How small and how bright do we need?

[rickdm]

Having recently purchased both an LS-1 and a LSL-S I have begun to wonder where we go from here. I hear about everything getting smaller and brighter, but these two lights seem almost ideal in terms of real world brightness, by comparison my SF e2e seems way too bright for anything but spot use. Even though side by side the LSL-S is quite a bit brighter than the LS-1, without using them side by side I am not sure I could tell you which is which. Now if you could make the battery last twice as long at that brightness, you would get my attention.

The size of these two lights just feels so good in the hand that I am not sure how much smaller I would want them. I have a couple of Fireflies on order, which are supposed to be the size of a CMG Infinity, it will be interesting to see how they feel in comparison. Since I don't carry them in my pocket I suspect I may prefer the feel of the LS.

BTW; at $65 on sale, the LSL-S really is a steal.

Rick

 

[GlockDoc]

AAA small, aircraft-landing-light bright! (and 4 hours on a battery!)

 

[paulr]

The LS is more of a pocket bulge than the CMG. The Arc AAA is really tiny. I'm looking forward to the Firefly.

I find after some initial skepticism that I do like the LS's pushbutton, vs. the bezel twist switch of the CMG and similar lights. The forthcoming Arc LS4 will be very nice, with a completely electronic pushbutton switch, but will be a bit too expensive for my blood for a while.

 

[Tomas]

PayPal sent, GlockDoc! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Charles Bradshaw]

Unfortunately, need is rarely considered by CPF members. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif I tend to go with the dimmest usable for most of my uses, which gives me longer runtime. Then again, I am at home 99 percent of the time, so I rarely need something bright. I want to squeeze as much runtime as possible out of my batteries, so the LS4 will be perfect for that. My LSH-S and Rev1 SLS will find permanent mounting on a couple of custom mods (2C pack and headlamp mod, respectively).

 

[Tree]

Ooh, ooh, an Arc LS headlamp adaptor! Paypal Sent!!

As for the small and bright for me, just take the ratios and move them over one size. Arc AAA as bright as an LSH-P, E2 as bright as a M3, Rage as bright as a Tec 40 with KPR-103 and so on.

 

[Kiessling]

we "need" the highest efficiency, that is what counts. if you want to use it for a small size, long runtime or infernal brightness is a matter of taste and need. the one big common factor is efficiency IMHO.
bernhard

P.S.: to be honest, what I wrote was the "reasonable" explanation. what we want, of course, is smaller, brigher, better.
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[PaulW]

Each individual will have a different answer to this question. So let me add another view. As to the "how bright" part of the question, what I need depends on where I am. I often find the L4 not quite bright enough when I'm trying to see objects outside. However, last night, sitting with friends in a restaurant, my perceptions were entirely different. One of the people said she wanted to buy one of those (and then she described the L4) to help her read while in a subway station. I said, "You mean this?" And I pulled it out. It had been in my pocket, of course.

She turned it on in the darkened restaurant and replied, "Whoa!" It was too bright. So then we did the same with my Arc LS. That also was too bright for what she wanted. The Arc AAA . . . too dim. But if she had been trying to find her way down a flight of stairs in pitch dark, the Arc AAA would have been plenty of light.

My conclusion -- no surprise -- is that I need a range of lights. The dim end is no problem -- I have lights that go as low as I could want. So, to round out my collection, I just need really bright ones. I have a Mag 3C outfitted with 4 123s plus an AA driving a WelchAllyn 01318 bulb. That gives me 21 watts. You'd think that'd be enough, but -- and again, no surprise -- I'm going for 35 watts in another configuration.

So to answer the question of how bright do I need, it seems the answer is "as bright as I can get and still lug the thing around."

Paul

 

[rickdm]

Interesting comparison Paul. When we lost power in my house after a storm I found that the E2E was way too bright for around the house use, the BB400 Q3 was still a little brighter than needed, the Arc AAA was very good but just a little on the dim side, and the Opalec Newbeam was just about perfect. Bright enough to light up the bathroom so the kids could take a shower, dim enough that you could use it to read by. I do think the LS4 will be a great combination to have.

Rick

 

[gyverpete]

How small and bright?
Small and bright enough to carry ALL THE TIME. A bigger brighter light is useless if you don't have it when you need it.
The ARC-AAA covers 90% of my needs, mainly because it's small enough to carry 24/7. I need light and there it is!

The biggest light I EDC is the ARC-LS w/twisty 123. Very bright for its size. Higher brightness to size ratio than the AAA but too large for me to carry 24/7.

As technology advances, lights will get brighter and smaller and more efficient. I'll try to keep up. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[PaulW]

gyverpete,

What you say sounds like Peter Gransee, and I can't argue with it. I carry the Arc LS or Arc AAA when I'm outside the house . . . and a lot of the time when I'm in the house. Here we're talking about practical EDC stuff. That's answering needs, in response to the question.

But when I talk about fun stuff, I'm talking about wants -- flashlights to play with, to have fun with. In that case, I can't help but get a little manic and think of watts in the double digits. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Paul

 

[gyverpete]

PaulW,
Good point. Needs and wants are two totally different things. I think most of us play with powerful lights more than actually use them out of need. A little light is sufficient in most instances. A BIG light is mostly cool and fun. I wish my 1mil cp spotlight was pocketsize so I could blast away the dark, all the time, just for fun. But its size relegates it to the car. My small lights actually get used out of neccessity and they're still a bit fun, too.

With regards to small and "with you" winning over large and "left at home", that applies to all my gear, not just lights. Compact gear is better than none at all. Ingenuity and improvising takes no space at all and makes what you DO have, get the job done.

 

[MichiganMan]

Paul, you might want to put her on the trail of an Eternalight. Their multiple configurations cover a range of uses, from reading to navigating darkened houses and with a guilt free runtime. The only need at which they fail is when you need a good throw. But, like you said, no light is best at all duties, the variable dimness of Eternalights though give it a greater range of duty than most lights.

I would feel guilty bringing them up in the Arc group but I don't really think they compete directly with either the AAA or LS, IOW if you were shopping for lights like an Arc LS you wouldn't even pause at the EliteMax, ditto the AAA and a Derringer as a keychain light. Eternalights are more lights that you keep in an easily accessible drawer, nightstand, or purse. Arcs are lights you carry with you. Versatility versus Specialization.

As for how small and how bright, I'm sure I'll be satisfied with the LS4, I know I said that with the LSH-P, but ... well... this time I really mean it. Really.

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/help.gif

 

[coyote]

i pocket EDC both the Arc LS and AAA.

the AAA is fine for "in house" but i find i more often then not need the LS outdoors.

i don't carry my E2e EDC, it sits in a backpack, though i wish i could have it more handy at times, for longer ranges.

i'd love to pocket-carry a single unit that does all three and figure the LS4 will be what i need, having low power, standard bright and a quick boost when needed (but i bet i still end up carrying an AAA to find the turned-off LS4 i dropped in the dark).

so yea, we "need" more hi-tech designs in the near future: smaller, longer run times & instantly adjustable intensity including tactically bright.

 

[MichiganMan]

Aha! The LS4 is going to also have optional "Locater Beacon" capability for finding it in the dark. Problem solved. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif

 

[MichiganMan]

The smaller part reminded me: Peter, the early drawings of the LS4 make the head appear to be fatter than the battery/switch, and hence, bigger arround than the current LS's. Is this still correct?

 

[Carlos]

10 to 15 lumens in a AAA package.

 

[BarryNYC]

The "how small" part is easy for me to answer. For my needs, the AAA is probably as small as possible. My particular paronoia requires that an EDC flashlight use a battery that can be easily purchased at any drugstore/newsstand, so AAA is about as small as it gets.

-barry