Just received my Photon Freedom - Great Light!

[paulr]

Coin lights with two new 2016's are in general a bit brighter than an Arc AAA. After 15 minutes or so they're no longer brighter, but they are still usable for several hours.

I think the default mode of the Freedom, where you just click once for constant-on, is pretty scary, since it can get turned on easily in your pocket and kill its batteries. Putting it into signalling mode to prevent that isn't a good solution because then you need a multi-click sequence to get constant-on. I put a mild rant on the photonlight.com forum suggesting that they put a timeout into the controller, so the light shuts itself off after 5 minutes or so of constant-on. Some variations on this are possible, like double-clicking to cancel the timeout; dimming to half power instead of shutting off after 5 minutes and then shutting off a few minutes later, etc.

I've been a afraid to buy a Freedom because of this issue. The Photon II can turn on in your pocket, but only momentarily, if something presses against it. Getting stuck constant-on would require snagging the little slide switch on something, which seems very hard to do.

 

[PocketBeam]

I also haven't gotten the Photon Freedom because of concern over this. If I put it in momentary on mode, then it seems like I am not really taking advantage of the other features.

I say this because I have the Photon III covert in white. When I first got it I left it in a dimmed on mode. After a couple of weeks in my pocket the light was dead and I hadn't used it very much. So it must have turned itself on some time(s). So with new batteries I now have it in the one minute on timmed mode. And I don't take advantage of the dimmed mode because it is too much hassle to change mode, then change them back.

So bottom line is because of the way they implemented the features, I don't use them. So why pay more for features you won't use. I could have gotten a Photon II.

 

[jamesraykenney]

[ QUOTE ]
PocketBeam said:
I also haven't gotten the Photon Freedom because of concern over this. If I put it in momentary on mode, then it seems like I am not really taking advantage of the other features.

I say this because I have the Photon III covert in white. When I first got it I left it in a dimmed on mode. After a couple of weeks in my pocket the light was dead and I hadn't used it very much. So it must have turned itself on some time(s). So with new batteries I now have it in the one minute on timmed mode. And I don't take advantage of the dimmed mode because it is too much hassle to change mode, then change them back.

So bottom line is because of the way they implemented the features, I don't use them. So why pay more for features you won't use. I could have gotten a Photon II.

[/ QUOTE ]

The running down the battery bit was a defect in the first batches of the Photon 3s...Call them up and they will replace it.

Reminds me...I have one of those that I have never replaced...Have to call them myself.
The fixed ones have(I think) an S.O.S. mode like the Photon Freedom.

 

[Lux Luthor]

[ QUOTE ]
PocketBeam said:...And I don't take advantage of the dimmed mode because it is too much hassle to change mode, then change them back....

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm not sure how the P3 works, but on the freedom, to go from momentary mode to regular mode (where you can dim) you just need to hold the light on for 3 seconds, and release. Then, say you want the dimmest level. Just hold the button down until it comes on (about 1 second). If you want it brighter, leave the button down longer, and release it when it's at the level you want. To put it back into momentary mode, press and release several times (4 times I think). You can tell when it's in momentary because the flashing then synchronizes with your button presses.

I suppose a lot of people don't need the dim modes, but I'm one of those weird people who often operates in dark conditions. I can't imagine wanting a photon II instead, when I can get this much control over light output (and runtime). Personally, I think all lights should have this kind of capability (although in a tactical torch, you would need to implement it differently so you could jump immediately to brightest level from anywhere). With the freedom, if you're in dim mode, you would need to first click it off, then click it back on, and it will come on at full brightness. That doesn't take very long, but in a tactical torch I would consider that unacceptable.

Another good thing about the freedom is that you can start either at fully dim or fully bright, and increase/decrease from there. This is good, because if the light is already off, and you want to preserve NV (or just not disturb someone), you can "dial in" only the amount you need. On the other hand, if you're preserving NV with it on, as your eyes adjust, you can dim the light more and more.