Run time test on the new Nitecore Tube

I tried to find the original thread, but don't have the patience right now to dig that far. I already reported testing the run time of the new Tube keychain light on high. Nitecore claims one hour. My test came up a few minutes short of that time, but still close. Well two days ago, at 5:32 pm, I started my freshly charged Tube on low. It has been lying here on my desk for the last two days, merrily shining away. Every so often I would check the beam against my other Tube, which is still in its original packaging, and could tell no difference. Until, that is, 2:30 pm today. At that time the beam was a pale glimmer of itself. It may not be down to the official 10% output of the standard, but it is for all intents and purposes pretty much useless at this time. I know that when I checked it at 12:30 pm it was still going strong, so I'm going to call it at forty-four hours. That works out to 83% of the claimed run time. I will be the first to admit that a sample of one is not recommended for drawing conclusions, but I think that 83% of the claimed run time is still a very good showing for such a simple, low-cost light. If I get motivated enough I will probably run the test again to see what happens.

Selfbuilt, HKJ, and others, I now have a greater appreciation for what you go through to do your so thorough reviews. :thumbsup: That you guys go through this every time you do one of your reviews speaks to your dedication and perseverance. Thank you again for all the efforts you put forth to keep the rest of us flashaholics informed.

Thanks for testing and reporting!

I just bought 3 Nitecore Tubes for stocking stuffers.

Do you have any other comments about the light that you'd like to share?

I like the rechargeability a lot. As far as price point and function, it is similar to the LRI Photon lights, but a lot brighter on high, and longer lasting on low. And since there are no cells to replace, in a short time it will pay for itself easily. I like the rectangular design and just the over all feel of the light. I think Nitecore hit a homer on this one.

Thanks for testing

Thanks for testing!
Had you been charged it yet? how long would it take to be fully charged?

Alex W said:

Thanks for testing!
Had you been charged it yet? how long would it take to be fully charged?

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I believe Nitecore says two hours. I will let you know tomorrow.

The more I read about this little guy the more I want one.

It took 1:20 to recharge. It was plugged into a USB port on my PC - I can't tell you if it was USB 2.0 or 3.0 without crawling under the table and moving everything around, and my knees aren't up to it tonight. Nitecore says two hours in the user manual, so it must not have been down as much as I thought. It was dim enough that I could barely see it shining on the living room wall about a foot away with the room lights off.

To summarize: One can count on almost two complete days of useable light at one lumen before it drops out of regulation and dims. It took 1:20 to recharge in my test. Depending on how long it runs in that state, it could take as long as two hours to recharge. YMMV.

Thank you for sharing. Thinking of having this light to attach it on car key holder.

Thanks for testing Timothy, i have 3 on the way and 2 will be for the kids(almost 5 and 8yrs). Its not something i want to be constantly checking being honest so i will be waiting for the "daddy its not bright" or "daddy nice but dim" :laughing: Then will charge up for them............will be interesting long term how much they can take!!(i will find that out) I can guess at them being lost well before they break though in my case . The idea behind the Tubes was a small edc light for their school bags.........or anything they want,be it around the house or in coats too of which the latter will most likely be the case(up to them).

I have a feeling the boss will pinch mine or want one as left out she does not know yet.............:laughing:

:thumbsup:

I just bought one for $7.50. I'll get it in a few days. Curious to test it out.

I remember after September 11th I bought about 20 photon lights to give to family and friends. If I remember correctly they were OVER $20 each back then! Everybody thought they were amazing back then. I know some people who still have those lights, including me!! And they still work!

These days, I usually give the Olight i3s as a gift, but you would be surprised how many people even find an AAA light to be a bother to carry. This may be an even better option for some stubborn friends and family. I'm always encouraging anyone I know to have some kind of light on them at all times.

I still prefer a good AAA light, so in the case of a power outage the battery can be replaced. However, for $7.50 you really can't go wrong with this light.


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I have been a Photon Freedom Microlight user for what seems like a decade, or at least close to that. I find them to be excellent, and they have served me well. It is very light and small, so that you don't even know it is there. It has decent brightness for tasks like finding the keyhole, or walking a dark path, has ramping adjustable brightness, and has decent battery life for what it is. However, I found that having to change the batteries periodically left me "in the dark" on some occasions when I was lazy about getting to the store to buy more batteries. And the batteries at the regular stores cost a few dollars, which adds to the cost of the light over the years.

However, this Nitecore Tube has really gotten my attention because it appears to have a feature set that may kick the Photon off my keychain.
The specs seem to imply that it will be a lot brighter than the Photon on max, and it will also have a low 1 lumen moonlight level for if I ever need that. It is still fairly small, but not as small as the Photon. I think that will have to be determined about whether it is unobtrusive enough, but I think it will be. The other shining star of this light is the lithium-ion battery with on-board charger which can be recharged on a USB port, and has a charge indicator light built in. No more worries about having to go to the store to buy batteries, when I can just plug it in to my little USB port in my car or computer and get a full recharge at no cost, very conveniently.
Very bright, no batteries to buy, conveniently rechargeable almost anywhere, and very inexpensive.

So, I am highly anticipating this light as my new light on my keychain, when I don't have any other lights with me. It seems to have the right stuff.
We shall see.

Right now, I have Titanium Innovations button cell lights hanging as fobs on all my coats and sweaters. I could see the Tube as taking that place quite easily if I had a frequent need for a little light for finding keyholes, etc. I think for school age kids, it would be ideal for walking home from school in the winter, or around the neighborhood. If not on zippers, on a wrist lanyard or a breakaway neck lanyard would be ideal, especially if the lanyards were bright colors so they would be more visible if left lying somewhere. Glow in the dark would work too.
The way I look at it, button cells are about a dollar apiece if bought in bulk, so if the light lasts through ten charges it will have paid for itself. And they are so cute!

Berneck1 said:

I just bought one for $7.50. I'll get it in a few days. Curious to test it out.

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Where did you find one for $7.50? Inquiring minds want to know!

Thanks for the report Timothybil. :thumbsup:

Mine takes about 75 minutes of charging when connected to my laptop. The only negative comment I have on the Tube is that I would have liked to find a cable included with the light. As it is I had to empty a drawer of cables and test a number of them before finding the right one. There's some that fit but don't charge.
For this reason I am not choosing the Tube for small Christmas presents.

Kilovolt said:

Thanks for the report Timothybil. :thumbsup:

Mine takes about 75 minutes of charging when connected to my laptop. The only negative comment I have on the Tube is that I would have liked to find a cable included with the light. As it is I had to empty a drawer of cables and test a number of them before finding the right one. There's some that fit but don't charge.
For this reason I am not choosing the Tube for small Christmas presents.

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A small 10-15cm included cable would be nice indeed. But does raise the price.

Battery Junction had a Black Friday special for 7.90, and I also used a 5% coupon. Looks like it's back to 9.90 now.


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I got my Tubes as stocking stuffers. The outfit I get all of my computer cables from, monoprice has retractable micro USB cables for under $2.00 each.

I was lucky enough to get the Tubes for $5.00 each which was a steal.

Thank you for testing! I will order a few of these for my family and best friends. Missing cable is not as problem as everyone has a recharger for their cell phone that fits the Tube nowadays.

Did you notice any PWM annoying you while testing?

I can tell it is there if I aim the Tube at my trusty table fan and watch the 'wagon wheel effect', but it doesn't bother me in real life. A few have mentioned in the prior threads that they have noticed it, but so far no one has said it is bothersome.