So..my dad's 9LED chinese light puts out more light than my Fenix...

GarageBoy

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Ok..I still don't get how my Fenix lost to 9 5mm LEDs with a 3xAAA power source..Are 5mms that bright these days?
 

AuroraLite

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Garage boy,

Don't be surprised by the result, the 5mm does actually get much brighter than it used to be...however, one thing for sure, so as long it is not multiple times brighter than the Fenix, I would think Fenix should have a better throw than the 9 5mms. :)
 

InfidelCastro

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The new Inova X5 with the white Nichia LED's puts out around 50 'real world' lumens I believe, if not more and it only has the 5 LED's.

Some people mod them with even brighter 5mm LED's.
 

nerdgineer

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Also, the 9 LED light has 3 batteries which efficiently put out 4.5 V. The Fenix board has to work hard to boost the 1.5V battery to the required voltage, and design compromises to try to keep a relatively flat discharge curve, unlike the 9 led light (as igabo already alluded to above) whose output drops quickly.
 

scott.cr

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My 1985 Dodge Omni was the fastest car I've owned... but that doesn't mean I liked driving it as much as a Civic (which costs 10x more).
 
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For the same power (i.e. 10 x 0.1W vs 1x 1.0W), 5mm LEDs put out more light, because LEDs are more efficient when driven at lower current.

One, point source is easier to focus into a beam than a cluster of nine sources.
 

mdocod

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one of my cheapest lights (now my fiances light)... a 28LED china light bought from axshop for $7, that runs on 3xAAA- is by far, my brightest LED light- but it won't throw worth a darn... In a cieling bounce comparison- it's seems brighter than my LEDBeam...

review here http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/amart_28led.htm

his results show overall output less than the LEDBeam- but I would beg to differ...

Another great example of a china cluster light... are those 100LED showhead looking lights that run on 4xAA... ( http://www.qualitychinagoods.com/100-led-4xaa-p-404.html ) they are only ~$30, and If you take the resistor out of them, they will blow away just about any similar sized or smaller light up to many multiples of the price.... More expensive lights are generally built better, so it's all about tradeoffs...
 

chesterqw

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we should really use lumen for measuring how bright something is... but hey, getting that test done is expensive :(

unless talking about throw...
 
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chesterqw said:
we should really use lumen for measuring how bright something is... but hey, getting that test done is expensive :(

unless talking about throw...

Lumen isn't brightness.
Lumen is like the total weight in kg
Brightness is like the pressure, like kg/cm^2
 
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