Best unique designs, and features for flashlights in future?

What would be in your opinion best new and unique features of a flashlight? like dual leds, or something not seen by now - what is the next big thing in your opinion? what would you like to see, some new ground breaking feature?

Re: Most important features of a flashlight (best type of flashlight) - Please vote!

1. Build quality?
Of course
2. Reliability?
Of course
3. Compact design/lightweight ?
Not as important
4. Having a neutral white led vs cool white?
I prefer neutral
5. Throw vs flood vs balance?
One or the other
6. Is it a must to include newest led's? XP-L? XHP70?
New would be nicer as they are usually more battery efficient for the lumens
7. Forward clicky vs side switch?
Not important
8. How much modes, and which ones exactly?
Modest number of modes. Firefly is nice. Tactical modes such as strobes and SOS are not important to me
9. What type of reflector?
Doesn't matter
10. What price is generally the best for you personally, price/performance?
$50-$100 for a "normal" high quality 1000-1500 lumen light

NOT MENTION BUT HIGH CRI

Re: Most important features of a flashlight (best type of flashlight) - Please vote!

Sorry i edited the first post, but thanks alot for the answer, what would you think of, for a light that can switch modes with simple hand gestures/shake? like 2 fast shakes and it goes to max mode? or maybe even with dual led design or some other unique and un-seen by now features?

Re: Most important features of a flashlight (best type of flashlight) - Please vote!

One idea i just had, is voice control, like i put the light on a tree outside of my tent (on camping) and when i hear something, i say flashlight, and the light goes on - it illuminate the whole front part of my tent for security purpose, i know you can say but you can do it you self, but the disadvantage is that you are in the tent already, so the moment you open the tent you are vulnerable.

Re: Most important features of a flashlight (best type of flashlight) - Please vote!

I know foursevens has got a smart light that can connect to smartphone apps.
Maybe 100 cri and at or near max efficiency.
Efficient and reliable / durable infinite variable output
very quick high capacity rechargeable batteries that hold charged for a long time.

Re: Most important features of a flashlight (best type of flashlight) - Please vote!

This is a great discussion topic.

I like what Foursevens is doing with Bluetooth. Over time, I think that will mature into a very useful technology that allows users to customize the interfaces of their flashlights and also to control them remotely. Foursevens may still be a bit early in its development cycle. When I last checked in January, it did not even have its Android app running.

My own tastes tend towards neutral tint and high CRI. While not revolutionary, the 93-95 CRI (Ra) ZebraLight SC600Fd Mk. III Plus that is scheduled for release this summer is one of the most exciting announcements so far this year. Its Cree XHP50 emitter promises to combine high output with 5000K tint and high CRI. Pack that into a package as small as the SC600, and you have something special.

Re: Most important features of a flashlight (best type of flashlight) - Please vote!

KeepingItLight said:

My own tastes tend towards neutral tint and high CRI. While not revolutionary, the 93-95 CRI (Ra) ZebraLight SC600Fd Mk. III Plus that is scheduled for release this summer is one of the most exciting announcements so far this year. Its Cree XHP50 emitter promises to combine high output with 5000K tint and high CRI. Pack that into a package as small as the SC600, and you have something special.

Click to expand...

I agree with this. This is the light I am most looking forward to

Re: Most important features of a flashlight (best type of flashlight) - Please vote!

Not a groundbreaking feature but would love to see a company like Nitecore revamp their Piston Drive series of lights from 2009-2012 and redo them with better QC and neutral options. Make an 18650 version too. Loved the simple design of the Nitecore D10 light, ability to use 14500 and AA. The UI was perfect imo with it remembering what brightness it was set on, ramping both up/down and quick shortcuts when on to max turbo and min moonlight.

I've been away from here for a long time so not sure what is currently available and what maybe considered futuristic. Here are some thoughts, sorry if they are way off the mark.

Haptic feedback. When an object communicates through the sense of touch. This has become very sophisticated now. My iPhone 6s has all sorts of different information it communicates through feel

Designs possible through 3D printing. Not so long ago when I was first looking at building led bike lights all diy housings were made on lathes by turning. Then some folks started to get access to cnc machines and that radically changed what was possible. Now it's all about 3D printing as this opens up all sorts of possibilities in design

By connecting devices and making them smart all sorts of things become possible. Control, diagnostics, usage statistics, automation. Implementing some of these things but still keeping the simplicity of function that is a handheld light will be challenging.

Apparently heat conductivity in plastics has improved significantly in recent times. This could lead to new designs being possible (perhaps through 3D printing)

What about wireless charging. That would make my life easier!!!

More power stored in batteries, more lumens for less power given off by led's but with easier control interfaces

Any new lights should be totally adjusted by a Smartphone app with a built in manual override if you lose a wi-fi signal.

Better beam from zoomies. Either that or a way to diffuse the spot or not in stock form using something like Streamlight tried in their incan TL2.

I realize the current Mag crop is using camless reflectors, but I think Streamlight came closer than anybody I've seen and if not for the filament shadow had a decent focuser.

Some amazing ideas, definitely integration with smartphones is the future....

dazed1 said:

Some amazing ideas, definitely integration with smartphones is the future....

Click to expand...

My Bose sound touch comes with a remote but all you do is download the app to all your phones and tablets and presto you are away, cannot wait for lights to go this way.

dazed1 said:

Some amazing ideas, definitely integration with smartphones is the future....

Click to expand...

I don't want all flashlights / mfg'ers to start using bluetooth, it is a cool feature for sure with all of the things that can be done. I liked using it on a gopro but having wifi on reduced the battery time from 1 hour to 20 minutes.

I like A ui where there are plenty of mode options that can be accessed quickly from <.01 lumens to blinding. With that in mind it would be cool to have a super driver that can be programmed to set what modes you want, sequence ordering, button combos to push, etc. All dandy if you can set it with the phone app, but I don't always have a smartphone handy / not frozen. If I decided I needed exactly x mode but my phone wasn't working and I didn't have it preset to what I needed, I would hope to be able to use the UI with whatever buttons are on the light. (though at this point in complexity you had better have the user manual with you :ironic

Lets talk about phones, I want a smart phone that runs off of 2 removable 18650 batteries, has 64 gb+ of internal storage, includes a built in hi cri LED and optic, can do everything that your phone can do, has durable charging ports, can be used as a battery bank, has built in radio, is emp proof, has external usb, is waterproof, has SD card reader, is fireproof, has audio jacks, is scratch and impact resistant, has built in 4k/ 16 megapixel camera that can record in low light and record super high frame rates, has high resolution oled screen, has built in laser pointer of adjustable wavelength focus and power, is tougher than a nokia, works in space, has more than 100 volume levels down to a dandelion seed landing on a plush pillow and up to a loudspeaker in volume of high quality sound, and lasts more than a year or two before going bad.

I agree, it would be really nice if all follow this smart trend, no matter how gimmicky it looks it does help alot.

What about zoomable functions? what is your take on this guys?

There are now cameras that let you focus after you've taken the picture, so a flashlight that only illuminates what you focus on but not everything up to and beyond.

Really though, I'd love to see the battery technology we have over X (1, 5, 10, etc) years.

What I do need in a flashlights is a thermo, not timer regulated turbo mode. Absolutely against any WiFi or Bluetooth gimmicks. It is like an option to use Skype with an axe. Only some kind of battery life indication, nothing more. Perfection in my understanding is a synonym of simplicity. When anyone tries to produce a "master of all arts" the result is pathetic in general or the price jumps up to become impractical. A flashlight is a flashlight. It should not become a smartphone with an option to emit light.

vadimax said:

What I do need in a flashlights is a thermo, not timer regulated turbo mode. Absolutely against any WiFi or Bluetooth gimmicks. It is like an option to use Skype with an axe. Only some kind of battery life indication, nothing more. Perfection in my understanding is a synonym of simplicity. When anyone tries to produce a "master of all arts" the result is pathetic in general or the price jumps up to become impractical. A flashlight is a flashlight. It should not become a smartphone with an option to emit light.

Click to expand...

Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are most certainly not gimmicks at all and many like myself could not function without your "gimmicks".I receive an order from my customer and I send it to h/o in London by Wi-Fi simple as that.Some of my lights have built in battery indicators like down ramping and flicker but would agree a battery indicator would be good, simple traffic light system would be good enough for me.

I mean that all those options compromise the primary flashlight functionality: they reduce the battery life. I prefer non high tech degradation of high modes over nice graphical report via smart phone, but a week earlier And if we imagine some kind of massive power outage (crap happens), flashlights become a primary value and their batteries will definitely outlive all those smartphones that will lose juice in a couple of days. Oh, yeah, the next day after smartphones will die Bluetooth/WiFi enabled flashlights

For a "fun" flashlight, I also like the idea of Foursevens smart lights. Hard part to me is creating an easy to use app to program all the features. I like having an app that's super flexible, but the problem is keeping the app simple
to use at the same time.

I wouldn't mind a battery indicator where it changes color based on how the current battery level. Maybe blue when full..transitioning to green, yellow, orange then red to indicate low level. Or just have blue, yellow and red.

Zoomables sound interesting. I really should pick up a Coast HP1 or something cheap to play around with...

These features I won't mind in a "fun" light.. For a survival light I'd also keep it simple too and have no additional features. Personally, the one feature I don't like is strobe/beacon and would personally prefer them removed totally from my lights.