Nitecore D10 brighter with a 14500?

[stockstinks]

Ok, I took the plunge and ordered some 14500 and a charger because I want my D10 to be brighter.

I beleve from the posts that I have read that it will be brighter, but why don't they state that on Nitecore's web site?
They say that it is 130 Lumens with a AA Battery or a 14500.
Why is that?
Will I notice a difference?

 

[StarHalo]

Going by Selfbuilt's numbers (http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=202436), your D10 will be 50% brighter on a 14500, or very near 200 lumens.

 

[cerbie]

It pretty much, "also supports 14500 cells," more than anything else. The main benefit of AAs is being able to put in any cell you have around, in the case of unplanned need. Since they also sell the same thing in a CR123 size, and 14500 cells could fry other equipment...might as well leave it to those willing to take the initiative and look for the info themselves.

To put it another way, what is the benefit, in terms of sales, of encouraging the use of 14500 cells? Compared to the danger of LIons in the hands of normal people, I don't think too much.

 

[StarHalo]

The benefit is that it makes the like 50% brighter with 30% more runtime. It turns a 130 lumen light into a ~200 lumen one, as bright as some manufacturers' 2x123 models..

 

[cerbie]

The benefit is that it makes the like 50% brighter with 30% more runtime. It turns a 130 lumen light into a ~200 lumen one, as bright as some manufacturers' 2x123 models..

The question is not what it does for you, but what it does, if anything, for Nitecore.

While it does seem to still offer low modes, which many don't, it's hardly the first that a battery swap makes brighter. Most manufacturers don't even mention rechargeable options, or any benefits they may have--and that's without touching on LIons. I'd wager it's just not important, or they see the occasional horror story and figure listing it as compatible is as far as they want to go, without marketing their own power sources.

 

[orcinus]

Erm... I think the 130 lumens figure IS for a 14500 li-ion powered D10...
With an alkaline AA it's more like 80-ish.

 

[Closet_Flashaholic]

I am interested in the answer as well. 4sevens site lists the output as 130 lumens for both a 14500 and a AA battery, only the runtimes are different..

 

[PhantomPhoton]

Most of your answers are here in selfbuilt's most excellent graphs.
Yes it does appear to be a bit brighter. Runtime depends upon the kind of cell you're comparing to.

 

[Alan_P]

I have a D10 running on a 14500. The specs say it is just as bright with a 14500 as with a NiMh. It actually appears slightly brighter. The eye is logorithmic and it takes a doubling of the lumens to appear noticably brighter. The flashlight does not loose any function on the 14500. If you absolutely need the "brightest" then use a 14500. For practical purposes a NiMh works just as well. If you are goint to recharge often use a high capacity NiMh, if you do not want to recharge often use a eneloop.

Alan

 

[EngrPaul]

I own a D10 GDP. It is brighter with 14500.

 

[Rion]

Does using of 14500 makes D10 brighter and at the same time shortens the LED life? Might be good to know for people who use 14500. I just use normal AA batt, does the job.

 

[PhantomPhoton]

No there won't be any noticeable loss of life for the LED.
The LED in the D10 should be well enough heatsunk that there should be no loss in LED life for running it a bit harder. The 14500 isn't going to run the cree much out of spec. Most of the time, if you look at the runtime graphs, it is run in regulation; only in the beginning is it apparetnly direct drive for a few minutes.
The actual lifespan of LEDs is a bit of a quagmire imho but suffice to say it is in the tens of thousands of hours so it is very unlikely you'll wear out most power LEDs with normal use.

 

[artec540]

No there won't be any noticeable loss of life for the LED.
The LED in the D10 should be well enough heatsunk that there should be no loss in LED life for running it a bit harder. The 14500 isn't going to run the cree much out of spec. Most of the time, if you look at the runtime graphs, it is run in regulation; only in the beginning is it apparetnly direct drive for a few minutes.
The actual lifespan of LEDs is a bit of a quagmire imho but suffice to say it is in the tens of thousands of hours so it is very unlikely you'll wear out most power LEDs with normal use.

Pray enlighten the ignorant and tell me what an 14500 is? Obviously it is physically the same size as a AA and from the context it must be rechargeable, but apart from that? I have an ex10 that I run on 3 v RCR 123. What would happen if I used a 3.6 V RCR 123? A short voyage to Mars?

 

[StarHalo]

Pray enlighten the ignorant and tell me what an 14500 is? Obviously it is physically the same size as a AA and from the context it must be rechargeable, but apart from that? I have an ex10 that I run on 3 v RCR 123. What would happen if I used a 3.6 V RCR 123? A short voyage to Mars?

A "14500" is just the lithium-ion version of a AA battery. Li-ion is the same type of high power/high capacity chemistry you'll find in notebook batteries. In AA form, it provides a huge boost over a standard primary cell - hot off the charger, a single 14500 has 4.2 volts of juice, compared to an alkaline's 1.5 or a NiMH's 1.2. The same goes for the 123 format, which normally supplies 3 volts, but in li-ion form boosts to 4.2.

Again going by Selfbuilt's numbers (http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=201117), any EX10 will be notably brighter using an RCR123.

 

[Nake]

if your EX10 is a Q5, it will be notably brighter on an RCR123, but if it's a Golden Dragon it will actually dim.

Where does it say that a GD EX10 on RCR123 is dimmer than the same light on a CR123?

 

[StarHalo]

Where does it say that a GD EX10 on RCR123 is dimmer than the same light on a CR123?

Oops, you're right, I was looking at the EXtreme and not the EX10 number, Selfbuilt didn't put the EX10GD numbers in the chart - according to the graph, you should expect the GD to get a bigger boost from a li-ion cell than the Q5, but both are notably brighter compared to primaries.

Ty for the point-out, I'll edit the post.

 

[mykhal]

... single 14500 has 4.2 volts of juice ...

Cree XR-E specs says max. voltage is 3.9, so doesn't using Li-ion decrease LED's lifespan?

 

[StarHalo]

There is some voltage "sag" when the battery is under load, 3.9 volts is only ~6% under a fully charged Li-Ion anyway. The bigger issue is heat dissipation; if you leave your 14500-powered light on maximum for a length of time without some sort of cooling, that will definitely shorten the life of the LED.

 

[WadeF]

D10 Cree Q5 with a 14500 should be around 130 lumens, unless you're lucky to have one with a low Vf Q5 which may give you a bit more. I heard some D10's were closer to 150 lumens, but 130 to 150 isn't going to be that noticeable, if noticeable at all.

 

[Art]

My D10 is hotter in Nimh then Li-ion... is this normal?

I also own a NDI.. I can notice more the li-ion in the NDI then the D10 both Q5.

The thing is that with li-ion its always bright until it goes off... the nimh at some point it goes dimmer and dimmer.

Regards