Now that the LF5XT has been out a few days...

[Centropolis]

The LF5XT has been out a few days now and people have been using them for a bit. So what do you guys think so far? Is it the new 'King' of the AA/14500 flashlights? How does it compare to the NDI and Jetbeam Jet-I IBS Pro (or whatever the hell they call it nowadays) in terms of brightness and ease of use?

 

[mchlwise]

Re: Now that the LF5XT has been out a few weeks....

It's by far the best single AA flashlight I've ever had experience with.

I just got it yesterday though, and was one of the first on the shipped list, so I wouldn't say it's "been out a few weeks".

I've give it another couple weeks at least for more reviews to come out.

In the meantime... I'm saving for another one.

 

[Centropolis]

Re: Now that the LF5XT has been out a few weeks....

It's by far the best single AA flashlight I've ever had experience with.

I just got it yesterday though, and was one of the first on the shipped list, so I wouldn't say it's "been out a few weeks".

I've give it another couple weeks at least for more reviews to come out.

In the meantime... I'm saving for another one.

Hmmm....really not weeks? I see a lot of people talking about receiving theirs and liking this and not liking this.....I thought people received them atleast a couple of weeks back.

Maybe I'll wait. I ordered the EX10 and still deciding on the 14500 light.

 

[clintb]

Re: Now that the LF5XT has been out a few weeks....

Only had mine for a few days, but I love it. It has everything I like, and nothing I don't.
- looks great
- feels great in-hand (the dual cigar hold is brilliant)
- programmable to what *I* want
- very bright on high
- perfect beam (no cree rings)
- works with all battery chemistries
- has a low (not as low as Novatac, but very good otherwise)
- excellent tint
- moving through the programs is easy

 

[gadgetnerd]

Re: Now that the LF5XT has been out a few weeks....

I think it's the best AA torch I've ever seen. I wrote a bit of a first impressions review on it :http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=200566 , so will not repeat myself.

 

[WadeF]

Re: Now that the LF5XT has been out a few weeks....

Sadly only a handfull shipped and many of us that pre-ordered
Have yet to have ours ship. However it sounds like it will be worth the wait.

 

[mighty82]

Re: Now that the LF5XT has been out a few weeks....

I'm very happy with it. Best beam quality I have seen yet. Unlike "other" flashligts, the LF5XT has a reflector that spreads the light out over the spill, not only the hotspot. So the spill is very bright, and the transition from spot to spill is perfect.

The total light output on 100% with 14500 is extremely high. But I only use it for bursts, because it gets hot VERY quickly. After just 5-10 seconds I can feel the head warming up. I don't know if anyone have taken any photos comparing this with the L1D or other lights, but if not I could shoot a couple.

Maybe you could change the title from weeks to days? The very first people received their LF5XT a few days ago.

 

[jasonsmaglites]

Re: Now that the LF5XT has been out a few weeks....

how does it compare in brightness and flexibility to the fenix l1d q5?
how much is it?

 

[Norm]

Re: Now that the LF5XT has been out a few weeks....

This might help answer a lot of questions.
http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&q=LF5XT&btnG=Google+Search&meta=
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzTyQ5M4tag
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1weIT8CHmi0
http://www.light-reviews.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=86
http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=179330

 

[Bronco]

I've been very pleased with mine thus far. I've seen good performance from alkaline, NiMH and lithiums. Pretty much in agreement with the other comments made. It doesn't have the really nice low - low setting from the factory that the RA Twisty has, but I haven't made it far enough through the instruction manual yet to know if I can lower it more manually. I've heard that my local community college will be offering a course in programming the LF5XT next semester.

 

[ronemca]

I've heard that my local community college will be offering a course in programming the LF5XT next semester.

Exactly. This is what's making me hesitate. I mean - come on! It's like the proverbial multi-bladed razor. If 2 is better than 1, then 3 must be better than 2! Why not 4? Why not 5?! Where does it end?

Imho, there is no conceivable situation where I would say to myself:

"Nope - 50% output just isn't gonna cut it here - I want 37.125% output for this task."

That's not to say the unit doesn't offer what a flashlight should; it does. But it's just (and unnecessarily) too complex. Imo.

**EDIT
Everyone's entitled to their opinion, of course. But I don't see the sense in buying something that has 21 modes...and then deliberately configuring it to use only 3 or 4 of them. There are other lights that will deliver the same performance [but with fewer modes], so why opt for a feature set you'll not take advantage of?

 

[Burgess]

But it's 'waaaay too complex. Imo.


Not at all . . . .


I consider it to be very Flexible, rather than complex.


Just received mine today (Friday).


It has (by default) 5 modes.

Mode 4 is a "find-me strobe double-flash".

Mode 5 is S-O-S mode.


As an example, i decided that i don't want modes 4 and 5.


So, i simply followed the steps in the (included) directions,
and set mine up as a 3-mode flashlight.


Now, obviously, i'd never done this before.

And still, it only required a few minutes of "experimenting",
before i was successful.


Don't worry . . . .

If you manage to "screw things all up", it's an easy
process to reset everything back to Default Settings.


Then, you can try it again, until you get it right.


It's a really nice flashlight, folks. :thumbsup:


It would certainly be a shame if you avoided it,
simply 'cuz yer' afraid it's gonna' be "too complicated".

:shakehead
_

 

[Norm]

Just remember the beauty of this light is it can be as simple as press on press off if you want it to be.

 

[orcinus]

I seriously don't get why people have such a bad opinion about LF5XT's UI...
I don't have it (ordered it, though), but I've read the manual and i seriously don't see where the problem is.

It's as simple as you want it to be and as complex as you want it to be - PERFECT!

 

[ackbar]

the way I look at it is that once you program it the way you want it to work. chances are that you will never have to look at that menu again and therefore can forget how it works.

Switching modes and turning it on and off are a snap after that!

 

[momonbubu]

the way I look at it is that once you program it the way you want it to work. chances are that you will never have to look at that menu again and therefore can forget how it works.

Switching modes and turning it on and off are a snap after that!

I agree with ackbar,I owned lf5xt and lf2x, an IMHO both (maybe all litefluxes) are fire and forget type, the setups are abit confusing, but after you got what you want, you dont need to reprogramme it again and start enjoying ur lights.

 

[ackbar]

I don't know about you guys but I'm getting sick of all the whining about SOS and Strobe. These BIG BABIES (TM), who will remain nameless, are ruining it for the rest of us. ALMOST ALL LIGHTS work in this manner. Click to turn on. Click to turn off. which is all they can handle.

Every other post it is "OMG.. I don't want strobe.. because I'm too smart to not look at the business end of the light and I'm a child who need to click the fun little button more than once. Also it gives me a headache when I get blasted point blank!

Then they have the audacity to mock those of us who want more than a simple on/off. Would you also like a kitchen sink with that light? How about a piñata mode for when you want candy?

Ok. I'm done venting... now let us all go back to looking at that blinking 12:00

 

[ackbar]

I don't know about you guys but I'm getting sick of all the whining about SOS and Strobe. These BIG BABIES (TM), who will remain nameless, are ruining it for the rest of us. ALMOST ALL LIGHTS work in this manner. Click to turn on. Click to turn off. which is all they can handle.

Every other post it is "OMG.. I don't want strobe.. because I'm too smart to not look at the business end of the light and I'm a child who need to click the fun little button more than once. Also it gives me a headache when I get blasted point blank!

Then they have the audacity to mock those of us who want more than a simple on/off. Would you also like a kitchen sink with that light? How about a piñata mode for when you want candy?

Ok. I'm done venting... now let us all go back to looking at that blinking 12:00

 

[Crenshaw]

I don't know about you guys but I'm getting sick of all the whining about SOS and Strobe. These BIG BABIES (TM), who will remain nameless, are ruining it for the rest of us. ALMOST ALL LIGHTS work in this manner. Click to turn on. Click to turn off. which is all they can handle.

Every other post it is "OMG.. I don't want strobe.. because I'm too smart to not look at the business end of the light and I'm a child who need to click the fun little button more than once. Also it gives me a headache when I get blasted point blank!

Then they have the audacity to mock those of us who want more than a simple on/off. Would you also like a kitchen sink with that light? How about a piñata mode for when you want candy?

Ok. I'm done venting... now let us all go back to looking at that blinking 12:00

HIGHLY controversial view there...

i personally think that as long as you can keep sos ad strobe out of the way of click on, click off application, its fin..

Crenshaw

 

[mighty82]

I only set my LF5XT to 3 modes. 50%-9%-1%.

5% is about the same total output as the "low" mode on the fenix L1D Q5. The thing is, I still have easy access to 100% output (by press-hold), or 100% strobe (by click - press hold) without them getting in the way of normal operation. 50% on a 14500 is just a tiny bit less than 100% on the L1D with a NiMh.

It took me only one day to have all the programming in the head. If I need to change the output in any mode or add a mode, it takes me just 5-10 seconds to do so.

Only problem I've had was a grainy feeling in the button. It was just some dirt around the inside of the metal cap, and was fixed by taking the components of the tail out and cleaning/lubing them.