What do you think about the night star fl.

[stew]

Anyone have a night star flashlight? What do you think of it?

 

[BF Hammer]

It's really a specialty light. I keep a Nightstar II in my Jeep as a backup light to a lighter-socket powered spotlight I have. I won't keep battery-powered flashlights in vehicles any longer due to problems with batteries dying and usually leaking all over. I gave one to a relative and he keeps it in the car also, but does use it some.

Basically, you shake it up with an unflattering motion for about a minute and you have an optically-focused beam that is almost as bright as an Arc AAA or CMG Infinity for several seconds, then it steadily dims to a barely useable level after 10 minutes. It's nearly dark after 20 minutes. Shake up some more and you're in business again. Not much light for the size. The reason you have it is if you have a concern about not having any useable light due weak or lack of batteries on hand, such as when away from your home-base. It also is completely sealed and fully waterproof, and I believe it floats in water. The stong magnet inside also is a concern when placed near magnetic media.

 

[The_LED_Museum]

I have a green LED Nightstar II that I bought early last year. When you shake it (with a characteristic "spanking the monkey" motion) for 60 seconds, you get about 30 seconds of useable light out of it. By "usable", I define that as being bright enough to change a fuse in a dark basement. Mine *may* be defective though; I really don't know why the useable light period is so short.

The strong magnets inside do make it hazardous to magnetic materials, such as bank cards, floppy diskettes, and computer & TV screens.

It's waterproof and floats though, so you don't need to be concerned about using it in bad weather, or dropping it in toliet bowls, tubs, sinks, fishtanks, rivers, ponds, lakes, oceansides, docks, etc.

 

[paulr]

A friend of mine has one. It's a cute toy though pretty expensive. There's another one like it called the Forever Flashlight which is not as good but is about half the price. I've thought they would make good gifts for little kids, because of no worries about swallowing tiny coin cell lights, or draining batteries by leaving them on all night.

If you're asking whether they're worthwhile as backup lights, in my opinion the answer is no. They're too bulky and expensive. A small lithium powered light makes more sense, or a normal flashlight where you remember to check the batteries once a year.

 

[JJHitt]

I have the original NightStar and love it as a "science toy". As a working emergency light... no, you be better off with any of the cheap disposables or spending the 40 bucks on a few dozen AA betteries.

 

[Photon]

Personally, I like it. It is worth it to me to have a light available that will never have battery problems and is immune to extremes of weather and temperature. The light it provides is more than adequate for changing a fuse, or finding another battery powered light.

 

[ledlurker]

What makes everybody think they are to expensive. I have seen a brand in Walmart for $20. They make a great emergency kit or bugout kit because they are truly pack it and forget it light.

 

[paulr]

I'd be surprised if Walmart is selling the Nightstar for $20. Are you sure? There's another brand called "Forever Flashlight" which I've seen as low as $15. That's more likely to be what Walmart is selling. It's a cheap imitation of the Nightstar. Those wanting a long running emergency light are probably off with a CMG Infinity [Ultra] with a lithium L91 cell, or if you want to be more exotic, a Tek-tite Trek Lithium:

http://ledmuseum.home.att.net/micra1.htm

 

[Gene]

I have two NS2's. Paid full price for one and got the second at a bargain price used. For what they are intended for, they are fine. I would recommend them for anyone that may need light in an emergency situation without ever having to worry about batteries. The 3 minutes of the "arc shaking" that it takes for a full charge can get tiring even though a few quick shakes will produce immediate light. I think every vehicle should have one. The NS2 is a big improvement in brightness and length of use over the NS1. However, I was disappointed in quality of construction of the NS2. The NS1, (although larger), was at least twice as thick as the NS2. Like everything it seems nowadays, function is improved but to save money doing it, manufacturers cut costs with less expensive materials.

 

[RonM]

The NS lights are cool concept, but way to chunky and too little runtime for all that shaking. An Infinity Ultra loaded with a Li battery, and maybe a spare batt to boot, seems like a much more practical vehicle light. With a 10 year shelf life, your car will be history before the batteries are dead.

 

[JJHitt]

I just tested mine by doing a walk around the house in the dark and discovered another minor issue: shaking it makes noise. Not an issue in an emergency, but still a nuisance that could wake others who dont see the joy in waking up in the middle of the night to play with flashlights.

Brightness is fine for indoors use with no other light sources. Yes, it's dim (dimmer than the original Infinity), but I can navigate a darkened room with a Krill light, and the Nightstar is far brighter than a Krill.