Cheap little 8 led light on Ebay

[Al_Havemann]

Bought one of these on Ebay:-

Item

It's a nice little light, about as bright as my Inova X5 but runs on a single AA. The price is right at 0.39 but as usual, these guys build in a big shipping fee, this one is $9.00. Still, it works very well, surprisingly so. I was quite impressed with what you get for under $10.00. Delivery took a week from purchase.

It's a little more than an inch shorter than the X5, almost the same diameter. A fresh alkaline AA ran just under 3 hour before I noticed a slight dimming and it still put out enough light to walk around in a dark house with 8 hours later. There was no difference I could see between an alkaline and lithium as far as brightness, so the booster circuit is pretty efficient. I didn't run test the lithium.

Construction is OK, about what you'd expect. I put a Mag pocket clip on the tail and it works very well. The light has grooves on the barrel that catch the clip end so the tail cap stays firmly in place. That lets me set it for an easy push for momentary and with just a click, locked on. I did use a bit of friction grease on the tail threads to improve the feel as is my habit.

Not bad at all for the price.

Al

 

[Phaserburn]

Anyone else get one of these?

How does it compare in brightness to other lights? What's the current draw?

 

[enLIGHTenment]

I've got one. It's a neat little light that's quite sufficient for finding one's way around indoors in the dark or in very badly lit outdoor environments. However, it has essentially no throw and is washed out by typical city lighting within six feet.

I'd guess it puts out about a quarter the light of my Nuwai ALX-032L in low power mode.

This light is a good buy for indoor use, or light-duty EDC, but it's not a high-power light by any stretch of the imagination.

 

[chevrofreak]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2020&item=5174099849&rd=1

cheaper from that guy, and you can pick colors

 

[JohnK]

It IS a nice little light. I have two, plus a 12 LED light in the same series.

The 8/LED is about equal to a Gerber Trio in brightness, NOT a complaint. Takes a lithium AA well, it's in my truck as a back up light.

For the bucks, very good.

 

[Phaserburn]

Is this light part of the Xnova line? Is the one from Chevro's link the Xnova clone (knowing that the Xnova itself is, of course, a clone)?

 

[evanlocc]

Yes phaserburn, its the part of the Xnova line.

I would not say it out throw the Inova X5, but within 4M there are not much different. In a closer distance what do you think about of 3 LED more!

A very good area light! Dont argue about its build with Inova X5 pls, its cost do tell. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Kryosphinx]

Does anybody know if the 12 LED light is part of the Xnova line too?
Sorry for the off topic post...

 

[Al_Havemann]

You know, the more I use this little light, the more I like it. It's not as bright as the Nuwai 2XAAA, but almost and it's just about perfect for close work. Nice and bright for 6 feet or so and the beam is a flawless flood with perhaps just the slightest touch of blue in the center. Just a smooth circle of light without a mark in it. As mentioned above, there's not very much throw, but I usually don't need more 6-10 feet anyway so I'm happy with that.

I don't exactly know why I like it all that much but it's the first one I grab for poking around inside a computer or a dark celler.

Also bought one of the 12 led lights, probably from the same company – no name of course. It's a bit bulkier but also works just fine. Again, it's a close up work light with good run time and a flawless flood beam. Very nice for a few bucks. Again, not much throw, just a great flood.

I still like the 8 led best though; and for 10 bucks, who can complain.

Al

 

[Stainless]

I believe that the single AA form factor is the "current frontier" in compact flashlight design. Bring em on!

 

[Phaserburn]

Al, are you using an alkaline or lithium AA?

 

[woolfam]

I bought one from the seller mentioned in the first post. I showed it around at work and we ended up doing a group buy of 25 of them. Lithium AAs seemed to work fine. Mine was a little brighter than my Dorcy AA. The only odd thing is that the lanyard that comes with the light is not long enough to fit around a hand. But all-in-all, a nice little light.

 

[koala]

I've got a 1xAA White and a 2xAA Grey. The only difference between mine and the ones pictured above is there isn't any skirting(take a look at the white one) around the bezel. The rest are exactly identical.

The build quality of the 2xAA Grey is much better than my 1xAA White. If Inova X5 machine quality is 100, then I would rate these clones as close as 80 for the finishing and threads. Cost wise, it's great.

 

[Skibane]

A couple of questions:

1. Runs OK on the lower voltage of a Ni-MH or NiCad cell?

2. How easy is it to substitute higher-output LEDs (e.g., 26K mCd)?

 

[enLIGHTenment]

The single AA unit I have runs fine on NiMh.

 

[Erasmus]

Does anyone know the mcd value of the LEDs?

 

[Moat]

Late to the party, but FWIW - I just recieved one of these 8 LED, 1AA's from the seller in the second link (ja117)... $7.49 shipped. I agree with everything Al mentioned - excellent little light, with a beautiful, flawless flood beam. About 1/16th inch shorter, and twice as bright (ceiling bounce) as the 5 LED Xnova (clone), with better tint and wider spot. Runs great on NiMH. Really shoulda bought a few, as it (sort of) appears as if he's not currently shipping to the USA (GB only??).

For less than eight bucks - an excellent value! Instantly became one of my favorites.

 

[Turbo_E]

i swapped out the leds for 20,000 mcd ones. i estimate the originals to be in the 10,000 range. freeze and pop works to get the leds out of the head, but be warned, i have cracked the \pcb inside on one occasion where the head just wouldnt budge.

 

[Paul_in_Maryland]

Woolfam,
Is the 2AA any brighter than the 1AA? Or does it last longer?
Currently on eBay, I found two 2AA 8LED lights. One seller claims 6 hours, the other 30!

 

[Turbo_E]

the 2 AA (12 LED)is brigher. the head is not interchangeable. it fits but wont light on less than 3V.

try putting the 8 LED head on the 2 AA body /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif