Modern Light UI

[DavidMB]

Recently, I bought 2 lights. The Nitecore D11.2 and a Sunwayman V10A. Even though the Nitecore was a great light, it went back because it was malfunctioning. I decided on the Sunwayman instead, and it's been a great light.

Both of these lights have spoiled me. Now that I have a light that is infinitely adjustable I don't want to go back to the old UI's. I was considering the 4sevens AA; I think it's a great company, and light, but I didn't choose it because I don't want to cycle through SOS and strobe to get back to low. I now also want more than just 3 brightnesses.

There may be people that like SOS and strobe, but cycling through them on a daily basis isn't necessary. I know those settings are usually put at the end and sometimes hidden, but not always, and if you want to get back to a setting, you have to go past strobe and SOS. I can see the merit of having them in general, but I think they should be better hidden in the UI. Strobe can be good for defense but it's pointless if you have to click several times to get to it. SOS is useful when someone is stranded on an island but, I don't know how realistic it is.

For me it's been a huge advantage to select exactly the level of light needed. I find even a small adjustment can make a big difference. It especially helps when doing close up work where some of the brighter levels will reflect back into into the eyes.

I think more companies should consider making lights with infinitely adjustable brightness, and remove or hide the strobe and SOS modes.

 

[Echo63]

I actually agree with you entirely.
I recently got a V10r TI, and I used to frequently use a SF U2 (6 levels with a magnetic selector ring)
I love the stupid simple interface - "ugh mongo click switch, torch make light. Turn light up or down with ring, like stereo system" you can even turn the light down to min or up to max before you click it on.

The only thing easier is Surefires 2stage tailcap - press for light, press harder for more light (which is great in tactical situations, under stress you lose fine motor control, so your two stage light effectively becomes one stage as you smash the switch all the way down, no messing with clicking through levels, just push for light and let go for dark) I have an L2 on my bedside table that I will clip to my pocket if I'm going out quickly, it's a great UI, and the L2 is conveniently Kubotan sized and shaped

I really like the ability to select which mode I turn the light on in, and being able to hide strobe and SOS modes.
My previous EDC (retired for the SWM because I wanted a TI edc light) was a novatac, 4 level slots, With the ability to set around (from memory) 40 levels to any those spots.
2 of those spots are available from off (click for on, or clickpress+hold for the slot they call "max") and all levels available when switched on (double click to go from primary to secondary and back again, press and hold to go to max, triple click for "min")

 

[DavidMB]

I also have a Surefire U2, I was really glad to see this type of UI in the V10A, it's such a small light. What amazed me is that using a single AA my V10A seems as bright as the U2. I never thought this would be possible with a AA, and with an AW Li-ion it seems much much brighter. Amazing..

I also looked at the HDS lights, but they only take the cr123 batteries. The rotary series seem really nice and is totally adjustable, but I wanted to stick with a common battery size. These days with boost circuits and more efficient emitters, a ton of light can be had from a single AA.

 

[Echo63]

Pretty sure the V10a and V10R have the same head, and AA or CR123 bodies respectively
They are an incredible little light, especially for the cost of them.

I can understand people wanting to stick with AA cells too, especially with Eneloops, it just makes sense.
I have a bunch of other lights, most of which take 123 size cells, or a rechargeable equivalent, so I actually have more 123 powered flashlights than I do AA powered - hence the sticking with rechargeable Li ion cells

 

[Lopezepol75]

yeah I love my D11.2 ( i seemed to have lucked out and got one that didnt have any problems) and while I like the infinite variable-ness I find that i mostly use the shortcuts to high and low when looking for stuff really quickly and only when I am going to use it for an extended time will I adjust it for perfection (lower light so as to reduce glare or increase runtime) I think that with the ring style selector( like the v10r) would be faster than the button, err piston, ramping of the d11.2. however on the flip side the selector ring requires a change of grip from button activation or two hands. with the piston activated ramping it can be done with no change of movement in grip.\

i think ramping would really be useful in a headlamp/ area light/ flood light. that would be most satisfactory IMO

 

[l337m4n]

I've been looking for the smallest variable output light i can find (still holding my breath for a AAA keyring variable), while the titan is nice it's over priced for me. The v10a is small in size but a little high though still worth the price, so now i have my eye on a Shiningbeam I-mini. It doesn't go a low as the v10a and might not be as smooth to operate but it's the cheapest variable light i have found and the AA to CR123 tube is a huge plus.

 

[Derek Dean]

David, I agree that in the long run, a light's usefulness (and how much it gets used by me) is largely determined by it's UI.

Especially now that we've started getting these high lumen lights, 2 or 3 levels just don't cut it any more as far as I'm concerned...... and I won't buy a light that forces me to cycle through strobe or SOS.

I did try an infinitely variable control ring (NiteCore IFE2), and it worked beautifully, but in the end I was surprised to find that I missed having set levels, so I ended up going with a ZL SC600, which offers 8 nicely spaced levels from .1 to 750 lumens, and equally importantly for me, all controlled from an electronic side switch. It's a UI that I find almost as good as my NovaTac 120P.

In any case, it's a highly personal thing, which is why we're so lucky to have such a large variety of lights to choose from.

 

[Bigmac_79]

DavidMB, I agree 100%. I don't care how bright a light gets, if it's a pain to use, I won't use it. Sunwayman's control rings are the way to go. I can see a place for lights controlled only by a button (like if you're wearing gloves, for example), but click-click-clicking to cycle through modes is a pain, especially when blinky modes are included.

 

[reppans]

I think more companies should consider making lights with infinitely adjustable brightness, and remove or hide the strobe and SOS modes.

I'm a 4/7s fan and completely agree with hiding the SOS and Beacon modes so you don't have to cycle through them. However, I do like the Quark UI of tightening the bezel for quick access to Max and Strobe in a tactical situation.

I've been looking very closely at the the magnetic variable rings and I see a huge price to pay for them - not in $$, but in runtime. If you compare the SWM V10A to the manual clicky M10A - both have the R5 emitter and use 1xAA - max runtime for the V10A is only 40 hours @ 1 lumen while the M10A has a very respectable 100 hours @ 4 lumens. What does that come out to... something like a 90% loss of the emergency use lumen-hours? Same thing seems to hold true of most other manufacturers using magnetic variable rings.

These magnetic rings have an electrical "overhead" drain to keep them in ready mode, I'm guessing it's somewhere in the 10-20 ma range, depending upon manufacturer. That drain is not really material in relation to the higher-end 100+ lumen modes which draw 300+ ma, but it is massive against the lowest lumen levels of moonlight & 4 lumens which draw around 1 - 10 ma.

Having said all that, a lot of people here seem to like running their light on the higher lumen side, and so will probably never notice the overhead drain.... well, at least until they find themselves in a bad situation, needing some illumination for an extended period of time, they don't have spare batteries, and the current battery is half worn......

I know I may be the rare case, but I'm camper and have a bit of survivalist in me. I use my flashlights in complete darkness for many hours at a time and I absolutely love moonlight for both preserving my night vision and providing massive runtimes (300+ hrs) from a tiny 1xAA package. I also consider my light to be critical component of my EDC and BOB for use in a SHTF survival situation. The variable ring lights are really nice convenience and all, but in their present state of inefficiency, are off the table for me. At the moment, only 4/7s and Zebralight places great emphasis on really good low lumen levels and massive runtimes in the AA realm, and so I that's were I'll have to stay.

 

[Gregozedobe]

I'm a fan of the Zebralight UI. On most of their recent lights you have a choice of at least 6 different levels, so usually one of those levels is pretty close to what I currently want. I'm also a believer in only using as much light as I need for the task at hand, and often find that isn't that bright, so giving much longer run times.

 

[DavidMB]

I saw the actual numbers for how much power the circuitry for the control ring uses. I don't remember the ma exactly, but I figured when running at one lumen, because of the control ring its acts more or less like its running at 3 -10 lumens because of the drain. For me this is okay, I'm urban all the time and not walking around in the woods. Maybe there will be ways of making this more efficient in the future, or something totally new will come about that doesn't drain the battery. I do love how low this light goes; find it extremely useful, and use it a lot. My icon photo is my light on low.

I don't quite understand how they got such better runtimes out of the M10A if it also has a magnetic control ring.

I don't have any Zebra lights, but the interface does seem well designed, and versatile. That is another light I've considered getting. I like that it's an electronic switch and it's awesome that it's on the side. It must be so comfortable to use because the thumb naturally falls into that spot.

The other light that I saw mentioned was the nitecore IFE2. That looks like a really cool light. I know you returned it, how was the moment of the ring compared to the V10A, did it take the same amount of friction to rotate the ring?

Lopez, you have the D11.2, does it ever act weird for you? Like going to low instead of off, or entering a mode you didn't press? I definitely want to get this light when they put the XM-L in it. It's such a great design and it's even smaller then the SMW.

I337, if your looking for an infinite and small AAA, check out Nitecore they have a twisty that may be what your looking for.

The Titan was also mentioned. I'm sure it's is a great light too, but I don't like that it can't tail stand, it doesn't seem that bright compared to other similar lights, and it's soo expensive.

 

[Lopezepol75]

Lopez, you have the D11.2, does it ever act weird for you? Like going to low instead of off, or entering a mode you didn't press? I definitely want to get this light when they put the XM-L in it. It's such a great design and it's even smaller then the SMW.

in short, no. I have had zero problems when running both protected 14500s and standard AAs. It can accidently switch to low just because the switch is a little hard to press and doesnt give a affirmative click. however this has only happened like once and I just switched it off. I can see someone having problems with it if they have weak thumbs but I havent had any problems. If you look up it here on CPF then alot of people have had problems regarding quality control. I guess I was just lucky :) and yeah it is so much smaller than most other single AA lights, thats why i bought it over the V10r. I have been carrying it since December as my primary EDC and I must say, it is phenomenal.

 

[Derek Dean]

The other light that I saw mentioned was the nitecore IFE2. That looks like a really cool light. I know you returned it, how was the moment of the ring compared to the V10A, did it take the same amount of friction to rotate the ring?

The control ring on the IFE2 was excellent, very smooth, but with enough friction to stay put. I can't compare it to the V10A as I've never used that light, but I was VERY pleased with the movement of the control ring on the IFE2.

One of the factors that I see discussed about control rings is the amount of travel it takes to go from off to max. The IFE2 took about 2/3rds of a turn to do that, which I felt was just right, mainly because it gave it enough room for exquisitely fine control over the lower levels (and high levels too).... and since it will go down to .003 lumens, it's nice to have that kind of control. However, a few other folks felt that the 2/3rds turn was to much, and favored something more like 1/2 a turn, so it's obviously something to consider.

The one light that combines that best of both worlds in a UI is the HDS 200 Rotary, letting you select between the rotary control or user definable levels. Neat. Of course it has the same power overhead to run the control dial as the other control dial lights, but as we all know, there are always trade offs, so it's usually a matter of picking your priorities.

 

[LED_Thrift]

Another good infinetly variable UI is the Peak First Responder series. It uses a knob that rotates to adjust the level, which can be done before turning the light on. It's not magnetic so it may not have the overhead that some of the selector ring lights have. It adjusts from 0 lumens to max, so fans of super low-lows will love it.

 

[CarpentryHero]

Yeah, I love my SWM V10A that it was with me when my baby was born last Monday.
I love the magnetic control ring so much I decided to order an hds rotary too


This is Colin :)