HighlanderNorth
Flashlight Enthusiast
I'm new at LED technology, and this is only my 2nd post here, and I've probably got much to learn about this topic.
I'm embarrassed to say that I thought Maglights were the top-of-the-line as far as flashlight were concerned.....
I remember years ago seeing LED lights that were so dim that it was laughable.
But I've noticed in the reading that I've done that it seems the LEDs have really only gotten as good as they are now recently. Now I know that there is usually room for improvement with most technologies, but some technologies are at the end of their ropes as far as improvement is concerned. I would imagine that there isnt going to be much more improvement in incandescent bulbs for instance.
The first decent quality LED type light source I bought was in 2007. I was looking for a backpacking type headlamp, and I discovered a flashlight review sight called flashlightreviews.com. I was also spending LOTS of time reviewing many other new items I needed to rebuild my backpacking/camping gear supply, which was completely outdated and old(1980's and 1990's).
It seemed that the guy who runs the flashlightreview.com site was at least semi-retiring, and wasnt doing as many reviews, but there were some new ones at the time. I found a headlamp from an unknown company that was called the LED Duet. It had 3, 5mm Luxeon LEDs, and a larger, more powerful LED. The 3, 5mm Luxeons were lined up side by side, and the larger LED was above. There were 5 modes. You could turn on 1-2 or 3 5 mm LEDs at the same time, or just the larger one, which was much brighter and has much longer range. There is also a strobe feature. The headlamp also has a battery charge indicator LED that tells you if it has a low, medium or high charge. It runs on 3 AAA's. These features were the same as a much more expensive Princeton tech unit, which also had 5mm's and 1 larger LED, but ran on 4AAA's so it was brighter, but the LED Duet was certainly bright enough when used on a mountain trail late at night, or at the campsite. It has worked great, and has good battery life. It got 4 out of 5 stars on the review site.
But now, there are new companies making LEDs that seem to be more efficient than Luxeons, according to what I've seen on that review site. They have the same brightness, with twice the efficiency.
But are the LED manufacturers getting close to reaching the zenith of this technology, or is there still a lot of room for further improvement in efficiency, power and brightness?
I am now seeing a lot of Cree LEDs being offered in lights. Are there other new or older companies that are producing top LEDs?
Also, are American companies competitive in the LED market, or are we losing out there too? I hate to buy Chinese stuff.......To be honest.
I'm embarrassed to say that I thought Maglights were the top-of-the-line as far as flashlight were concerned.....
I remember years ago seeing LED lights that were so dim that it was laughable.
But I've noticed in the reading that I've done that it seems the LEDs have really only gotten as good as they are now recently. Now I know that there is usually room for improvement with most technologies, but some technologies are at the end of their ropes as far as improvement is concerned. I would imagine that there isnt going to be much more improvement in incandescent bulbs for instance.
The first decent quality LED type light source I bought was in 2007. I was looking for a backpacking type headlamp, and I discovered a flashlight review sight called flashlightreviews.com. I was also spending LOTS of time reviewing many other new items I needed to rebuild my backpacking/camping gear supply, which was completely outdated and old(1980's and 1990's).
It seemed that the guy who runs the flashlightreview.com site was at least semi-retiring, and wasnt doing as many reviews, but there were some new ones at the time. I found a headlamp from an unknown company that was called the LED Duet. It had 3, 5mm Luxeon LEDs, and a larger, more powerful LED. The 3, 5mm Luxeons were lined up side by side, and the larger LED was above. There were 5 modes. You could turn on 1-2 or 3 5 mm LEDs at the same time, or just the larger one, which was much brighter and has much longer range. There is also a strobe feature. The headlamp also has a battery charge indicator LED that tells you if it has a low, medium or high charge. It runs on 3 AAA's. These features were the same as a much more expensive Princeton tech unit, which also had 5mm's and 1 larger LED, but ran on 4AAA's so it was brighter, but the LED Duet was certainly bright enough when used on a mountain trail late at night, or at the campsite. It has worked great, and has good battery life. It got 4 out of 5 stars on the review site.
But now, there are new companies making LEDs that seem to be more efficient than Luxeons, according to what I've seen on that review site. They have the same brightness, with twice the efficiency.
But are the LED manufacturers getting close to reaching the zenith of this technology, or is there still a lot of room for further improvement in efficiency, power and brightness?
I am now seeing a lot of Cree LEDs being offered in lights. Are there other new or older companies that are producing top LEDs?
Also, are American companies competitive in the LED market, or are we losing out there too? I hate to buy Chinese stuff.......To be honest.
