Yes I am partly joking of course, but I'm serious about the fact that a 4x18650 light is a huge light and judging by most of the Recommend Me threads, far too large for most people's usage. I think something a bit more pocketable with the same charge indicator may get more love.
In the dark about remaining charge?
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Yes I am partly joking of course, but I'm serious about the fact that a 4x18650 light is a huge light and judging by most of the Recommend Me threads, far too large for most people's usage. I think something a bit more pocketable with the same charge indicator may get more love.
Viperbart
Newly Enlightened
I don't tow a second car in case I run out of gas.
Same goes with everything else I have.
One computer, one digital camera, one cell phone, one house etc.
if you actually need extra batteries to get you through the day because you use them, then that's fine to carry extras. Otherwise, save your baggage for something else more useful.
Just my 0.02$.
I also consider if, let's say my day doesn't go as planned. ..it might be a good idea to have extra capacity for anything that makes sense from a cost/benefit perspective.
A spare cell has a low cost. A spare tire has a higher cost (It uses a higher percentage of my trunk space than a cell uses of my pocket space, etc...), and so forth.
Everyone's priorities are different, so one guy might feel he is talking risks by leaving the house w/o his cell phone to run out to just pick up a pizza, and another guy might feel it's an acceptable risk.
If their car is not in an accident/doesn't need AAA, etc....it didn't matter.
If they DID need a cell phone and DIDN'T have it...well, then the prepared guy is set, and the unprepared guy has a much more aggravating experience.
Who's right?
ven
Flashaholic
Make sure you get the pizza delivered......win win :laughing:
Agree,all about preparation,better to have and not need then to need and not.......
No harm having a spare cell or 2 or a back up light.I know I would want more than one light on a camping trip for example,walking 200yds to a local shop at night I am quite happy with 1 edc on my keys and if I have my coat a 2nd that lives in there.
2nd cars and 2nd houses are extreme examples a little out of context with Monocroms point.
If you have a gun,do you have 1 bullet in.......
Luckily there is a few choices available to suit all needs,if a read out or voltage display is required,enough manufacturers have a model in their range to satisfy most users needs.
I agree it's handy to have,but preparation,common sense and knowing your equipment imo does not warrent the need for every light to have that requirement.
Welcome to the wonderful world of lights. Dig through CPF, have fun. You'll find a buttload of stories that prove the "Two is one, one is none" philosophy regarding lights to be reality. Many of us have such stories. Myself included. Though thankfully in my case, I had two on me. Last few weeks, I've been relying on a single-cell S.S. Maratac AA model as my main light at work, along with a Photon freedom on my keychain as my 2nd light. Yeah, that combo.... far from a pain to tote around. Definitely not even close to towing a 2nd car behind you if yours' runs out of gas.
Computer?.... Most folks can pull out their smartphone to keep posting on their favorite sites.
One digital camera?.... (See Above.)
One house.... That's as good as the 2nd car analogy. Though some folks do indeed have more than one.
One cellphone.... Pull out a quarter and look for a payphone.
(Yeah, bit old-fashioned. While I have a cellphone, I still do what I did as a kid. Carry two quarters with me in my pocket just in case I need to use a payphone.)
I still can't help but think there's a whole bunch of dinosaur thinking (damn fangled horseless carriages will never replace my trusty nag).
Firstly, do we REALLY need all our lights to take standard batteries? Sure it's nice to know we can pop into a 7-11 and grab a spare, but how often do we actually do this? Couldn't we just as easily buy a $5 flashlight in the next aisle over to get the job done in an emergency? I'd love to be able to grab a fully charged cell to keep my phone going in an emergency - I think that's a far stronger argument for standardized cells - but I can't do it.
It seems to me that a flashlight is basically a tool. I don't really care that my cordless drill doesn't take AA's, I have several batteries for it (it helps that other tools use the same battery) and I keep them charged. The batteries just click into the tool (no unscrewing, no "where's the little + sign" etc) and I'm good to go. They have a built-in charge indicator (the advantage of knowing what chemistry it's attached to) so it's easy to judge their charge state, whether they are in the tool or sitting on the shelf next to it. I'm convinced this is BETTER than handling individual cells, and I don't see why a flashlight should be any different. I'm not talking a zombies-are-coming-fill-the-basement-with-enough-AAs-to-last-a-decade flashlight, I'm talking about a daily working tool.
I reckon the cordless tool mfrs are getting on the right track with their pocket-sized Li-Ion systems, and that it's just a matter of time before they include indicators on these smaller batteries too and their emitter tech improves. I just feel it would be nice to see some of this development come from actual flashlight specialists rather than waiting for the big box tool guys to get there.
Firstly, do we REALLY need all our lights to take standard batteries? Sure it's nice to know we can pop into a 7-11 and grab a spare, but how often do we actually do this? Couldn't we just as easily buy a $5 flashlight in the next aisle over to get the job done in an emergency? I'd love to be able to grab a fully charged cell to keep my phone going in an emergency - I think that's a far stronger argument for standardized cells - but I can't do it.
It seems to me that a flashlight is basically a tool. I don't really care that my cordless drill doesn't take AA's, I have several batteries for it (it helps that other tools use the same battery) and I keep them charged. The batteries just click into the tool (no unscrewing, no "where's the little + sign" etc) and I'm good to go. They have a built-in charge indicator (the advantage of knowing what chemistry it's attached to) so it's easy to judge their charge state, whether they are in the tool or sitting on the shelf next to it. I'm convinced this is BETTER than handling individual cells, and I don't see why a flashlight should be any different. I'm not talking a zombies-are-coming-fill-the-basement-with-enough-AAs-to-last-a-decade flashlight, I'm talking about a daily working tool.
I reckon the cordless tool mfrs are getting on the right track with their pocket-sized Li-Ion systems, and that it's just a matter of time before they include indicators on these smaller batteries too and their emitter tech improves. I just feel it would be nice to see some of this development come from actual flashlight specialists rather than waiting for the big box tool guys to get there.
Hehe... that's one of the reason I do like standardizing around the AA-sized cells and using broad voltage lights that can run all types of chemistries, because I do exactly that. I EDC an iGo PowerXtender 2AA > 5V that will charge my iPhone5 from 2 Eneloops. If off grid backpacking, I'll run a 3V CRAA in my flashlight which (along with a dummy cell made with tinfoil) can power my cellphone charger, or 2AA GPS, or AM/FM/WX radio... or vice versa I can cannibalize Eneloops from those devices to run my light. It's just having more options to cover emergency priorities, which ever they may be.
thedoc007
Flashlight Enthusiast
I completely agree that standardizing is usually a good thing...but more than half your post seems to be arguing for the exact opposite. You are happy to have non-standard, proprietary batteries, as long as you get the features you want? You'd rather have a voltage indicator, rather than being able to take a variety of cells? (Definitely makes it harder to find a spare, even though you acknowledge this is useful.) I'm just not sure WHAT you want...your points seem to be all over the map.
Cant? Or don't? There have been AA "emergency chargers" for cell phones for years. Handy little gizmos, really.
Ken
I reckon the cordless tool mfrs are getting on the right track with their pocket-sized Li-Ion systems, and that it's just a matter of time before they include indicators on these smaller batteries too and their emitter tech improves. I just feel it would be nice to see some of this development come from actual flashlight specialists rather than waiting for the big box tool guys to get there.
royobi, makita, craftsman, milwaukee, etc, all make flashlights that use their snap-in batteries. They're typically too large to pocket carry.
Wiggle
Flashlight Enthusiast
I agree with the idea of having charge indication. To me it is very beneficial to have a way of knowing, at least approximately, the remaining battery capacity on a light without requiring a multimeter and removing the cell. Several of my lights do it and the systems all have their benefits:
Zebralight SC52: 4 quick clicks and the light will blink back up to 4 times to indicate remaining charge. I like this system alot, it may not have much resolution but is very quick and simple to understand. I do find it is more reliable on Li-ion but even on NiMH it is fairly close especially if you let your cell recover for a few seconds before testing. I use li-ion 95% of the time so it is great for me.
Armytek Predator 2.5 Pro: This one is more detailed and will return the voltage back as X.X based on blinks. This works well but has a couple limitations. It is slower and more complicated than the SC52 method. Also, as the light must be on before you test the cell, you need to be conscious to run the light in a lower mode or the light will return a voltage of a cell that is still sagging due to high current draw.
Supbeam K50 (K50vn version): I have the vn version of this but assume it behaves quite similar to the stock light. This has a green light for battery over 50%, orange light below that and then red. Generally works pretty well. The only issue I see is that at high current draws (keep in mind the vn version may be pushing this higher) the amount of time spent on orange is quite low.
Jetbeam PA40: Has a low battery LED on back. It will occasionally blink for a somewhat low battery and fast blink for a very low battery. Again, generally useful but does tend to easily kick in on high mode due to the voltage drops of the Eneloops under higher current draws.
In conclusion, I find all of these systems at least somewhat useful. The key is to use your favorite cells and discharge at different levels and see how the battery indication responds. This way you can characterize the correlation between the indication system and the actual cell capacity.
Zebralight SC52: 4 quick clicks and the light will blink back up to 4 times to indicate remaining charge. I like this system alot, it may not have much resolution but is very quick and simple to understand. I do find it is more reliable on Li-ion but even on NiMH it is fairly close especially if you let your cell recover for a few seconds before testing. I use li-ion 95% of the time so it is great for me.
Armytek Predator 2.5 Pro: This one is more detailed and will return the voltage back as X.X based on blinks. This works well but has a couple limitations. It is slower and more complicated than the SC52 method. Also, as the light must be on before you test the cell, you need to be conscious to run the light in a lower mode or the light will return a voltage of a cell that is still sagging due to high current draw.
Supbeam K50 (K50vn version): I have the vn version of this but assume it behaves quite similar to the stock light. This has a green light for battery over 50%, orange light below that and then red. Generally works pretty well. The only issue I see is that at high current draws (keep in mind the vn version may be pushing this higher) the amount of time spent on orange is quite low.
Jetbeam PA40: Has a low battery LED on back. It will occasionally blink for a somewhat low battery and fast blink for a very low battery. Again, generally useful but does tend to easily kick in on high mode due to the voltage drops of the Eneloops under higher current draws.
In conclusion, I find all of these systems at least somewhat useful. The key is to use your favorite cells and discharge at different levels and see how the battery indication responds. This way you can characterize the correlation between the indication system and the actual cell capacity.
PierceTheNight
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- May 23, 2014
- Messages
- 24
[wrong post]
Hmmm, if the emergency was bad enough to take out your RELIABLE light, do you REALLY want an UN-reliable light for the REST of this emergency situation?
Its like spare tires on off road rigs...if you had 4 tough gnarly knobby thick walled tires when you set off into rough country, and, one tire was ripped and you needed a spare, do you REALLY think that the terrain that took out your giant knobby thick walled mud tire is going to let you back OUT with 3 good tires and the wussy OEM spare?
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Hooked on Fenix
Flashlight Enthusiast
- Joined
- Dec 13, 2007
- Messages
- 3,015
I think someone could make a light easy enough without adding extra weight that would provide a level of battery testing. What people fail to realize is that the l.ed. providing the light itself can be used as an indicator light as well. All you have to do is have the circuitry in the light set up to test the battery if you do a specific task with the on button (let's say hold it down for 5 seconds). The main light could flash a certain number of times to indicate battery level (20 or 25% increments per flash would be sufficient or 4 or 5 flashes for a full charge). The Princeton Tec Quad headlight does a similar task when the batteries start to die.
thedoc007
Flashlight Enthusiast
Yes, we already know this. There are a number of companies and lights that include a variety of charge indicators. The OP started this thread because even though the technology is there, MOST lights still don't have it. I happen to agree with the OP that it would be better if charging indicators were much more widely implemented.
