AA-based light for reading?

I need to find a hand-held LED flashlight with a pure white color that will have a smooth illumination field when used close up, for reading purposes. No hotspots. Must be AA-based, one or two cells. Multiple levels would be OK.

Any ideas?

Sounds like a Zebralight is what you need... Check out the headlamps section for more details.

Yup, Zebralight sounds like a good choice for you.

Thanks! I just ordered the H501w Headlamp Neutral White directly from the manufacturer. Sounds like exactly what's needed.

I use a Zebralight H50 (the single AA model) every night to read. No hot spot, just an even wall of light. I find low to be a bit low for reading (for my eyes anyways) however medium is perfect. I've been using the same AA for months not with no sign of it running out of juice yet...

One of my favorite lights hands down. And on high it easily lights up a room (for say power outages, in a tent, etc.) I wear it around the house at night (reading, checking the kids, etc.) so often sometimes I forget I have it on - my wife just looks at me like I'm from mars... :duh2:

The light arrived yesterday -- fast service! It's a very nicely made light that does exactly what I needed. A beautiful warm flood of light, perfect for reading. The color tint is excellent. Not really yellowish, unlike some other warm whites I've seen.

Nice simple interface, too.

The only thing I wish they had was a small silicone ring with an attachment point for a split ring and lanyard or neck cord. They do offer a neck cord with another of their lights, but it is merely threaded through the standard large dual-ring silicone mount.

arrived in 3 days huh? Been holding off myself as I hear new arrivals are coming, haven't gotten around to researching it though...hmmm

I WAS a little disappointed that the H501w I just got didn't include either a lanyard attachment point or a lanyard. I guess omission of the first necessarily rendered the second redundant. If you find you really want this feature, check out the H30. It's the same brightness as the H501w but not as warm. I'm lucky, I got a pretty cool one that's not too blue or green. I was so happy with the H30 and was about to get a spare then decided I'd give the H501w a try. The lack of accessories was the only complaint on such a great tool, though. The UI on the H30 is different from the H501w. It only comes on in low, which is pretty desirable if you're in a low light environment. Still, more control is always preferred, like the UI for the H501w.

Though I don't use the H30 unless it's on my headband, it's nice to know I could dangle it from a lanyard if I chose to do so.

I'm replying too late for the OP, but for others: I recommend the EagleTac P20A2 in neutral white tint, fitted with the provided screw-in diffuser lens. It's my indoor light, delivering a beautiful beam that's useful at close range.

I agree on both points.

Great light for reading and I really wish it had a point to attach a lanyard too and I like to wear it around my neck on some cord.

What wrong with just threadeding a lanyard to the clip works good for me.

jhc37013 said:

What wrong with just threadeding a lanyard to the clip works good for me.

Click to expand...

Needless bulk! A simple thin silicone ring, with a bumped-out section having a hole for a lanyard or split ring (for a lanyard or clip) would be much smaller. The light itself is about as small as it could be, but the clip or the silicone strap holder effectively doubles the diameter of the light.

Just to throw out another option for those who may read this thread looking for something similar to the OP:

I have really enjoyed using my new Quark AA^2 Tactical with the free included Prism kit. The kit included the prism attachment, a head band, and best of all IMO was the diffuser filter to snap inside the prism. The diffuser turned the light into an awesome flood light.

I have used the set up to read my daughter her bedtime stories, take the dog out, and just today I took apart my PS3 controller to clean off the buttons after my 11 month old decided to soak it with apple juice and make the buttons stick. Setting the Quark to High mode with the completely even flood of light made the controller job so much easier to see all the little pieces.

At night I can use moonlight mode to read books to my daughter with no problem. The fact that the light will run for 30 days straight on that setting means I will be able to do a lot of reading before I ever have to think about changing the batteries.

I highly recommend trying the Quark series out. Currently the AA^2 Tactical R2's are still in stock and they are on sale. They include the Prism kit for free. Thats a lot of accessories to come with a light for less than $50 with the CPF discout code! Holster, lanyard, silicone hand grip, head band, prism, diffuser filter, batteries, and spare o rings.

Not a great suggestion for a AA battery user but my Malkoff MD2 with HI/LO ring & M60W MC-E on low is a great reading light - floody 18 lumen beam with great colour rendition. And 400 lumens OTF on high for room blasting!!

James....