Help me choose a AAA flashlight!

[Robbieisbobert]

Well, I am at a crossroads on my search to buy a good AAA flashlight to keep on my keychain. You see, I lost my E01 a few months ago and am searching for a replacement. Currently, I am looking at the Fenix E05 and the iTP A3 EOS as prime candidates. Mainly, I want to have a light that allows me to walk in dimly-lit areas on the street or whilst hiking or to look around in my car or other things like that. I know that the Fenix has ~30 lumen capacity and the iTP has 3 brightness settings. I am torn betweeen these lights as the Fenix seems like a good flashlight for my needs but only has one output. I do not know if this light is bright enough for my range of needs. The iTP seems good as it has variable light output, but I do not know if its 1.5 lumens is even useful or if the 18 lumens setting would suffice whilst walking down the street. If it is not, that leaves 80 lumen output but with only ~55 min battery duration...

Also, I'd like to know about the differnces in durability and tint between these lights. I need something that won't fall apart from a few drops to concrete and it seems like warmer tints make it easier to see details about anywhere you point your light to. Will I be able to use the 80 lumen feature of the iTP for the full ~hour without burning its circuitry?

Help me make a decision please! I want to stay at the $20 or less pricepoint; more than that seems unreasonable for a keychain flashllight. I'm also open to suggestions 😀. Thanks in advance to anyone who decides to help me out!

 

[moldyoldy]

well, the $20 pricepoint max is a bit difficult to stay inside of for a reliable EDC light. The EDC threads indicate that many CPF'ers use the Fenix E05, iTP or the OLight I3 which evidently is the upgraded iTP AAA light. Personally I have given away maybe a dozen E05 lights in different colors as an EDC light - feedback has been favorable. The 27 Lumens seems to be sufficient for a _personal_ EDC light. I myself carry the Fenix LD01 with a 10440 cell.

edit; consider whether any light will tail-stand. For me that ability is a requirement. The E05 does that nicely.

 

[kreisler]

i own (or have on order) 4 different 1x AAA keychain lights:

#1 iTP A3 Titanium (expensive and rare, large hotspot with XP-G R5, rather floody, greenish tints on lower levels but not too bad, cant tailstand without German tricks)
#2 Klarus MiX6 (expensive. definitely above the 20$ limit haha, cant tailstand at all)
#3 Tank007 E09 (extremely bright, official support for Protected 10440's, FREE lifetime guarantee; pocket clip and diffuser tip available; it's sort of a Fenix L0D or Fenix LD01 clone, only newer and better; recommended retail price is 16.99$ afaik, i paid half on some large Chin*se website with xmas discounts)
#4 Lumintop Worm (see selfbuilt's review. appears brighter than the A3 because of the higher beam intensity and greater throw. has the nicest tint of all: plain white. insane runtimes on Medium and excellent current regulation, with no PWM. Very high quality built and finish, FREE lifetime hassle-free warranty; doesnt support 10440's at all. would fry the driver, not the LED!!)

All four are about equally good, light-weight, small-sized and recommendable, and for sure superior to Fenix LD01 or E05 imho. With 20 bucks you could afford #1 (Aluminum), #3, and #4 (Aluminum), and among them there is no clear winner because it depends on your taste (of design, color haha, ..) and your decisive criteria.

If brightness is the most important criterium, then you *must* use 10440's. Then .. take the Tank.
If runtime is the most important c., then take the Worm.
If popularity is important, then take the A3. The A3 is probably one of the best-sold high performance brand name LED flashlight ever.

hope this helps.

 

[savumaki]

Funny, I am just the opposite; I prefer a sturdy tie down point for attachment to a key chain. I use a key chain light when an unexpected need arises and not for those times I know I will need a light.
For a walk I prefer a hand held light which generally has some brighter modes if needed.

 

[GaAslamp]

Well, I am at a crossroads on my search to buy a good AAA flashlight to keep on my keychain. You see, I lost my E01 a few months ago and am searching for a replacement.

How well, in your estimation, did your E01 serve your purposes?

Currently, I am looking at the Fenix E05 and the iTP A3 EOS as prime candidates. Mainly, I want to have a light that allows me to walk in dimly-lit areas on the street or whilst hiking or to look around in my car or other things like that. I know that the Fenix has ~30 lumen capacity and the iTP has 3 brightness settings. I am torn betweeen these lights as the Fenix seems like a good flashlight for my needs but only has one output. I do not know if this light is bright enough for my range of needs.

While I would generally recommend a multi-mode flashlight if it is to be your primary or only flashlight that you carry, for the stated purposes alone the E05 should be just dandy--even preferable for these purposes, with some general limitations. If you might need your new flashlight to "throw" light at a good distance, for example, then the E05 is definitely lacking in this regard. Also, if you need super-long runtimes or high output, then it won't do that, either. On the other hand, it is likely superior for what you plan to do with it the most--decisions, decisions! :thinking:

The iTP seems good as it has variable light output, but I do not know if its 1.5 lumens is even useful or if the 18 lumens setting would suffice whilst walking down the street. If it is not, that leaves 80 lumen output but with only ~55 min battery duration...

I find 1.5 lumens very useful for close-up work (or even not-so-close-up indoor navigation) in the dark, and use similarly low levels quite frequently; you'd probably want more than that, however, when some ambient light is present. 18 lumens is more than enough for me to walk down the street, but that's just me. It is significantly more light than your E01 put out, and should be enough for you, I'd think, but then again I'm not you. On natural terrain, I prefer a bit more, personally, but could get by on 18 lumens if I don't walk too fast (neutral white also helps me a lot, but all of the flashlights we're looking at are cool white, and probably do not differ substantially in tint).

#2 Klarus MiX6 (expensive. definitely above the 20$ limit haha, cant tailstand at all)

The Klarus Mi10 is less expensive and likewise has really good runtime on its Medium mode (about 20 lumens for 5 hours).

#3 Tank007 E09 (extremely bright, official support for Protected 10440's, FREE lifetime guarantee; pocket clip and diffuser tip available; it's sort of a Fenix L0D or Fenix LD01 clone, only newer and better; recommended retail price is 16.99$ afaik, i paid half on some large Chin*se website with xmas discounts)

What are the lumen outputs and runtimes for its Medium and Low modes?

#4 Lumintop Worm (see selfbuilt's review. appears brighter than the A3 because of the higher beam intensity and greater throw. has the nicest tint of all: plain white. insane runtimes on Medium and excellent current regulation, with no PWM. Very high quality built and finish, FREE lifetime hassle-free warranty; doesnt support 10440's at all. would fry the driver, not the LED!!)

This seems like a very nice and efficient flashlight, but it doesn't have a Medium mode, and the Low mode is a bit over 10 lumens, so maybe it's a little iffy for the OP's stated purposes.

All four are about equally good, light-weight, small-sized and recommendable, and for sure superior to Fenix LD01 or E05 imho.

They're not superior in every way and for every purpose, although they are more versatile than the E05 in some ways.

If brightness is the most important criterium, then you *must* use 10440's. Then .. take the Tank.
If runtime is the most important c., then take the Worm.
If popularity is important, then take the A3. The A3 is probably one of the best-sold high performance brand name LED flashlight ever.

The OP's main purposes seem to demand a reasonable Medium mode above super-bright output or super-long runtime, although obviously the latter two would be nice to have in addition (for increased preparedness).

 

[kreisler]

What are the lumen outputs and runtimes for its Medium and Low modes?

it should be easy to measure the runtimes since the Tank accepts Protected (=lengthy) 10440's. You stop the runtime exactly when the protection trips.

Low: 1000mins-21hrs@10lm
Med: 180mins@60lm
High: 60mins@140lm

At this point of time there is no user-verified Eneloop data or Protected 10440's data or actual runtime-vs-brightness graphs available. Our star reviewers HKJ and selfbuilt typically do not test or review budget lights, even if they are Premium budget lights such as Tank007 or Romisen.

I dont own Eneloops and cant measure voltage or brightness, sorry.
At some later point i should be able to provide my own 10440's measurements of runtimes (before the PCB kicks in).

 

[Robbieisbobert]

I appreciate all above input, but I think I've narrowed it down to the iTP a3 eos upgraded and the Fenix e05 based on the acclaim they've received, their closeness to my intended applications, and their cost 🙂. Having established this, I've a few questions to get more answers from other CPF members:

Just how versatile is the Fenix?
How durable are both lights? What factors affect their durability most?
What is likely to be more useful to me: the itp's 18 lumen and 1.5 lumen output or the Fenix's 27 lumen output?
How do you like the beam patterns of each?

 

[Larzon]

I recommend you Skilhunt Ramble Iota as a good EDC flashlight, 70 lm, 7lm, as well as strobe and powered by one AAA battery, I carry myself one with me every day 🙂, do not know price outside Sweden, unfortunately. I also have a Klarus Mi10 but do not like it as much as the Ramble-Iota, but it's also a nice flashlight, however. :thumbsup:

 

[kreisler]

Dont let durability be an issue of concern. All aluminum 1x AAA keychain lights are about the same re durability. if you hit them too hard (e.g. bezel down drop from 2.0meters onto marbled floor), parts will break (e.g. the glass lens, or driver circuit board parts thru the crush of the battery, etc.) anyway.

I am not getting paid to post here and don't work for any flashlight manufacturer, and I am

With the Lumintop Worm you get FREE lifetime hassle-free guarantee. That's a big selling point. (Oops, i already mentioned it previously haha)

 

[Ddonohuejr]

I need a pocket clip for the tank 007 09 where can I buy one

 

[mcnair55]

I own both,neither should give you any problems.If you intend to buy just the one,.the Itp is the best option as it offers 3 modes and it is wise to buy more than less as you may require more lumens in the future for some reason or other.The low output is brill for evening tired eyes.

 

[Vesper]

One thing to consider in a keychain light is max durability. I've had a E01 on one keyring for years. It has taken a beating. Dropped a million times and still going strong. I had a Thrunite Ti for a period on my chain. After the first drop, the lens shattered. Great light, but I've decided to keep a light with only a 5mm led. It's enough light for 99% of uses and will just work.

 

[jorn]

I think he got a edc.. in 2011 🙂

 

[mcnair55]

I think he got a edc.. in 2011 🙂

Well that is great,should have checked the op date.