Swede74
Enlightened
- Joined
- Sep 30, 2011
- Messages
- 577
The LD02 is a small, single AAA light with a tailcap clicky switch. To the best of my knowledge, it is Fenix's first offering in this category, and as such fills a gap in their current product lineup.
Specifications according to Fenix's website:
I received my specimen yesterday, and have had some time to play around with it, though it is obviously too early for me to say anything about how it will stand up to longterm use.
Here are my initial impressions:
The light came in a basic cardboard box that contained the light itself, warranty card, some information on other Fenix lights, instruction manual, a spare O-ring, and for some reason two (2) alkaline batteries – of different brands.
I much prefer this kind of box over the almost impenetrable, heat sealed (?) packaging used for the E05 and E11. While I'm not a big fan of extravagant presentation cases – I like to know that I'm spending my money on a high quality light, not a fancy container that will soon be relegated to the darkness of a drawer, or even recycled – I can see how it would make sense to give customers the option of having this light shipped in a gift box. Perhaps something for Fenix to consider when Christmas comes around.
The LD02 is very small for a single AAA tail clicky light; in fact, it is the smallest I have seen. Only 11.5 mm taller than the twist-operated E05, and noticeably shorter than the Maglite Solitaire, as well as many older lights in the same segment.
It opens at the head only, appears to have physical reversed polarity protection, and at the tail end of the tube you can see, with the help of some extra light, a small spring. Threads are clean and appear to be of good quality. I like the fact that there is very little play, even with the two parts of the light only partially screwed together. It makes for a solid feel. The same cannot be said about the clip-on style pocket clip; it is flimsier than I would have liked to see, and comes off (too) easily.
The switch protrudes enough to make it possible to operate the light with gloves on. You can also turn it on by pressing it against a hard surface. Even your forehead, knee, or chest will work; provided, perhaps, that you are not too amply padded.
The light has three modes, low (8 lm), med (25 lm) and high (100 lm). It has no additional hidden modes, no mode memory, and always comes on in medium. It is operated by the mechanical tail switch, which unfortunately lacks momentary on. You click and release for constant on, and advance modes by pressing the button halfway down with the light on. The sequence is med-low-high repeatedly. There is an automatic stepdown to med after three minutes on high. I find the low mode too bright; I would rather it was a true moonlight mode (0.5-1 lm) or that the light had four modes.
The beam has a hotspot, but not a sharply defined or glaring one, and some minor artifacts. The artifacts most likely will not affect practical use, but you will notice them if you go white wall hunting.
I don't have the equipment or the know-how needed to do proper runtime tests, but I was able to determine that my light ran for just shy of four hours on med (25 lm) with no significant decline in output. At about the four hour mark output dropped sharply, and at 4:15 the light had started to flash once every ~1.5 seconds. This was probably due to the battery being depleted and repeatedly recovering just enough voltage to allow the light to produce a brief flash. At this point I aborted the test.
I used a Duracell StayCharged 800 mAh for this test.
Fun fact: if you screw the LD02 head onto the E05 body you get a three mode twisty. The E05 head on the LD02 body won't work though.
In summary, the Fenix LD02 appears to be a capable light of good quality. Both output and runtime are certainly acceptable for a light powered by a single AAA battery, and the size and simple user interface makes it a good choice if you're looking for a gift for someone who isn't a flashaholic. Since it always comes on in a reasonable bright (for its size) medium mode, even people who think it's a single mode light may find it a useful tool.
There is room for improvement though: I would like to see a sturdier clip that can be attached to the light more securely, and the lowest mode is too bright for my liking.
Gallery
From left to right: GP ReCyko AAA cell, Fenix LD02, Fenix E05, Olight i3S EOS, iTP A3 EOS, Lumintop Worm SS, Maglite Solitaire, "LED light" - my first keychain LED-light, "Ledsaver's", Asaklitt "Mini LED Torch", generic AAA twisty with a store name engraved.
Specifications according to Fenix's website:
I received my specimen yesterday, and have had some time to play around with it, though it is obviously too early for me to say anything about how it will stand up to longterm use.
Here are my initial impressions:
The light came in a basic cardboard box that contained the light itself, warranty card, some information on other Fenix lights, instruction manual, a spare O-ring, and for some reason two (2) alkaline batteries – of different brands.
I much prefer this kind of box over the almost impenetrable, heat sealed (?) packaging used for the E05 and E11. While I'm not a big fan of extravagant presentation cases – I like to know that I'm spending my money on a high quality light, not a fancy container that will soon be relegated to the darkness of a drawer, or even recycled – I can see how it would make sense to give customers the option of having this light shipped in a gift box. Perhaps something for Fenix to consider when Christmas comes around.
The LD02 is very small for a single AAA tail clicky light; in fact, it is the smallest I have seen. Only 11.5 mm taller than the twist-operated E05, and noticeably shorter than the Maglite Solitaire, as well as many older lights in the same segment.
It opens at the head only, appears to have physical reversed polarity protection, and at the tail end of the tube you can see, with the help of some extra light, a small spring. Threads are clean and appear to be of good quality. I like the fact that there is very little play, even with the two parts of the light only partially screwed together. It makes for a solid feel. The same cannot be said about the clip-on style pocket clip; it is flimsier than I would have liked to see, and comes off (too) easily.
The switch protrudes enough to make it possible to operate the light with gloves on. You can also turn it on by pressing it against a hard surface. Even your forehead, knee, or chest will work; provided, perhaps, that you are not too amply padded.
The light has three modes, low (8 lm), med (25 lm) and high (100 lm). It has no additional hidden modes, no mode memory, and always comes on in medium. It is operated by the mechanical tail switch, which unfortunately lacks momentary on. You click and release for constant on, and advance modes by pressing the button halfway down with the light on. The sequence is med-low-high repeatedly. There is an automatic stepdown to med after three minutes on high. I find the low mode too bright; I would rather it was a true moonlight mode (0.5-1 lm) or that the light had four modes.
The beam has a hotspot, but not a sharply defined or glaring one, and some minor artifacts. The artifacts most likely will not affect practical use, but you will notice them if you go white wall hunting.
I don't have the equipment or the know-how needed to do proper runtime tests, but I was able to determine that my light ran for just shy of four hours on med (25 lm) with no significant decline in output. At about the four hour mark output dropped sharply, and at 4:15 the light had started to flash once every ~1.5 seconds. This was probably due to the battery being depleted and repeatedly recovering just enough voltage to allow the light to produce a brief flash. At this point I aborted the test.
I used a Duracell StayCharged 800 mAh for this test.
Fun fact: if you screw the LD02 head onto the E05 body you get a three mode twisty. The E05 head on the LD02 body won't work though.
In summary, the Fenix LD02 appears to be a capable light of good quality. Both output and runtime are certainly acceptable for a light powered by a single AAA battery, and the size and simple user interface makes it a good choice if you're looking for a gift for someone who isn't a flashaholic. Since it always comes on in a reasonable bright (for its size) medium mode, even people who think it's a single mode light may find it a useful tool.
There is room for improvement though: I would like to see a sturdier clip that can be attached to the light more securely, and the lowest mode is too bright for my liking.
Gallery
From left to right: GP ReCyko AAA cell, Fenix LD02, Fenix E05, Olight i3S EOS, iTP A3 EOS, Lumintop Worm SS, Maglite Solitaire, "LED light" - my first keychain LED-light, "Ledsaver's", Asaklitt "Mini LED Torch", generic AAA twisty with a store name engraved.
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The clicky in my opinion should have been more like that of the Streamlight Microstream which doesn't have this problem. Other than that it's a great light.
