Very difficult NOT to love AAA's these days.

[WalkIntoTheLight]

I found my LED Solitaire and was playing around with it. I was shocked to discover it actually has a better throw, when focused tightly, than my Preon P1! Not bad for being close to a third of the price.

Another cool feature it has, I forgot to mention in my other post, is "candle mode". You screw the head off and get an illuminated, bare LED which shines in all directions, like a candle or a glowing point-source orb, and with the flat bottom the light can tail stand to illuminate the whole room, ~ 360 degrees horizontally and vertically, much more evenly than any other 1xAAA LED light I own (or know of).

Am I the only one here who owns one of these? Peeps, they are so cheap, online, it's worth getting it just to see what I'm talking about. [To people who think some precise color temperature value and completely artifact free illumination fields are what matter most in keychain lights: don't bother.]

I kind of like Maglite's flexibility. Zooming the beam can give you decent throw even with their sub-par lumens, but not much of a useful beam at max zoom. Candle mode is unique, though a ceiling-bounce accomplishes the same thing without any glare in your eyes. Unfortunately, the tail-cap design doesn't allow you to tail-stand without being in candle mode.

Though if I look at the water protection of the AAA LED Solitaire, it's something like IPX4. Which means if you sneeze on it, it's full of gunk. Around here, something like a Atom A0 is only about $5 more, and gives you IPX8 water-proof, as well as a moonlight mode.

IMO, the LED Solitaire isn't a good deal. Better deal than the [censored] version, but still not very good compared to other options via mail-order.

 

[mzil]

^How long have you owned your LED Solitaire, WalkIntoTheLight?

 

[Bullzeyebill]

I removed 12 posts relating to color temperature of AAA's. This is off topic. Please continue the discussion relating to the title of the thread, and the first post.

Bill

 

[feifei]

Like 18650 battery flashlght,rechargeable

 

[easilyled]

Like 18650 battery flashlght,rechargeable

 

[yoyoman]

I replied to a thread asking for key fob lights last night. Gathered my AAA lights, or at least most of them, and was impressed with the variety and quality of these little lights. Some are quite tiny - DQG, Atom AO. Some have impressive output on li-ions - Peak Eigers from Oveready, Olight i3S, Titanium Innovations AAA. Some have quite a bit of throw for such little lights - Tank007 E03, Peak Eiger from Oveready with the mini turbo head. Some are mules and some are quite floody - Dereelight DA3. Many have nice tints with either Nichia 219 or XP-G2 N emitters - Prometheus QR, Tain Ottavino AAA twisty. Some have long runtimes - McGizmo Sapphire GS, Lumintop Worm/Tool. Some are flashaholic dreams - Maratac copper AAA modded by Vinh - the whole light gets warm on High and has impressive output and a nice tint. And mainstream manufacturers are coming out with new lights using the latest emitters (as their stock of older emitters gets updated). I have a Fenix E05 SS on the way. The Tain Ottavino is in my pocket everyday - beautiful Ti knurling, a trit, great UI, nice tint and useful beam/levels. I have to agree with the title of this thread - it is very difficult not to love AAAs these days!

 

[easilyled]

^ Thanks for restoring some relevance to this thread!

You have a vast collection of smaller lights. Mine is much smaller as I like lights of all sizes, but the AAAs are very useful for keychain or unobstrusive pocket carry. Of the AAA's, I have Tain's Piccolos, Ottavinos, and BeCu P0s. I have the new Fenix E05 SS which I also really like and used to have the Fenix L0D SS version which was great. I like the way all these lights have useful levels, a long runtime for their size and the fact that they run on one of the commonest available batteries. So yes, I also agree with the thread title.

BTW, I am unfamiliar with XP-G2 N emitters. Could you elaborate on them for me please and let me know which of your AAA lights they are in?

 

[yoyoman]

Getting back on topic was one reason for my post. I have a large set of AAA lights - I like the small size and they are all over the place for ease of access.

My Tain Ottavino AAA is an XP-G2 Neutral White. My Maratac copper AAA modded by Vinh has an XP-G2, but a warmer tint. I have a Lumintop copper Worm modded by that guy from Germany (sorry I forget his name) that is a very, very warm tint. I have several Malkoff dropins with the XP-G2 N (M61 from Oveready and M361 from Malkoff). The XP-G2 cool white is a nice, clean white (no angry blue or green or purple). The XP-G2 N is a little warmer. Not as rosey as a Nichia 119V from McGizmo, but close.

I also like lights of different sizes, especially sub-AAA lights (10180, 10250), but I also like lights that run on CR123, AA and 18650 cells. I have a weakness for lights from McGizmo, Tain and Oveready. But I have a real problem with AAA lights. I find the compromise between size vs. output/runtime is quite acceptable. Throw in an Energizer lithium primary or LSD Eneloop and they are always ready to be used and will have reasonable runtime. Throw in a 10440 li-ion and light up the night with something really small.

 

[easilyled]

I see, so by XP-G2 N, I presume you meant those of neutral tint? I also have those in all my Tain Ottavinos and they are my preferred choice over cool-white or warm. Yes, my old Fenix L0D SS could take 10440s in it and would be spectacularly bright although I wouldn't keep it on high for long. How I wish I hadn't given that away!

 

[yoyoman]

Yes, I mean neutral tint and I really like them. I have a Nichia 219 B and it is also nice. I like the neutral tints, but I'm more attracted to wonderful beams. The McGizmo Haiku 3s XML is still my favorite beam. It isn't easy getting a great beam on an AAA light because they are small. Some with optics, like the DQG AAA, are pretty good and the Dereelight DA3 has a very nice floody beam. The Olight i3s, Titanium Innovations AAA and Maratac AAA lights are OK. They really shine on a 10440. And the Peak Eigers from Oveready, both the mule and the mini Turbo head are great - nice tint (Nichia 219A on the mule and XP-G2 neutral on the mini head) and great beams. They are built like tanks, I love the delrin caps that turn extra bodies in cell holders, but they are a bit long and they don't have a good lanyard attachment. The clip from the Streamlight MicroStream, which you can buy as a spare part, is a perfect fit.

 

[Fat Boy]

+1 on the Tain aaa Ottavino. It's the bomb and my favorite EDC. I have a new one coming and can't wait. For me the AAA size is the perfect size for edc.

 

[kaichu dento]

I have Tain's Piccolos, Ottavinos, and BeCu P0s.

For those of us who've never had one of his lights could you tell us a bit about them? I'd love to get in on a 10280 Ottavino next time he does a run.

 

[kahuna2793]

What are some of the top AAA lights out now?

 

[easilyled]

For those of us who've never had one of his lights could you tell us a bit about them? I'd love to get in on a 10280 Ottavino next time he does a run.

Tain's lights are up there with the very best in terms of machining excellence. The Piccolos and Ottavinos have the trademark diamond knurling, each tiny diamond with ultra-fine horizontal scores in it. This is probably the most perfect knurling of Titanium lights that I've seen. The threads are again exemplary with tight tolerances and yet permitting buttery-smooth twisting at the same time.

The UI for both the Piccolos and Ottavinos are progressive 2-stage twisties, tighten for off, loosen for low and loosen further for high. The Piccolos use Nichia 219s (A) with optics to produce a beam with a relatively large hotspot of high CRI. (10 lumens low, 60 lumens high) The Ottavinos use XP-G2s (cool-white or neutral) with reflectors to produce a beam with tighter focus than the Piccolos (10 lumens low, 85 lumens high)

Although all lights are pretty compact and small for AAA size, the Ottavinos are slightly more compact than the Piccolos and of course the 10280 Ottavino is still much smaller being suitable for neckchain use (a neckchain is provided with it) as well as keyfob duties. Due to the 10280 li-ion firing up this little beast, it produces 145 lumens on high which is quite spectacular.

Anyway I can only say good things about Tain's lights.

 

[kaichu dento]

Thanks for the first-hand input!

I guess I would have been a bit more up on things but I've been taking lots of time off the last couple years, but always find myself drawn back, just like a flashaholic to a light. :tinfoil:

 

[rickyro]

Tain's lights are up there with the very best in terms of machining excellence. The Piccolos and Ottavinos have the trademark diamond knurling, each tiny diamond with ultra-fine horizontal scores in it. This is probably the most perfect knurling of Titanium lights that I've seen. The threads are again exemplary with tight tolerances and yet permitting buttery-smooth twisting at the same time.

The UI for both the Piccolos and Ottavinos are progressive 2-stage twisties, tighten for off, loosen for low and loosen further for high. The Piccolos use Nichia 219s (A) with optics to produce a beam with a relatively large hotspot of high CRI. (10 lumens low, 60 lumens high) The Ottavinos use XP-G2s (cool-white or neutral) with reflectors to produce a beam with tighter focus than the Piccolos (10 lumens low, 85 lumens high)

Although all lights are pretty compact and small for AAA size, the Ottavinos are slightly more compact than the Piccolos and of course the 10280 Ottavino is still much smaller being suitable for neckchain use (a neckchain is provided with it) as well as keyfob duties. Due to the 10280 li-ion firing up this little beast, it produces 145 lumens on high which is quite spectacular.

Anyway I can only say good things about Tain's lights.

Is he going to do some new runs of these beauties?

 

[easilyled]

Is he going to do some new runs of these beauties?

I don't know but I guess you could PM him.

 

[turkeylord]

I liked my Illumination Supply Preon P2 219B so much that I bought another and cannibalized it to put the pill in a Maratac AAA Cu body.

chillinn, you could pick one up and add a P1 body for another $7.

 

[F250XLT]

I haven't been around for a while, glad to see this thread is still alive. :thumbsup:

 

[GordoJones88]

Gathered my AAA lights, or at least most of them, and was impressed with the variety and quality of these little lights.

Pics or it didn't happen.