What is the Best Single AA Light for gifts?

I would like to buy some single AA lights for some friends. Although I personally prefer the 123 style lights, I realize that most of the unenlightened just don't have spare 123 batteries nearby while most people have AA batteries somewhere. Therefore I'd like to buy a few AA lights for friends who can carry them and when the batteries die, put in fresh batteries that they have as opposed to saying "it takes some funky battery that is really expensive and I can't find everywhere".

I've bought the Nitecore EZ AA in the past and like those, but tell me what lights you prefer. I'd like to keep it around 50 bucks a light. Let me know.

Rich

Dadof6 said:

I would like to buy some single AA lights for some friends. Although I personally prefer the 123 style lights, I realize that most of the unenlightened just don't have spare 123 batteries nearby while most people have AA batteries somewhere. Therefore I'd like to buy a few AA lights for friends who can carry them and when the batteries die, put in fresh batteries that they have as opposed to saying "it takes some funky battery that is really expensive and I can't find everywhere".

I've bought the Nitecore EZ AA in the past and like those, but tell me what lights you prefer. I'd like to keep it around 50 bucks a light. Let me know.

Rich

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For gifting, I've found lights with small footprint are more acceptable than the ones with larger ones - so instead of gifting an EagleTac P10A, I'd rather gift a Quark mini-AA. Having said that, take a look at the Quark Mini-AA at $39, and 4Sevens Preon 1 at $37. Quark lights also come in a very beautiful case, absolutely ideal for gifting. Another reason being large AA lights are not very pocket-friendly, which may turn-off unenlightened types from consistently using them.

-Amarendra

You could gift them the new 25 lumen Inova X1 1AA flashlights. At $20 apiece, you could give them to more friends.

This is an impressive USA-made light at a good price. Easy to operate, ruggedly built, and it fits easily in my shirt pocket.

Read more about the version 4 Inova X1 in this thread.

Get a simple single mode Romisen RC G2 or iTp AA model, these are available from shiningbeam and there is a CPF discount code ("CPFuser") when checking out.

Service is great and so are the shipping times (all my orders have shipped out within 24 hours of making payment).

+1 on the quark

Great light with a top of the line led and its under your budget. Also as above mentioned it comes with a gift box perfect for gifting, a great lanyard and an included lithium battery, the perfect gift.

itp a3 eos ~$20

depending on how much you like them or wan't spend on them
Cheaper
ITP
Quark Mini

Better
Quark
EagleTac (Lifetime Warranty-Always a plus when giving as a gift) Very simple UI's
I love my P10A super simple 2 modes

Since you're buying multiples, I would go with the ITP A2 over the quark mini AA as you could buy 3 ITPs for the price of 2 mini's ($67 v. $72). Also, 5 ITP A2s from Goinggear.com would be $112 where 3 mini's would cost you $108. All prices include the CPF discount.

oooh, missed out the $50 budget part. If that's the case, depending on how many lights you intend to buy, you may want to email the supplier directly to see if they can give you a better discount (assuming 10 lights).

If they arent flashaholics, you may even wish to just consider the new Minimag multi mode LEDs, its a brand that they will recognise and to a lot of non-flashaholics, a Mag is the pinnacle of technological innovation lol.

They might go, "eh? what the heck is a Quark???"

Make sure it has reverse polarity protection included in the design :twothumbs

I think he said 50 bucks a light.....with that kind of budget I think he can do much better than a Minimag!! oo: I'd recommend going with ITP - either the A2 for basic 3 modes or the SA1 for infinite beam adjustment - both using AA.

Did you want to gift the lights strictly for EDC? If not, lately I've been gifting the Icon Rogue 1AA lights to my non-flashoholic friends and clients. $34 and often on sale for $19. Any of the three colors (lime, grey or black) depending on their tastes. A simple high\low clicky. It might be a little larger than some 1AA every-day-carry lights, but its great for all around use.

My friends generally tend to throw their flashlights into a drawer, glovebox, backpack or large purse. Too small a footprint makes it hard to find next to any clutter.

JB

I'd go with the Maratac AA model.

Simple U.I.
Pocket clip.
Not too expensive.

To be honest though, I'd prefer to give away the iTP version of the Maratac AAA model. AAA lights are more likely to be carried by non-flashaholics. The iTP version comes with a box that can be gift-wrapped. Before I do that though, I'd put a better keyring attachment on the light; and put a lithium AAA cell into it. A person receiving it could decide for themselves if they'd prefer to use the pocket clip, or remove it and just carry the light on their keyring instead.

I think I'd have to go with the QMini AA. Just gave my brother one and he couldn't be happier.

Geoff

Dadof6 said:

I would like to buy some single AA lights for some friends. Although I personally prefer the 123 style lights, I realize that most of the unenlightened just don't have spare 123 batteries nearby while most people have AA batteries somewhere. Therefore I'd like to buy a few AA lights for friends who can carry them and when the batteries die, put in fresh batteries that they have as opposed to saying "it takes some funky battery that is really expensive and I can't find everywhere".

I've bought the Nitecore EZ AA in the past and like those, but tell me what lights you prefer. I'd like to keep it around 50 bucks a light. Let me know.

Click to expand...

I'm glad you're already familiar with the EZAA, as that is one of my two favorite compact AA lights. The other is the Q-MiNi and which light I would choose would come down to beam pattern. The MiNi is far better for most in close searching, while the EZ is a bit throwier, making it better for people who prefer that type of beam. I carry an EZAAw in my back pocket since their inception and although I had a pile of 7 MiNi's at one point, I have yet to replace anything with one yet.

Love them both, and just ordered the MiNi CR2 in both Ti/Aluminum to go with my EZCR2w!

Akoray k-106, the non programmable. The programmable is better in each and every aspect but its also way too complicated to be a good gift. That, and its cheaper so you can give many of those to many friends!! Just remember to give the light a thorough clean and little tlc and it'll be a great light!

RepProdigious said:

Akoray k-106, the non programmable. The programmable is better in each and every aspect but its also way too complicated to be a good gift. That, and its cheaper so you can give many of those to many friends!! Just remember to give the light a thorough clean and little tlc and it'll be a great light!

Click to expand...

Or...you could give them the programmable version ...and program it yourself before you give it! Best of both worlds!

gcbryan said:

Or...you could give them the programmable version ...and program it yourself before you give it! Best of both worlds!

Click to expand...

Yeah, and then they start clicking like idiots and enable the li-ion protection circuit (and that sucks on a non 14500 cell) or change the programmed settings and then its 'broken'. Non-programmable is cheaper and a bit more idiot-proof!

But maybe this says more about my friends than the light

This year I give Dereelight C2H XPG-R5 for my big brother. He surprised his friend and himself with the brightnest of the AA size light. Then after a few month I removed the AA extension and use cr123. AGAIN hes surprised, he thought its a new flashlight.

OK, I'll chime in.

I agree with the previous poster in that a AAA size light might be more enthusiastically received by a non-flashaholic. In fact, my EDC is a AAA.

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.24291

I have a 10440 in it. It's rediculously bright. It has a great fingerprint-free finish and excellent build quality. And it fits right into your front pocket or, for the ladies, their purse. It looks far more expensive than it is, and has enough weight to it that it doesn't feel cheep and fragile. Tolerates being dropped very well!

Now, for someone that might actually carry a flashlight in a hoster, then you might opt for a larger light in the AA size as you have originially posted But, strictly for gifts, I'd say go with the AAA. The Oooos and Aaahhhs at the amount of light from this tiny thing is reward in of itself, even when only driven by a AAA NiMH. Throw a 10440 in there and behold (insert angels singing here).