Need help finding an inexpensive 1xCR123A keychain light

Well, I just killed my 2nd ITP A1. This time, I killed the stainless edition. I have no idea what's going on, but they only seem to last 3-4 months at the most on my keychain.

What's a good single CR123A with multiple brightness levels that's similar in size to an ITP A1 EOS? My A1's, while they lived, supposedly output about 200 lumens. I'd love to find something close to that.

My only real problem is that I'm on a tight budget. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Also, is anyone else having problems with these lights? I don't suppose there's any way to repair these little things?

Thanks.

Sam

Sorry to hear about your failures with the A1.
You may contact the seller and tell them to give you a refund or something.

The 4Sevens Mini 123 isn't very expensive, 40 $. Use the CPF8 discount and get 8% discount. Does that fit your budget?

Thanks. I bought it from Battery Junction. As best I can tell, they offer a 30 day warranty.

I was hoping to keep the prices under $30, but I'll look at the Mini 123. Whatever happened to the Nitecore EZ-123? That was one of
the ones I was initially comparing to my first A1 EOS.

Sam

Ideally, I'd like to a twisty with 3 output levels... Low->Medium->High
Do I understand correctly that the new A3's are low->medium->high instead of medium->low->high now?
Does anyone else make a good, small, cheap CR123 light?

Sam

sambeaux2249 said:

Ideally, I'd like to a twisty with 3 output levels... Low->Medium->High
Do I understand correctly that the new A3's are low->medium->high instead of medium->low->high now?
Does anyone else make a good, small, cheap CR123 light?

Sam

Click to expand...

Quark Mini X 123 is exactly what you want: very small, CR123, excellent build, twisty, low/med/high. $45 on Amazon (and eligible for Prime).

Mini 123 sounds like the light for you..as others have stated too. Low,Med, High and other modes are hidden. Beam is really nice and 4Sevens is great to deal with.

like everyone else before me, i'd go with a 4sevens light. small, bright...
plus it comes with batteries to add on to the inexpensiveness

Sounds like we have a consensus. I'll check one out as soon as I can. Thanks for all the help.

sambeaux2249 said:

Thanks. I bought it from Battery Junction. As best I can tell, they offer a 30 day warranty.

I was hoping to keep the prices under $30, but I'll look at the Mini 123. Whatever happened to the Nitecore EZ-123? That was one of
the ones I was initially comparing to my first A1 EOS.

Sam

Click to expand...

If I remember correctly ITP has a 1yr warranty.

The ITP and 4Sevens are essentially the same as far as construction, and I believe they are made in the same factory. ITP is owned by Olight, and Olight and 4Sevens have recently formed a "strategic alliance". You will pay more for a 4Sevens light, but in addition to the upgraded emitters and additional modes, 4Sevens has a 10 year warranty and is based in the US, which would be important to me if I were having problems keeping them alive.

4Sevens MiNi 123 is a fine little light. Because of its diminutive size I use one as a spare battery carrier for my HDS.

The Mini123 is pretty much the exact same light as the A1, with a few differences.

What would those differences be, besides the UI? The 10 year warranty sure sounds good.

Besides the UI, 4Sevens uses more recent emitters. They will output more lumens, but with a wider beam pattern. If you prefer a more concentrated hot spot and longer throw, the ITP's may suit you better. If you like the cool white tint of the ITP's, the 4Sevens may look a little warmer, maybe with a slightly green tint depending which one you get. The 4Sevens will tailstand. To me the warranty and being able to deal with someone in the US make the additional cost worth it.

sambeaux2249 said:

Well, I just killed my 2nd ITP A1. This time, I killed the stainless edition. I have no idea what's going on, but they only seem to last 3-4 months at the most on my keychain.

What's a good single CR123A with multiple brightness levels that's similar in size to an ITP A1 EOS? My A1's, while they lived, supposedly output about 200 lumens. I'd love to find something close to that.

My only real problem is that I'm on a tight budget. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Also, is anyone else having problems with these lights? I don't suppose there's any way to repair these little things?

Thanks.

Sam

Click to expand...

Is there any specific cause of failure to the light (after drops, water submergence, RCR123 battery usage, etc.)? I own an ITP A1 SS and haven't had any problems, but it has had very little use. Do you run the light for long periods of time on high, and if so, do you use primary CR123 or RCR123 batteries?

TyJo said:

Is there any specific cause of failure to the light (after drops, water submergence, RCR123 battery usage, etc.)? I own an ITP A1 SS and haven't had any problems, but it has had very little use. Do you run the light for long periods of time on high, and if so, do you use primary CR123 or RCR123 batteries?

Click to expand...

None that I can think of. I thought maybe the 3.0 volt RCR's that I had might have killed my first A1 EOS, so the SS has only ever had primaries in it. I've never run the light for more than about 10 minutes continuously. I've never dropped it from any height more than about 3 feet, and not recently. It's never been submerged, nor doused by rain.

The first one I noticed it not working about 2 days after the last time I used it. I thought the battery had died, but it never came back to life. The SS model, I probably hadn't used in about two weeks.

I keep my A1 EOS attached to my keychain, and I clip my keychain to my belt loop. It swings a little, and if I'm in a hurry it smacks into my hip. That's about the most abuse the keychain ever gets. I carried an Arc AA this way for probably 7 or 8 years and never had a problem.

Thanks.

Sam

Kyle K said:

Besides the UI, 4Sevens uses more recent emitters. They will output more lumens, but with a wider beam pattern. If you prefer a more concentrated hot spot and longer throw, the ITP's may suit you better. If you like the cool white tint of the ITP's, the 4Sevens may look a little warmer, maybe with a slightly green tint depending which one you get. The 4Sevens will tailstand. To me the warranty and being able to deal with someone in the US make the additional cost worth it.

Click to expand...

I'm not sure what emitter is in the ITP A1 EOS SS, but it has/had higher output than the regular A1 EOS. I'm not too concerned about the tint as long as it's not garish. Slightly warm or slightly cool are both fine. I did like the hotspot and throw of my A1 EOS, but I can live without it. My keychain light is mostly a backup light and a low power alternative to my Surefire. I'm looking forward to seeing my new MiniX. Hopefully, I"ll get it this week.

Sam

The ITP A1 EOS SS has the XPE R2 versus the XPE Q5 for the regular ones. The MiniX throws out a ton of light in a wide beam, almost like a mini floodlight. Makes for a useful backup and really lights up a room.

Kyle K said:

The ITP A1 EOS SS has the XPE R2 versus the XPE Q5 for the regular ones. The MiniX throws out a ton of light in a wide beam, almost like a mini floodlight. Makes for a useful backup and really lights up a room.

Click to expand...

Actually, that sounds great. I liked the spot on the A1, but for my purposes it could have been floodier. Quite frankly, if I need a spot, I'll grab my E2D. My A1 is most often used for looking inside computers, finding serial numbers, reading menus in dark restaurants... LOL It's nice having the high output available, but I used the low outputs more often.

I'm looking forward to seeing how different a Cree XM-L T6 is.

Thanks again.

Hi!

You could also take a look at the Fenix PD10.

Regards,
Jonas