Hmmm... I'm not so sure. I'll be right back.
Okay, I'm back. I went out to my garage. With the door down it's totally dark there. I ran a few tests with the Solitaire.
The claims so far are "less than 'birthday candle' mode, "useless", and "glowing cigarette mode". I of course did it with a fresh AAA cell, which is what I assume most everyone uses for a test. It made a nice white light, sufficient for emergency use.
Compared to a standard votive candle: It's almost as bright, but not quite. The candle was a yellow light.
Compared to a birthday candle. No contest... the Solitaire was brighter and whiter.
As for "useless", it's no more useless than a candle, much safer, and more quickly utilized.
I didn't test it against a glowing cigarette, but I think the comparison can be readily imagined.
I did test it against and Arc AAA, which you can't use in candle mode. The Arc AAA as an area light must be used with reflected light. You can shine it against a wall, or if you brace it up against something you can shine it against the ceiling. If you suspend it from something you can shine it against the floor. Regardless, as far as uselessness goes regarding area lights, the Arc seems to more closely approach it. Of course it's not designed to handle that situation, while the Solitaire is.
I think what's happening here, is that when someone asks a question regarding Maglites, our prejudices are preventing us from correctly answering them. That's a disappointment. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif