What benefits will USB rechargeable flashlight bring you?

Some one may have questions why do I pay more to buy an USB rechargeable flashlight? Below is what I am thinking;

1) Cost a lot less in the long term; Think about all the batteries you bought for traditional primary battery powered flashlight, though the lights are cheaper, the cost on batteries you paid before the light throughout its lifetime is much higher than you paid for a expensive rechargeable flashlight. Who doesn't want to save money, especially in the tough economic conditions?


2) More environment friendly; For traditional primary battery powered flashlight, when the battery ran out, a new one needed to supply power to the flashlight. What about the used and discarded batteries? If mishandled will cause environment damage. Yes, rechargeable flashlight also uses battery, but it is rechargeable battery and its circle life normally up to 300 to 500 times(ran out to fully charged is one circle). So in a way, it is more environment friendly.


3) Easy to keep charged; Thanks to a built-in(hidden) micro USB charging port, these kind of flashlights can be charged on any USB devices such as power banks, laptops and cars etc. as long as you have a standard USB cable(guys, don't tell me you do not have USB cables), meanwhile an extra charger is not necessary(save money as well).


4) More power and longer run time; One of the biggest issues that people have with traditional battery powered flashlights is that they're not able to run brighter for longer. Comparison to traditional primary battery, rechargeable li-ion batteries can offer more power to the flashlights and run longer. Even though you'll notice the lights starting to dim as the power gets less and less on a rechargeable flashlight, you don't see the significant difference until you've been using the light for a long while. On top of that, you can recharge it when you start to see it go down in brightness – you don't have that convenience when you're using a traditional battery powered flashlight.


Hope above helps you out.

One potential drawback are the risks of charging a battery within a metal flashlight. I have a Nitecore MH2C, with integrated charging, but since having an Intellicharger i2, I just charge my batteries in that instead. A battery incident in the i2 would make fire and mess, an incident whilst in the flashlight could lead to explosion and shrapnel on top of that.

In my experience, micro usb sockets are quite fragile. They are just another thing to wear out. Then you end up buying a charger anyway. I'd rather have a more or less bombproof light.
P

They are good to gift to folk who use a flashlight occasionally. Most folk will have a micro-USB charger lying around, so they can enjoy a quality light without all the paraphernalia associated with it.

MikeSalt said:

They are good to gift to folk who use a flashlight occasionally. Most folk will have a micro-USB charger lying around, so they can enjoy a quality light without all the paraphernalia associated with it.

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So we could summarize:
non flashaholics: economic flashlight with micro USB charging port and plastic housing to eliminate the danger of a severe explosion in case a cell fails
flashaholics: tough water resistant metal housing, no USB port, spare cells and small charger in the bag for enough lumen hours

OK?

1. Most flashlights can already take rechargeable batteries so you often have a choice between running primaries or rechargeables. I only have 2 lights in my collection of 20+ lights that run primaries.

2. Well just look at point one, most lights can already take rechargeables. The battery inside a usb-rechargeable flashlight is the same as in a non usb-rechargeable flashlight so they last equally as long.

3. They are definitely easier to charge and less of a hasle when you are on the go, since you don't need to bring a charger.

4. Again, if you use regular rechargeable batteries you get the same power/runtime as a usb-rechargeable flashlight. The statement you make after that is not true, primary batteries are known for slowly getting dimmer as you use them, alot of people use primary batteries for that reason. Since you are not left in the dark when your battery is almost dead, as it will slowly become dimmer and extend the time you get usable light. A rechargeable will suddenly cut off and leave you in the dark since it is dangerous to run them too low, so the protection circuit will jump in and turn off the battery leaving you in the dark.

The reason i'm not a big fan of usb-rechargeable flashlights yet is because:

1. Like said before in this thread, those ports can be fragile + it creates a nice opening to electronics which is difficult to seal correctly.
It makes the light overall less reliable. More electronics through the light, more openings for water and dust.

2. Often makes a light bulkier than needed.

I have yet to buy one but if/when I get one I will still charge the battery in my D4 and only use the micro usb if I'm on the road and need to recharge away from charger. This would be very rare though as I take my D4 anytime I go somewhere.

5) You can give the light for a friend who doesn't have a battery charger. Just like pointed in the previous posts, they are good to gift to people who use a flashlight occasionally and are easy to charge (if your not iPhone-only). I've had mobile phone that I've charged daily almost two years now. The problem with the usb port is that is collects dust and thus becomes loose. Cleaning it with a toothpick fixed my problems. Most flashlights with usb port have a cover on the port too and I guess only a few people need to charge their flashlight daily so the dust won't be a problem as long as the cover holds.

About the safety: If I gave my usb-rechargeable light to my non-flashaholic friend, I'd make sure there's protected battery in it. Would it be enough to prevent the light becoming a pipe bomb? Protection circuits aren't 100% secure though...

I've been wondering should I buy Nitecore MH12 (CW/NW) to have as a light that I can lend to my friends when they need or give it to my girlfriend as a gift.

But I can charge batteries via USB so not sure of the point beyond convenience and chargers are cheap. For example my Fenix lantern is easier to charge via internal USB charging because I am too lazy to remove the battery. However I dislike lights with internal, non removable battery as it's now just a disposable gear item. Already replaced the battery on my Iphone 4s despite Apple's dream of me throwing it away or "upgrading" and they didn't make it easy.... well it was easy but not cheap android phone easy.

The one drawback that drives me away from rechargeable flashlights is the integrated battery and often sealed light. In time the battery will go bad and if the light isn't easy to open and often the battery is welded in or soldered and sometimes they even use less standard battery sizes you find yourself either destroying the light to get to the internals or having to go hunting for an odd sized battery. This can render a light useless till you get it apart, order a new battery and solder it in. Often rechargeable flashlights when they die are thrown in a junk pile while lights that can use rechargeables but have no circuitry to charge them built in use more standard cells and are easy to swap in a new battery. The price of a rechargeable flashlight can be higher than a light without a charge built in made to swap in rechargeable cells too. Also if the charging circuitry or as other have pointed out the usb port breaks then the light can be even harder if not all but impossible to reasonably repair.
I think a final note is in a rechargeable light when it dies and needs charging it is out of service for awhile while one without a charger that can use rechargeables just needs to be opened up (easily) and swap in a freshly charged battery and voila... back in service. I've had rechargeable flashlights before back in the 70s and 80s they were fun to use but after about 6 months to a year I found them more and more being on the charger than being used as the runtime got to half or less of what it was new.

None. I am going to keep 12 primaries on hand, plus the ones I have stashed around the house, and then just recharge out of lights. I don't need a third charger.

I prefer lights without a built in charger. I like to try out lots of new stuff, but I haven't even been tempted to buy a light with a built in charger. I think they may be OK for those that really aren't into flashlights and want a 18650 light. My reasoning is that it puts an electrical connection that can be compromised to the elements, another thing to go wrong, and usually costs more .

After thinking about it some..... I do see one use for a light with a built in charger..... car use as you can use it and charge it while driving and leave it charged in the car till next use.

The charging sockets are fragile and a point of failure.

Irregardless, I have zero use for a USB charged flashlight.

I like the idea of having a few flashlights around that have the option to charge via USB for several reasons:

1. It gives me another option: I currently have 2 external chargers and another on the way, but these run on 120vac. While I do have invertors for car operation, in a SHTF situation, being able to charge from multiple sources (including USB power packs, car outlets), etc.. gives me other choices and more resources.
2. Convenience: While I agree that the USB "can" be another point of ingress for dust/water, etc.. it doesn't necessarily have to be. There is at least one light out there which maintain IPX-8 even with an open USB port (Fenix UC35, for example).

I've read comments about how fragile the micro USB port is. There are flashlights which address these too. The Convoy BD03 and Olight S10R/S10RII come to mind. Both avoid frequent opening and closing of an on-board USB port by having the port on either an adapter or cradle which is powered by a micro USB port. The cradle for the Olight also offers a pass-thru USB port, which you could also use to charge a phone, tablet, power brick, or (heaven forbid), another USB chargeable flashlight. While that does mean another part which could be broken or lost, what's the worst case scenario? You lose the part, then have to charge externally like everyone else? Would you not own a light because you could lose it, then be in the dark like everyone else? One caveat: Both the Convoy and the Olight sacrifice IPX-8 for the convenience of charging, dropping their rating to IPX-7.

Regarding the Olight, I like the idea of being able to pop my EDC light onto the base when I get home without messing with opening a USB port or opening the light to swap out a battery. As for the Convoy, I'm inquiring with Simon about a few things, like whether or not the light has over charge/discharge protection and whether or not it's possible to get additional charge adapters. In any case, I'm not really keen on the idea of using unprotected cells and relying on the circuitry to work. I prefer to manage my risk by utilizing multiple layers of protection, so I'm not planning to charge unprotected cells in either light, except in an emergency.

BTW, I also own a Klarus AR10, which has an on-board USB charger (came with a protected cell battery). Again, I agree that the USB port is a potential point of failure, but IMO, not significantly more so than the one on my phone, which I charge every day and have never broken the charge port on. I don't think I'd be thrilled to have to remove the battery from my phone every time I needed to charge it. While most of the USB chargeable lights I own have square threads which minimize cross-threading, it's still a possibility. Furthermore, while grease will minimize it, continually screwing and unscrewing the tail cap to replace lights could also lead to o-ring failure, which would then compromise water/dust tightness of the light.

One final point: If I were going into a situation where I expected the possibility of water being an issue, I'd protect the ports with a piece of duct/gorilla tape, which I always carry.

Mahalo

This is a timely tread for me. I am just getting into this world of quality lights and it seems like I am being drawn to lights that run 18650's. At first the thought of recharging seemed neat, I already have a charger for AA & AAA Eneloop and it has been great. Then I began to realize how much different these 18650's are, if they run to low you damage them, people are checking their voltages etc. Honestly it is a bit overwhelming and makes me think about the USB rechargeable options. I don't mind getting a charger and learning some new stuff but it seems crazy that I may run the light too long and damage a battery that could then light on fire. 😨

GarnerArms said:

This is a timely tread for me. I am just getting into this world of quality lights and it seems like I am being drawn to lights that run 18650's. At first the thought of recharging seemed neat, I already have a charger for AA & AAA Eneloop and it has been great. Then I began to realize how much different these 18650's are, if they run to low you damage them, people are checking their voltages etc. Honestly it is a bit overwhelming and makes me think about the USB rechargeable options. I don't mind getting a charger and learning some new stuff but it seems crazy that I may run the light too long and damage a battery that could then light on fire. 

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If you are a little bit concerned, then you can always use protected 18650 batteries that will turn the power off when hitting the critical 2.50v level. But I have found that all the lights I have are pretty dim when the voltage gets below 3.00v. I have about half protected and half unprotected. So after getting use to your light, you get a feel for when the batteries need charging before they reach a critical low level. Also if you have a volt meter, you can check them periodically until you get use to your light. If no volt meter, then perhaps one of the better quality chargers that has a display with voltage readout..........just some thoughts .

Eh. As I type I am using a free smartphone I got through my carrier years ago. Apps routinely crash, but I have dropped my phone and used the snot out of the micro usb port, which is uncovered. Not one crack and the port works fine. They should last a while unless someone routinely spill drinks or shove food in the port.

peter yetman said:

In my experience, micro usb sockets are quite fragile. They are just another thing to wear out. Then you end up buying a charger anyway. I'd rather have a more or less bombproof light.
P

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What does everyone prefer: lights with built-in charging, or cradle-charged lights?

hiuintahs said:

If you are a little bit concerned, then you can always use protected 18650 batteries that will turn the power off when hitting the critical 2.50v level. But I have found that all the lights I have are pretty dim when the voltage gets below 3.00v. I have about half protected and half unprotected. So after getting use to your light, you get a feel for when the batteries need charging before they reach a critical low level. Also if you have a volt meter, you can check them periodically until you get use to your light. If no volt meter, then perhaps one of the better quality chargers that has a display with voltage readout..........just some thoughts .

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Thanks hiuintahs. Maybe protected is the way to go for us new comers. [emoji1] So protected cells shut down regardless of what light there in? Do lights have safeguards as well?