So I received a Solarforce L2 R2, 5-mode two days ago, and have played with it. I wouldn't call this a review as I have no scientific measurements, etc. However I can give you some impressions that I have of the product in case you are thinking about this light.
1. Fit-and-finish is impeccable. It's a beautiful light with good machining. I got the glossy black version with a defensive bezel. It is high quality.
2. There are lots of configurations of the L2 out there on eBay, you have to look carefully for the details. There are the Q5 versions, and also the R2, and within these two versions there is a single mode version (either max. 300 lumens or 275 lumens, advertised levels), or a 5-mode version. I got the one that is advertised to have (300 lumens high, 150 lumens medium, 20 lumens low, strobe, SOS).
3. My bulb has memory so that if I use medium most often, I can just leave it on at that level for about 2-3 seconds and next time it will come on at that level again. It is a plus.
4. I have no way of measuring the lumens output, but I had a Coleman MAX that was at 115 lumens. Both the medium and high levels are definitely brighter than 115 lumens. It is the brighter light i have ever had. Big plus.
5. HOWEVER, unlike what is advertised, the low level is also very bright, and approaches the 115 lumens by the naked eye. I can almost safely say it is brighter than 20 lumens. I was told that at the low mode it would run 30 hours. NOT. Unless I got a dud, at low mode the light does not last more than 3.5 hours on freshly charged batteries (maybe 3 hours, but I felt asleep while testing). This tells me that an alternative description by another vendor was probably the more correct description of lumens output of this particular configuration: (high 300 1 hour, medium 195 1.3 hours, low 125 2 hours.) Is it just me, but if 2 CR123 batteries can only last 2-3 hours at what I estimate to be between 70 to 100 lumens--the runtime is not very impressive. This makes it not as useful for me (for the same reason I didn't get the Fenix TK11. I don't need a "low" mode that runs at 60 lumens. Can anyone tell me where can I find a VERY HIGH and VERY LOW combined in one flashlight? Is L2D it?)
6. All in all I like the shape and style of the product, and also the power, compared to the Coleman MAX 115 lumens that I had. However, I am very disappointed by the low runtimes, esp. at low. I wanted one with a powerful high, and a low that can last a long time. I was hoping that the low would last at least 10-15 hours but no. In contrast, the Coleman MAX at 115 lumens can run 8 hours (advertised, not tested).
I was testing the low mode using freshly recharged 3.7v 880 CR123 batteries.
1. Fit-and-finish is impeccable. It's a beautiful light with good machining. I got the glossy black version with a defensive bezel. It is high quality.
2. There are lots of configurations of the L2 out there on eBay, you have to look carefully for the details. There are the Q5 versions, and also the R2, and within these two versions there is a single mode version (either max. 300 lumens or 275 lumens, advertised levels), or a 5-mode version. I got the one that is advertised to have (300 lumens high, 150 lumens medium, 20 lumens low, strobe, SOS).
3. My bulb has memory so that if I use medium most often, I can just leave it on at that level for about 2-3 seconds and next time it will come on at that level again. It is a plus.
4. I have no way of measuring the lumens output, but I had a Coleman MAX that was at 115 lumens. Both the medium and high levels are definitely brighter than 115 lumens. It is the brighter light i have ever had. Big plus.
5. HOWEVER, unlike what is advertised, the low level is also very bright, and approaches the 115 lumens by the naked eye. I can almost safely say it is brighter than 20 lumens. I was told that at the low mode it would run 30 hours. NOT. Unless I got a dud, at low mode the light does not last more than 3.5 hours on freshly charged batteries (maybe 3 hours, but I felt asleep while testing). This tells me that an alternative description by another vendor was probably the more correct description of lumens output of this particular configuration: (high 300 1 hour, medium 195 1.3 hours, low 125 2 hours.) Is it just me, but if 2 CR123 batteries can only last 2-3 hours at what I estimate to be between 70 to 100 lumens--the runtime is not very impressive. This makes it not as useful for me (for the same reason I didn't get the Fenix TK11. I don't need a "low" mode that runs at 60 lumens. Can anyone tell me where can I find a VERY HIGH and VERY LOW combined in one flashlight? Is L2D it?)
6. All in all I like the shape and style of the product, and also the power, compared to the Coleman MAX 115 lumens that I had. However, I am very disappointed by the low runtimes, esp. at low. I wanted one with a powerful high, and a low that can last a long time. I was hoping that the low would last at least 10-15 hours but no. In contrast, the Coleman MAX at 115 lumens can run 8 hours (advertised, not tested).
I was testing the low mode using freshly recharged 3.7v 880 CR123 batteries.
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