , particularly if you can find somewhere to carry a spare battery.

I personally prefer the gorgeous stainless iTPs , but they are a lot heavier.
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