Inova Radiant Series - Opinions

Hi CPFers,

I just wanted to get your opinion(s) on Inova's Radiant series. There are a TON of these at my local Fry's and I was just wondering if they're any good or not... They use Luxeon I LED, right?

I'd appreciate any opinion(s).

Thx!

-lightUup

I have the 2AAA it's not a luxeon it is a CS I think. Good light for the price. I think flashlight reviews has the info on all of them.

FLR has the AA and the AAA version, not the C cell version
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/inova_radiant_aa.htm
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/inova_rad_aaa.htm

Never used one, but from the reviewx its a pretty good budget light, dont expect too much in terms of throw.

I heard the clickies of a few lights were a bit tempermental, again I never owned one, so dont count on it.

I have the 2 AAA Radiant and it is a great light. Very bright, not a ton of throw but nice and floody. Great light for reading or peeing at 3am. 99% of my lights are metal. The radiant is some type of rubber/plastic/synthetic and I can hold it in my teeth without that nasty metal taste/smell. Long run time on any type of batt. Overall a great light at a good price.

how weird.. I was just thinking about this light when this popped up. My uncle picked one up at Frys (aa version). It's probably about the same or slightly less bright than my fenix L0P-se on high. great looking light. I like the sqare shape.

I agree with Coop57 - I also have the 2-AAA and it's a nice little light. The output is fine for finding the cable behind the computer, reading, or digging in a dark corner of the garage. And it's relatively light weight. It's floody and bluish, not something you'd use to see things very far away. Brightness is roughly the same as my Mini-Mag with the 3-LED drop-in lamp replacement. It ran for over 4 hours with some 780 mAh NiMH cells, with pretty constant output. I didn't try it with alkalines, but would guess it'd have a nice long tail of decreasing light if I did.

c_c

Fry's had the 2*AA version on sale for $10 a few weeks ago, so I picked up a couple...one has the donut hole beam problem (see flashlightreviews)...but the other does not...in either case, a really good deal at that price.

Anyone got the C-Cell version?
I am getting one for my grandma who was able to break a LightWave 2 C-Cell (the one with 7 LEDs) in two! :green:
bk

Kiessling said:

I am getting one for my grandma who was able to break a LightWave 2 C-Cell (the one with 7 LEDs) in two! :green:
bk

Click to expand...

:huh: What do you feed her?

EDIT: I hope her dimentia isn't too bad. Sorry to hear about it. Give her a hug from me.

A few years ago she was stronger than any of us, but now she is getting old and suffers from dementia ... so I am unsure how she did it ... but she handed me the two halves some weeks ago :green:

As she can't adapt to new user interfaces she will need something traditional, not too small and not too big, not too heavy, with "normal" batteries.

I thought the Inova 2 C-Cell would fit the bill.

bk

They are pretty good but for not much more $ you can get the Victorinox LED lights series, which is basically the Radiants with metal casings and higher outputs. http://felinevet.sosakonline.com sells 'em for a good price.

carrot said:

They are pretty good but for not much more $ you can get the Victorinox LED lights series, which is basically the Radiants with metal casings and higher outputs. http://felinevet.sosakonline.com sells 'em for a good price.

Click to expand...

Doesn't physically resemble the Radiant in any way. The radiants have a totally classic square shape. If they had metal cases that'd be sweet.

I have the 2AA Victorinox and the 2C Radiant. I like them both, but I do not like the tail switch on the 2AA Radiant and find it kind of big and bulky for a 2AA configuration. The 2C has a side switch, which is appropriate for the ergonomics of this particular light. IMHO, the output of the 2C matches or surpasses the reflectorized Inova X0. [Of course, it is twice the size.]


NOTE: I had and accidentally broke a 2AA radiant so I had some experience with it. It is very durable light, but I managed to jam something inside of it and broke something off. This would not occur in normal use. However, it was the bulkiness and the tail switch that turned me off. If I recall, the light output was good for a 2AA light.

carrot said:

They are pretty good but for not much more $ you can get the Victorinox LED lights series, which is basically the Radiants with metal casings and higher outputs. http://felinevet.sosakonline.com sells 'em for a good price.

Click to expand...

they are essentially radiants if you remove the square polymer on the body....

dang it, thanks carrot, now I want one

I have a 2aa radiant. The only thing that really bothers me about it is that the bezel ring easily comes off and the tube easily comes out of the body. A little glue would probably fix it right up.

The beam is awesome, with a perfect cookie cutter round hot spot and decent tint.

It is a little bulky for a 2aa light, but for around the house it is a decent light. For $10 it is a steal and would be a good entry level light for friends and family.

The Radiant C-Cell is one terrific light, I highly recommend it. It's also makes an excellent Christmas gift.

I have the AAA, AA and C. The C is a decent light. ON the smaller ones the tail end clickie is too easy to get bumped on while in a bag, backpack etc. I consider this an almost fatal flaw in those sizes.

I have the Radiant 2-AAA and I second bitslammer's comment regarding the tailcap switch being too easy to accidentally activate. But it is possible to lock out the tailcap so it will not activate by backing it off a couple of turns. Definitely not a thrower but very useful for close up work since it has a pretty floody beam. The lanyard holes in the tailcap are also a nice touch. I carry mine inside a County Comm pocket organizer along with a few other odds and ends but it is small enough to be easily carried in a pocket.