Brightest 2xCR123A LED Flashlight for ~$20?

[Sandoz]

Hi all,

I'm looking to spend around $15-25 on a 2-cell* CR123A/RCR123A LED flashlight. The most important factor for me right now is brightness. Forward/reverse clicky not that important for me, nor is runtime. What would you all recommend?

I was about to purchase the Romisen RC-F4 (Q5 version) based off of BessieBenny's positive review on it, but found several more in my price range on DealExtreme that also use Q5 emitters and are 2xCR123A. As its impossible to determine true brightness based off of listed manufacturer ratings, I'm not really sure which one provides the best bang for the buck! Hopefully you guys can help me out a bit!

Cheers,
Sandoz

* I assume 2-cell CR123A flashlights will be much brighter than 1-cell, as the batteries in series will provide the LED with twice the voltage of a single-cell light, correct?

 

[LightCannon]

Personally, I would trust the Romisens quite a bit more than DX lights.

 

[TDKKP]

:welcome:

shiningbeam has quite a few of good lights you can check them out.

 

[rje58]

I agree with LightCannon. I also second TDKKP's recommendation of Shiningbeam - I've been satisified with my purchases from Shiningbeam and received good customer service with fast shipping.

So, to make sure I understand: you want the brightest 2xCR123 light you can get for around $20, and you don't care about battery life, reliability and durability?

Personally, I would trust the Romisens quite a bit more than DX lights.

 

[LightCannon]

In addition, the output ratings on many of the lights on DX are very overrated. For instance, I used to own an Ultrafire WF-502B. That light does NOT put out 250 lumens.

With Shiningbeam's Romisens, it's closer to the ballpark...

 

[Sandoz]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I was a little suspicious of the specs on DX... $13.99 for a 250 lumen torch? That sounds a little too good to be true! I'll stick to Shiningbeam for now.

So, to make sure I understand: you want the brightest 2xCR123 light you can get for around $20, and you don't care about battery life, reliability and durability?

Brightness is definitely a priority. Battery life not so much - I'll be using a couple sets of RCR123A's that I'll be able to swap in/out. RE: reliability and durability, I'll probably just be using it around the house when needed (you know, boring stuff like finding things in the garage, wiring behind the stereo, PC modding, etc), so I don't expect it to get banged around too much - although I'd certainly love it if it were super bright. If it can withstand light-medium use then that's ok with me!

Thanks,
Sandoz