Single mode primary battery lights or do we "need" anymore lights?

[gcbryan]

I've noticed lately that for practical purposes single mode primary battery lights have a lot to be said for them. Especially if the output level is reasonably matched to the purpose of the light.

I have various types of lights around my house but lately I've been helping work on a few small projects at my girlfriends condo as well as giving a light to her 84 year old mother. I also picked out a light to leave at my girlfriends condo to be used just as a general purpose light.

The lights that both of these people were using were inadequate (almost useless).

I had a hard time looking through my collection of (bright) lights to find something that would be appropriate for an 84 year old who has eyesight issues and definitely isn't into lights or gadgets. Most of my lights were 18650's and had multiple modes.

I ended up giving her a 6P clone with a XR-E R2 dropin single mode using (2) CR123's. She loves it. She carries it around and uses it to see the buttons on the microwave, TV, sewing machine, dark corner of the closet, etc.

I left a single CR123 XR-E 3 mode at my girlfriend's place. She loves it as well as do I when I'm over there. Now I can see how to fix things!

Anything more powerful than a XP-G would be too much for many non-flashaholic purposes I think. Even a XP-G single mode when used indoors to light up a project right in front of you can be too much. I was trying to fix a broken themistat and that's all I had. The glare on the white plastic cover was almost too much! Yet some people just don't want to deal with modes.

MC-E, P7, SST-50, SST-90...I think these just aren't that useful for many people who aren't hunters or cops.

Have you found that in your non-flashaholic life that many of the new products are just addressing a need that doesn't exist?

I like all of the newer lights but for practical purposes (my practical purposes anyway) what I need already exists and has existed for a few years. I'm not sure a non-flashaholic wants anything more than has existed for a while.

It just takes a while for all the low powered crap to disappear of course.

Is there nothing for them (poor souls) to look forward to?

 

[joe1512]

I don't see working with multiple modes as all THAT difficult.

I agree that some UIs are kind of overkill, but many multi-mode lights can effectively be used as a 1-mode light.

Like the itp Polestar. One of my favorites, it has 3 modes and 1 stupid strobe mode. You can always set it to Medium though and then keep it there forever and turn it on/off as needed.

It is nice to have the ability to hold it down to boost it to High or drop it to Low as needed though. I think it offers the best advantages of both.

 

[Lucciola]

I think for non-flashaholics a selector ring similar to the one found on the Jetbeams would be the ideal sollution.

It is just such a common UI in houshold appliances:

• Oven in the kitchen: Turn from 0 to 1 for ON, turn further for more heat
• Thermostat for heating: Turn from 0 to 1 for ON, turn further for more heat.
• Simple radios sometime have this UI. Turn the button until it clicks for ON, then turn further for louder.
• Desk lamps with dimmer sometimes have similar buttons.
• Most fans use such a switch.

To me the ideal lamp for non-flashaholics would have the following features:

• Selector ring for on and brightness with four positions: 0=off, 1=low, 2=medium, 3=high. NO DISCOMODES!
• Neutral White LED
• Floody beam
• 1 AA Battery because non flashaholics will not match batteries. They will mix empty an full, so just one is IMHO preferable. And if you have to find a batt somewhere in the house it's easier to find one (for example from the kitchen clock).
• Some battery indicator, like a small red LED going on when the battery is getting weak

Problem with such a light: I would guess that most non-flashaholics should be prepared to spend maximum 5-10$ on a flashlight. I doubt that the above specifications are feasible in this price range.

Lucciola

 

[LEDninja]

I think Fenix has targeted this market with their E series.

Fenix E01: 10 lumens for 11 hours, $15.00.
Fits on keychain or in pocket. Enough light to find your way from your car to your front door and keyhole. Or search for that thing that rolled under your desk. Last all night if you have a fresh battery.

Fenix E10: 55 lumens, $18 to $40. Price thru Amazon is $35. REI $25.
Plenty of light for most indoor use.

Fenix E20: 109 Lumens for 3.3 hours, $38.00.
General purpose indoor/outdoor light. Might be a bit bright for close in work, but the focussing head might get around that.

-

But Fenix has moved upscale again with their latest offerings. BOO to using the button to change modes.

Fenix E21: High: 150 lumens, 2 hours 15 minutes, Low: 48 lumens, 11 hours, $37.95.
Reasonable outdoor light on high, indoor light on low.

Fenix E21 Neutral-White: High: 135 lumens, 2 hours 15 minutes, Low: 48 lumens, 11 hours, $37.95.
Reasonable outdoor (lots of vegetation) light on high, indoor light on low.