solar mini-led?

[howl of the yeti]

Anyone ever use these?

http://tinyurl.com/258hmz

"Skylight Easy - solar powered - made in Switzerland

World's only, fully self contained, solar rechargeable, pocket LED. Unit is sealed in a special compound, impact resistant rubber case. Fully splash- and weatherproof. Bright LED is rated to 9.2 cd and is visible to about 1 km. Features simple push button switch for On or Off. 10 year guarantee. Made in Switzerland.
Size: 55x27x10 mm / 2x1x0.5"
Weight: 20 g / 0.7 oz"

 

[83Venture]

I had one. Seemed to work OK. Sent it to the sandbox with a buddy and did not get it back. They were showing an updated metal version for a while but I never heard of it being released. Just checked and looks like they are for sale now.

http://www.skylight-swiss.com/en/product.htm

 

[LightBright]

The Sandwich Shoppe has them: http://theledguy.chainreactionweb.com/index.php?cPath=43&page=2

 

[greenstuffs]

I never thought i would see one of this. I guess we can call it the invention of the century after the helicopter ejection seat.

 

[Jay R]

I have one. It was OK in it's time but now appears really dim compared to my 50c keychain light from Fifthunit. ( And I mean REALLY dim...)
Also, the solar cell is glass covered. I never had mine on my keys but if you did and sat on them I suspect that a key would crack the glass quite quickly.
Apparentely they are better these days as they now put in brighter LED's but for the money you could still buy 50 of the chinese keyring lights and you wouldn't worry about losing or breaking one of them..
There is also a metal version but it's f'ugly and has a plastic dome cover over the LED that will scratch up even quicker.

You can't modify them as the rubber coating is a one piece unit, molded on at the end of manufacturing.

 

[MattK]

Hehe - there is a certain irony to it...

I never thought i would see one of this. I guess we can call it the invention of the century after the helicopter ejection seat.

 

[arab]

These things have been around for some time. The manufacturer's website is here:
http://www.skylight-swiss.com/en/

There is an old thread on these here:
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=6210
Where some of the freelight's other uses were, eh, explored.

Oh - and (despite some of the material in the above thread) these are nothing like helicopter ejector seats. It's simple - they soak up solar energy during the day into their rechargable battery and release it on demand during the night when needed. I do accept that if your only need for a light is during bright sunlight, then they are not very useful (!)

I have 2 and they both continue to work very well.

 

[txmatt]

I guess you could leave your keys on the dashboard of your car all day to charge.

 

[gorn]

I bought 2 of them from TAD gear. One sits on my nightstand the other went to Iraq with my son. I think it is fine for what it is. It's not the brightest light but it works fine when I need quick light in the middle of the night. On the other hand my son loves his. He is a scout/sniper. The amount of light it puts out is perfect for him. He leaves it hooked to his pack so it keeps charged all the time.

 

[83Venture]

Same reason I sent it to the sandbox. Sometimes and places a dim light is all that can be used. Plenty of light over there for them to charge during the day.

 

[Illum]

http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/skylight_c.htm

 

[rgbphil]

This torch
http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=ST3385&CATID=&keywords=ST-3385
works very nicely, is quite bright and just sitting on the keychain during the day will charge it fully. Takes about 3-4 hours to discharge if you hold down the button. More than adequate for general fishing around for things in the dark or under the car seat/bonnet.
Solar torches are definately viable for your handy, once in a while, lighting needs.
Phil

 

[Rob187]

I've got one also. I like it but it is more a novelty than anything else. Probably not worth the money to be honest...