She does Home Health visits, in some really remote areas. I'm talking 1 room wooden shanty, with an outhouse. Can you say "Deliverance ?" I want her to have a substantial light which is small enough, that she'll actually carry it. I'll keep her in batteries; I just think a AA light would be better for her. I'll probably feed it 2650 mAh NiMH Duracells.
ok, first off i have both of the lights you are asking about. second, in some cases my wife makes housecalls too when patients can't make it into her office, but in not quite as rural areas - rather suburban and urban areas (which are more dangerous and, on occasion require one or two armed escorts, usually off duty LEO's - she carries some prescription drugs she might prescribe or administer, including opioids, and so would be a prime target by local "slimely, belly crawling slugs").
now, that i know the specific use, here's my two shekels:
1. i really like a smooth beam-pattern free of artifacts. that said...
2. for my main use, i prefer SMOOTH reflector Q5 lights so that i can use the lowest possible o.p. (output) level and get the greatest Throw and burntime. but my application requires longer burntimes and greater throw at lower light o.p. levels. however,...
3. in your wife's case, i would guess that even if she's hiking >0.5miles through some forest, that she's NOT going to be interested in MAXIMUM burntimes as she can change cells (she really needs to know how to do this, IMO, and if she's NOT going to learn how to do this for herself, then, IMO, she really needs to carry a second light also) at the patient's home, or when she's back in the car. so,...
4. a textured reflector Q5 or a Rebel (if a warmer tint is preferred) would both work well for her application. on the higher output levels, a smooth reflector wouldn't be required for her to see far enough ahead. she'll also have less complaint about beam artifacts, more specifically "rings" in the smooth reflector Cree beam. therefore,...
5. i'd recommend that you get her a L1D-Q5 (with TEXTURED/OP reflector) or L1D-Rebel as her primary light and also a L0D-Q4 as a backup light. electronic failures are rare; drop failures might be rare too, but you don't want her stuck in total darkness half-way between a home and her vehicle - if that distance is too great. the L0D-Q4 is smaller, but now you need a different battery type. however, since it's purely a BACKUP light, a single Li primary cell would suffice. too big for a backup light? go with a Photon Freedom Microlight with a Nichia DS emitter - plenty bright for 15-30min on two FRESH CR2016 cells (after 30min its down to about 25% of initial MAX brightness, but 15-30min is long enough to find her way back to her vehicle if her primary light fails for some reason). lastly,...
6. i don't recommend normal NiMH cells for her application. the higher self-discharge makes them unwise unless you're RELIGIOUSLY charging them frequently and swapping out the cells (including a spare cell or two she ought to carry, IMO). if you want NiMH cells vs. Li primary cells, then go for some Eneloop LSD (low self-discharge) cells. Eneloops will require less maintenance.
these suggestions are pretty much what i would want to equip my wife with if she were performing home heath visits in an environment similar to your wife.
hope some of this info helps.
I think an L1D would be perfect. It would fit on her key chain, making it less likely to be lost, and she could probably even handle putting the right battery in it.
