mpett1
Newly Enlightened
Why do I keep hearing that AAA lights are unrealiable?
Why do I keep hearing AAA lights being unreliable?
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buds224
Enlightened
I have a few and they've all been reliable, minus a Thrunite Ti that suffered from the 2 level metal tab wearing out. I removed the tab and used it as a single mode for a little longer until it finally quit (lasted 8 months). All other makes and models have been fabulous, my favorite being a titanium DQG neutral aaa being pushed by a 10440 li-ion. Great little light!
ronniepudding
Enlightened
Where did you hear that? Was the comment meant to cover every AAA light? Sounds equivalent to saying that all vehicles with a 12 gallon gas tank are unreliable... The battery size has no correlation to the flashlight build quality, or for that matter the design -- besides the size of the battery tube. There are some excellent AAA lights available.
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gunga
Flashaholic
I've had AAA lights on my keychain for years. Never had issues.
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scout24
Flashaholic
I hear all purple and red lights are unreliable, too. Not the green ones, though... 
mpett1
Newly Enlightened
I read it here on the forum. I didnt think it was true because I have many AAA lights and all have been awesome.
ronniepudding
Enlightened
If you didn't think it was true, why did you start a new thread about it?
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mpett1
Newly Enlightened
I just wanted to confirm and see what you guys had to say. What do I know!! I am just a newbee to this stuff.
ronniepudding
Enlightened
Fair enough... I wasn't meaning to be harsh, just not understanding what you're trying to accomplish. I spend a lot of time (too much time perhaps
) reading the LED flashlights forum, and I haven't noticed a glut of threads here bashing AAA lights in general. Just the opposite, actually. People seem to appreciate their compact size for EDC and keychain carry. Of course, the price you pay for the small size is short runtime when compared to AA or CR123 lights... Which is really more about the batteries than the lights, and has nothing to do with reliability.Without knowing what threads you're referring to, or what specific complaints were being made therein, it's hard to give you a better answer.
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I've never had a problem, and the AAAs are my favorite EDC lights.
there are a lot of AAA cheapies out there, maybe they are the problem.
there are a lot of AAA cheapies out there, maybe they are the problem.
Guessing the OP might be referring to 3-AAA lights - like cheap flashlights and headlamps at the checkout stand.
Many here don't like such lights, not necessarily because they are 3-AAA, but because they are often not good overall lights.
The 3-AAA is popular in those because it allows for a light with no electronics, the 4.5V is enough to overcome the Vf of the LED, no extra boost/buck circuitry needed.
Also, a 1-AA configuration has similar or more total battery energy under load as a 3-AAA with the advantages of single cell, no battery carrier, fewer contact points, etc. See for instance: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...hy-3x-AAA-batteries-in-stead-of-1x-AA-battery
Many here don't like such lights, not necessarily because they are 3-AAA, but because they are often not good overall lights.
The 3-AAA is popular in those because it allows for a light with no electronics, the 4.5V is enough to overcome the Vf of the LED, no extra boost/buck circuitry needed.
Also, a 1-AA configuration has similar or more total battery energy under load as a 3-AAA with the advantages of single cell, no battery carrier, fewer contact points, etc. See for instance: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...hy-3x-AAA-batteries-in-stead-of-1x-AA-battery
I agree there is some more or less popular reluctancy to triple AAA headlamps, mostly because those are mainstream plastic light that are usually IPX-4 at best. Somehow, the main arguments are that AAA batteries do not contain as much energy as AA's or that they should be IPX-8 in our day and age. While all that is true, I have used some of those in the past with absolutely no issue ever. No one can argue a Zebra is more likely to survive being rolled over by a car, but I'd like to see some stats on how often that really ever happens... I never even came close to rolling over a wrench, let alone a light... I even see more and more people in construction or maintenance guys using common store headlamps and they're definitely not complaining about a single thing. In fact, they're ecstatic about their cheap headlamp.
KenAnderson
Enlightened
There are a class of lights I like to call "battery crushers" that seem less than reliable to me. They are found in all battery configurations and have a design where the battery is pressed between two rigid contacts with no spring applying pressure. They often loose contact, begin to flicker and the user may over tighten the battery in an attempt to compensate. The result is a battery with crushed ends. I avoid these "battery crusher" designs like the plague.
My favorite AAA light is a titanium Fenix LO-TI. I've had it for years and it's never failed me.
My favorite AAA light is a titanium Fenix LO-TI. I've had it for years and it's never failed me.
Bullzeyebill
Flashaholic
As a flashaholic I would like to know some of the brands/models of flashlights, you have used that show battery crushing. Thanks,
Bill
Bill
mcnair55
Flashlight Enthusiast
I have a good few AAA lights and never had any issues and my edc of choice is AAA,my bedside light at the moment is AAA.
ven
Flashaholic
I am sure mr yoyo will add his great knowledge as he has a family of AAA lights ,from custom to standard......
My experience is good,no issues over the years,ironically the longest working light i have is an AAA maglite(also the worst for illumination too :laughing: ) which must be.....15-20yrs old.......dont know .
I have mulit AAA lights too,my fav of those is the lenser t7.2(genuine not fake) ........
Many great single AAA lights out there,the output is being pushed beyond 100lm now and their size make great key chain lights or EDC lights due to size. The only weakness is the AAA cell itself due to not holding enough juice(mah) but it is all comparable as of course its a small cell. AAA eneloops imo make a great choice of cell for performance and life over time,also piece of mind over some alki cells too regarding potential leaks/performance etc.
Everyone will have different experiences,only takes a couple of people to post a latest AAA light that is faulty,soon could like like an XXXXXXXX brand/model is rubbish from a google search..........
AA of course offers higher mah over AAA but its too big imo(or for me anyway) on keys,so its AAA/10440 or 10180 on my keys,be it work/cars :thumbsup:
Without AAA lights i think a lot of us would feel weighed down :laughing:
Just a thought too,as most AAA lights live on keys etc,they do get more of a hammering/clanging/dropping over other larger lights that get used maybe less frequent.............
Just my opinion and reserve the right to
My experience is good,no issues over the years,ironically the longest working light i have is an AAA maglite(also the worst for illumination too :laughing: ) which must be.....15-20yrs old.......dont know .
I have mulit AAA lights too,my fav of those is the lenser t7.2(genuine not fake) ........
Many great single AAA lights out there,the output is being pushed beyond 100lm now and their size make great key chain lights or EDC lights due to size. The only weakness is the AAA cell itself due to not holding enough juice(mah) but it is all comparable as of course its a small cell. AAA eneloops imo make a great choice of cell for performance and life over time,also piece of mind over some alki cells too regarding potential leaks/performance etc.
Everyone will have different experiences,only takes a couple of people to post a latest AAA light that is faulty,soon could like like an XXXXXXXX brand/model is rubbish from a google search..........
AA of course offers higher mah over AAA but its too big imo(or for me anyway) on keys,so its AAA/10440 or 10180 on my keys,be it work/cars :thumbsup:
Without AAA lights i think a lot of us would feel weighed down :laughing:
Just a thought too,as most AAA lights live on keys etc,they do get more of a hammering/clanging/dropping over other larger lights that get used maybe less frequent.............
Just my opinion and reserve the right to
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I am sure mr yoyo will add his great knowledge as he has a family of AAA lights ,from custom to standard......
My experience is good,no issues over the years,ironically the longest working light i have is an AAA maglite(also the worst for illumination too :laughing: ) which must be.....15-20yrs old.......dont know .
I have mulit AAA lights too,my fav of those is the lenser t7.2(genuine not fake) ........
Many great single AAA lights out there,the output is being pushed beyond 100lm now and their size make great key chain lights or EDC lights due to size. The only weakness is the AAA cell itself due to not holding enough juice(mah) but it is all comparable as of course its a small cell. AAA eneloops imo make a great choice of cell for performance and life over time,also piece of mind over some alki cells too regarding potential leaks/performance etc.
Everyone will have different experiences,only takes a couple of people to post a latest AAA light that is faulty,soon could like like an XXXXXXXX brand/model is rubbish from a google search..........
AA of course offers higher mah over AAA but its too big imo(or for me anyway) on keys,so its AAA/10440 or 10180 on my keys,be it work/cars :thumbsup:
Without AAA lights i think a lot of us would feel weighed down :laughing:
Just a thought too,as most AAA lights live on keys etc,they do get more of a hammering/clanging/dropping over other larger lights that get used maybe less frequent.............
Just my opinion and reserve the right to
All good points you make there. I too Have had a few Solitaire's over the years, never had a problem, know what you mean about the output though,...to think that I thought That they were the best thing around at the time. LOL
My solitaire still works, but it has a somewhat unstable output and sometimes will flicker off. I can still get it back by shaking it or playing with the head, but it just had too much pocket time back in the days and the head is probably just too loose now. I too thought it was the best thing when I got mine, but I have seen the light since.
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