best flashlight for limited vision

[lushvineyard]

Greetings,
I found this forum while trying to catch up on flashlight tech- it's great!

My mom needs a good pocket flashlight. She has macular degeneration, and can't see well in blue-white light. I haven't been able to find a page with comparisons of frequency spectrums of various types of bulbs. Any help?

I'm leaning toward the Cree Q2 because I've read it has a high output in a warmer "natural" light. The Fenix TK2 looks easy to handle, with the additional advantage of using a conventional battery (AA's.)

The Fenix seems to sell for a bit over $50. I've found seemingly comparable lights on ebay, shipped direct from China for about $15, which also use Cree Q2 lights and AA batteries. Does the name brand matter?

Thanks for the help. Lushvineyard

 

[Monkiee]

One thing you have to remember, in this world you get what you pay for.
High CRI bins are actually the best at imitating sunlight at noontime so it would probably be best for the eyes.
I havent had much experience with Q2 bins, someone else will help you on that.
Also Fenix is also a very reliable brand with good feedback from many CPFers.
Hope you get a good light.
And welcome to CPF.

 

[Marduke]

The Cree "Q2" is a flux bin, not a tint bin. For a warm tint, you would need something like the Q2-5A, where the "5A" denotes the tint.

Charts here:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=156772

 

[Toaster]

:welcome:

This thread has a listing of flashlights that use the warm 5A tint LEDs which don't have the blueish tint you are trying to avoid. Of these only two accept AA batteries:

Jetbeam Element E3P with Cree Q3-5A - 1xAA light. Use code 'cpfjet' for 10% discount
Fenix TK20 - 2xAA light. use code 'cpf8' for 8% discount

Both are quality lights. Search on this forum and you'll find plenty of information and reviews on both models.

 

[abvidledUK]

Is not a cheapy incandescent the answer ?

 

[Simplicity05]

Welcome to the forums.

I really don't have much I can add to this thread information-wise, I just wanted to say that macular degeneration runs in my family and can sympathise with you and your situation.

My Grandmother is legally and almost actually blind due to it - she only has peripheral vision these days, my mother is in the early stages of it, and apparently I'm due for it later in life as well.

It's painful at times seeing my Grandmother struggle with it, and other times it can me borderline humorous. There's been a few times where the family has found plastic in baked goods, simply because she didn't see it in there.

I'm a bit of a forum addict, and have seen many different places turn hostile towards nubile members, and as far as I've seen here, it polices it's self well. Lots of great people, loads and loads of great information.

Welcome to CPF!

 

[Chrontius]

Looking for the same, actually - does anyone actually have any experience with warm vs. cool LED vs. incan?

 

[BabyDoc]

Is not a cheapy incandescent the answer ?

+1!
I tend to agree. Any LED except perhaps for a Nichia 083 HIGH CRI emitter are going to be deficient in the red region. While a SunDrop would be a great light for her, it would be hard to justify its expense when an incadescent might be just as good depending on what her specific light uses are.

 

[Jarl]

Warm LED's aren't deficient in warmer colours:

Credit to the LEDmuseum.

 

[carrot]

Honestly you do get what you pay for with Fenix. They used to be considered cheap (during the reign of Surefire) but now they are considered about the norm around here. (Surefire is still great by the way but Fenix is largely preferred by many users for the lower prices.)

However, I do not think that the Fenixes come in the 5A Q3 bin.

It may be better to go for a Surefire G2 and a Malkoff M60WLL or M60WLF. (W connotes warm, L for low and F for flood). Not the cheapest option but a really good one.

For what its worth you may actually find that a normal power LED is capable of white enough and bright enough output that your mother will find it comfortable to use. Many people think of very very blue when you say LED but the better ones, even those said to have a cool tint, are quite white.

There is a lot to know about flashlights and you've definitely come to the right place. I have tried to put some of the things I know into my guide (see below) and I hope you find it a good starting spot.

 

[Black Rose]

My father in law is legally blind and he simply uses Mag incans when he needs extra light.

My late grandmother had macular degeneration, but never used anything more than the light from incan bulbs to get around.

 

[BabyDoc]

Warm LED's aren't deficient in warmer colours:

Credit to the LEDmuseum.

Hmmm. I wonder what particular LED this is. Most LED's emphasize the blues over the reds. It was this particular problem with color rendition using even a warm Rebell LED or a warm L1 LED that caused me to abandon LED lights when examining throats. They just couldn't differentiate the different shades of pink and red well enough to see subltle throat inflammation and even very inflamed throats on occasion. The only LED that works for me in this regard is the Nichia 083 high CRI (the McGizmo Sundrop).

 

[Bullzeyebill]

Hmmm. I wonder what particular LED this is. Most LED's emphasize the blues over the reds. It was this particular problem with color rendition using even a warm Rebell LED or a warm L1 LED that caused me to abandon LED lights when examining throats. They just couldn't differentiate the different shades of pink and red well enough to see subltle throat inflammation and even very inflamed throats on occasion. The only LED that works for me in this regard is the Nichia 083 high CRI (the McGizmo Sundrop).

If I recall right, that is one of the DX Q2 A5 drop-ins when they first came out.

Bill

 

[Jesseri]

I'm in somewhat similar situation as OP, finding a good flashlight to person with poor sight.

My uncle has a choroideremia and he is almost blind, and yes i have that same diseace also but it's in early stages. Choroideremia is a herited diseace which affects almost exclusively only males. Here's more info from this diseace if you are interested. http://www.choroideremia.org/descriptions/chm_plain.php

His left eye has no usable vision left. His right eye has sill some pheripheral vision left and central vision is almost gone.

He was visiting us at christmas eve and i shew couple of my lights to him. We took the lights outside and tested if any of them will help him to navigate around the yard. These lights was tested: MTE SSC P7 (5-mode), Tiablo A9 with P7 (smooth reflector), Zebralight H30, Surefire 6P with Solarforce "R2" module, Surefire 6P with DX Q2 5A module and Jetbeam Jet-II IBS.

He has couple headlights already, those cheap ones with few 5mm leds. He was quite amazed how much light those new led lights produces. Indoors all of those lights helped him in some way but the clear trend was preferring floodier beams. Zebralight expecially by its size and floody beam got his attention.

Only the lights with P7 helped him to navigate outdoors significantly. Other lights didn't help much and some even turned out to be a nuisance. Jetbeams tight and bright hotspot (didn't remember to unfocus the head) reduced his pheriperal vision even more. So clearly throwy lights won't help people with poor eyesight as his.

Again he preferred floodier beams and MTE was his first choice because it has smoother and floodier beam than my Tiablo "A9 P7". Tiablo was his second best choice. He just hoped that there would be a headlight with same brightness and beam style as MTE has, so he could use his cane with one hand and other hand would be free.

I'm thinking of giving him my MTE, but i'm concerned about the batteries. Is it a good idea to give a light that uses li-ions, which needs great deal of attention when charging to a blind who haven't used rechargeables never?

 

[Jarl]

If I recall right, that is one of the DX Q2 A5 drop-ins when they first came out.

Bill

:thumbsup: Can't believe I forgot to say what tint it was

I'm thinking of giving him my MTE, but i'm concerned about the batteries. Is it a good idea to give a light that uses li-ions, which needs great deal of attention when charging to a blind who haven't used rechargeables never?

Use LiMN's, available here. Slightly less runtime and no over-discharge protection, but DD P7's dim down a lot when the battery gets to 80% charge, so as long as you tell him that its important that he charges it when this happens (it's quite hard to miss) he should keep the cells in good nick.

 

[bugsy714]

My brother & I have Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) which is essentially the opposite of Mac-D (we lose peripheral vision while mac-d people lose central vision). RP is particularly a pain because it is accompanied by night-blindness due to the loss of the peripheral regions that collect light in low-light situations.

In med cases like these a good quality & reliable light is a necessity. Incans are too fragile imo for daily carry and a crappy led puts a good incan to shame.

I'm shopping for a light with similar concerns and have settled on the Fenix TK20. It is bulkier than I would prefer but it is a matter of function over form for me.

Check these beamshots & info:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=214890&highlight=Multi-stage+Review

 

[BabyDoc]

.

In med cases like these a good quality & reliable light is a necessity. Incans are too fragile imo for daily carry and a crappy led puts a good incan to shame.

Not all incadescents are crappy and fragile. The A2 is a great one and quite durable. Again, it depends on the use that a person with limited vison has in mind. For indoor use, any incadescent, IMO, is adequate and it is going to have better color rendition than most LEDs, if that is an issue. For outdoor use, a brighter LED will certainly have an edge, particularly with someone who has limited ability to adapt his night vision to a lower intensity light.

 

[lushvineyard]

I want to thank everyone for the advise on a flashlight for Mom. I bought her the Fenix TK20, and I believe it was a good choice. I purchased the flashlight from Goliath, through Amazon shops. They had the best price that I found on the TK20 at $54.19 plus shipping, though I no longer see it available at that price.
The flashlight did not work right out of the box, but it did work after I swabbed the contacts with alcohol.
At the same time I ordered myself a $15, free shipping flashlight on Ebay, with a Cree Q2 bulb (unknown bin.) The flashlight I received was a Romisen RC-P3, which like the Fenix TK20 uses two AA batteries.
When we compared the two flashlights, using only human visual observation, we found that both lights had similar brightness and threw similar beams against a house across the street and on a car a block away, with the Romisen's just a bit brighter.
The color of the beams was distinctly different, with the Romisen a blue-white, and the Fenix an orangish-white. Mother tried to use both lights, and only the warm light of the Fenix TK20 aided her vision. She simply can't see in blue-white light. I don't know if this is typical of macular degeneration.
We also compared the Fenix to a Maglight 3D incandesent flashlight (battery age unknown.) The little TK20 seemed to produce about double the light level of the Maglight at ten feet, significantly more across the street. The Mag's light seemed to be a bit warmer that the Fenix. The greatest advantage of the Fenix over the Maglight is its compact size, while the Maglight easily wins on cost.
Mom has the Fenix TK20 in her bathrobe pocket, and I'm sure it will suit her needs. I have the Romisen in my barn coat pocket, and I will be careful not to blind the sheep! Thanks again for all the help. This forum is great. I thought I was keen on good flashlights, but you folks are amazing!:wave:

 

[Toaster]

Thanks for the follow up lushvineyard. I was real curious to see how the warm tinted LED would hold up for your mom. Glad to see it's working out so well for her. Enjoy your new lights :thumbsup: