Arc-AAA DS Pre-Order

We are preparing to ship the new DS series Arc-AAA Premium. This produces about 30% more lumens than our current Premium. Ratred for a min of 9 lumens (compared to 5.5lm for the existing Premium). Price is $44.95. Product is expected to ship 10/8/2007 and we will not charge your card until we ship your order.




Order here

I call is the DS series because it is using the new Nichia DS series LED (just begin shipping from Nichia). The current Premium uses the CS series, which is the previous model. The tint bin is the same for both LEDs.

The driver it the same so the runtime is the same as well. The increase in brightness therefore is due to an increase in the LED efficiency. The housing and its specifications are the same (water depth rating, finish, etc). The units are marked "Arc-P" and will eventually replace the current Premium product slot.

This design has been tested in the LSI sphere and typical units perform at about 10-11 lumens. Therefore, I am comfortable with the 9lm minimum rating. 10 Lumen is the ideal brightness for most EDC tasks.

Yes, this is the upgrade I hinted at earlier.

enjoy!

peter

btw, I have been using prototypes of the new DS for a couple of weeks now. The brighter output on the Arc-AAA is noticable and this light is now even more ideal for EDC type use. This is satisfying to me. I can illuminate an entire room. Read a book in the room with the light bouncing off the ceiling. Illuminate targets out past 20 feet, etc.


Of course, some people will complain about the light being too bright for some tasks. At least you put a finger over the front and modulate the output. Better to have too much light than not enough I say.

I gave a couple of the protos as gifts to our Casas Por Christo team leaders. I hope they get a lot of good use out of them.

peter

+3

Gransee said:

Of course, some people will complain about the light being too bright for some tasks. At least you put a finger over the front and modulate the output. Better to have too much light than not enough I say.

peter

Click to expand...

So will we be seeing you on the HID forum, then?

Very cool, Peter!
:twothumbs

...if I could only find a way to kill all my old ArcAAA's, then I'd have a valid reason to buy one of the new ones.

Suggestion: Give the older models as gifts to people you like.



peter

very nice,

the new DS have a lower Vf (3.2-3.5) compared to the CS(3.6-4.0).

are you seeing slightly longer runtimes on the new lights due to the lower Vf?

are the DS tints similar to the CS?

I am in. The Arc AAA-P is one of my favorite lights and it is always with me. I didn't need too much of a push to buy another.

I can't wait for it.

Good questions. I have not completed a full runtime but I wouldn't be suprised if it is a bit longer.

Yes, the tint is the same bin (warts and all). The beam distribution is slightly different.

peter

thanks Peter,

so the beam distribution is narrower? wider?

any chance for a comparison beamshot?
we can never have too many beamshots

I will try to get a beam shot posted later. The DS corona is the same size but brighter. The DS center spot is larger and brighter. The fall off between the center spot and the corona is more pronounced.

peter

I'm all over it! I'm glad you decided to upgrade the emitter this way without compromising durability and the Arc AAA mission. Cheers! Now, how many do I order? ... hrmmm....

EDIT: Well I ordered one, I'll probably order more later. I think I'll take Peter's advice and give my current EDC AAA-P to my brother - he doesn't have a keychain light. I know I know, shameful... When he heard the lumen rating for my AAA-P he wasn't impressed. When he actually USED it, he changed his mind! I know he'll appreciate getting one, even if it is a hand-me-down.

Sweet! Just placed a pre-order. Can't wait to get it.

Nice
Pre-order sent!

I don't own any light that impacted me the way my Arc AAA-P did when I first got it and handled it. I really appreciated the quality of the finish and the flawless function of the light. I love the simplicity of the design and the overall size. Now it is brighter and possibly longer running... very nice!

I don't think that I will be able to give my other one away though and may have a hard time getting it off of my key ring. Would it be strange if I carried them both?

Wow, nice, but I just ordered another Arc AAA a couple days ago! I'm tempted even though I'm not a lumen freak for this type of light. LRI had been claiming some kind of exclusive access to the early production of the new leds for use in Photons. I guess the exclusivity didn't last long.

Also, I don't see any markings on the one in the photo. Is that just because it's on the side of the light that's away from the camera? Or if it's really unmarked, can I buy one like that?

It occurs to me, it would be cool if you made a version that ran at about 1/3 the power (3 lumens) and had a 1/3AAA battery tube. You'd run it on one of those 160 mAH NiMH Zipzap car cells and the light would be a full inch shorter than the regular AAA and much more at home on a keychain, with runtime still in the 2 hour range(?) while keeping brightness comparable to the legendary v3.x Arc AAA's that a lot of us are still using. You'd include both battery tubes so users could also configure it as an ultra-long-running AAA light. Really not much engineering would be needed, just chop some of the battery tubes a little shorter and change a resistor on the PCB to lower the power. I guess you'd want to include a couple cells and a charging setup but you'd buy that stuff off the shelf.

GreenLed, wanna lose an older one (well used or pretty) shoot me a PM, and i'll prob order one of these.

im finally accepting the fact that my arc AAA didnt make it back from Belize with me. as that was were it was last seen. this might be the ticket for a replacement.

I want one (ok...a couple) of these lights SO BAD but am having serious difficulty getting past the blue tint. With all of my Seouls, Rebel, and Lux's, I just cringe at the thought of a blue tint. How do you guys handle it? I acknowledge that the build quality is second to none, but I wish modern technology would infuse something at Nichia to create a truly "white" LED.

I have placed an order for a MillerMod 50mah (roughly 9 lumens as well) Arc AAA. When I saw this thread, I thought that I could cancel that order and get two of these for the price of one of Eric's lights.

Ok....someone talk me into getting over the blue and buying one of these. Man, I want one, but the blue....well, you know.

Oh, there was one other thing. I have heard that the Nichia's normally state roughly a 10,000 hour lifespan, however I have heard that the lights actually begin degrading after 100 or 200 hours. Is this true? Is it really noticable to the naked eye?

I 'd like to make it clear that this is not a negative strike at Peter or Arc. I have the utmost respect for his designs, quality and reputation....again, just frustrated with the blue.

Thanks!!