Nitecore TM03 Flashlight Video Review. (Cree XHP70, 1x 18650)

Nitecore Tiny Monster TM03 Flashlight Review


It looks like a few reviews of this light have been posted already, but here's my take. It's a very very bright light for a single emitter and a single battery. The Turbo step-down is pretty fast, and the battery is a proprietary cell- used only in this light. It's sort of a wow light, but is limited by battery capacity and the amount of heat the LED generates. Inside the review you'll find: a UI demo, real world night use shots, beamshot comparisons, output tests, runtime tests and more. This flashlight was provided by Banggood for review.

Nice review! Like the Morgan Freeman style narration

I'll take it! Morgan Freeman is cool. It was early in the morning when I recorded it, so I was a little sleepy.

Thanks mhanlen, great review as usual!

Very impressive output from a single 18650, but the battery remains its limitation and the only thing that makes me hesitate. But 3500 lumens+? Wow.

I'm going to predict that Nitecore very soon come out with a 26650 light in the GT series ( or mould anyway) that blows everything else in its class away- like they did with the TM16GT.

mhanlen said:

I'll take it! Morgan Freeman is cool. It was early in the morning when I recorded it, so I was a little sleepy.

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Yes, he is cool. He was great in the '95 film 'Seven'. :thumbsup:

An excellent review and fare in what is positive and negative.

Another nice review. Keep 'em coming, bro.

For me, the most important modes on a flashlight are the ones it can sustain for medium to long periods. Those are the modes I use most, and those are the ones that need to be executed well in a given design.

Don't get me wrong. I am not against super-bright turbo and boost modes. It's just that I don't generally think about my flashlights in those terms. My ZebraLight SC62w, for instance, has a short-lived H1 mode that is rated at 930 lumens. In many environments, however, PID temperature control will cause that to step down rapidly to something like 500 lumens. That's a level that can be sustained. In my eyes, therefore, the SC62w is more like a 500-lumen flashlight than a 1000-lumen flashlight.

When I apply that thinking to the Nitecore TM03, I find it to be more like a 700-lumen flashlight than a 3000-lumen monster. There is nothing wrong with that, per se, it's just my way of describing the TM03.

It would be great if my favorite 1x18650 flashlight had a Turbo mode of 3000 lumens. Give me all the good things my fave already has, and toss in the big power. I'm ready for it right now. But that's the rub. The TM03 does not give me all the good things my favorite 18650 light already has. The medium and low modes on the TM03 do not come close to what I need. Neither do the CCT and CRI of the TM03.

I think this light might be right for some who need a duty light with this kind of power. The small size lends itself nicely to carry on a belt. Those with "tactical" requirements may find a lot that they like. For that market, a proprietary battery need not be a deal-breaker.

Based on the way I use a flashlight, however, I will take a pass. For me, the high-power is a bonus only. I do not want to sacrifice the other characteristics of my 1x18650 flashlight to get it. Given that perspective, the proprietary battery is just one more negative in a flashlight that I am already disinclined to purchase.

This, of course, is purely my own opinion.

Thanks for producing the comprehensive review that allowed me to make these judgements.

I don't disagree with anything you've said. My SC600 mkIII HI is programmed to .01 lumens, 10 lumens, and 139 lumens. I rarely use the 1200 lumen high mode. Most of my flashlight use is at short ranges or in the middle of the night.

I think TM03 might be useful for certain military/emergency use for a small high-power but limited 'on' time light source.

For my needs this would not be a very useful flashlight, and it is no improvement from what I already have.

KeepingItLight said:

When I apply that thinking to the Nitecore TM03, I find it to be more like a 700-lumen flashlight than a 3000-lumen monster. There is nothing wrong with that, per se, it's just my way of describing the TM03.

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I think it's a bit unfair to label it as a 700 lumens flashlight, when this thing could put out 1900 lumens for 25 minutes before dimming

mhanlen said:

Most of my flashlight use is at short ranges or in the middle of the night.

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Yeah, there is a definite market for a flashlight like this, but you and I are probably not part of it.

LarcKen said:

I think it's a bit unfair to label it as a 700 lumens flashlight, when this thing could put out 1900 lumens for 25 minutes before dimming

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Thanks for the correction. I did not know that folks were measuring such long runtimes. I was going on the measurements made in the OP, where Mhanlen reports that the step-down on his sample began at about 2 minutes. At the 4-minute mark, his sample leveled off at around 725 lumens.

This link takes you directly to that part of his video. In it, you can see the dimming, and read the clock.

KeepingItLight said:

Yeah, there is a definite market for a flashlight like this, but you and I are probably not part of it.




Thanks for the correction. I did not know that folks were measuring such long runtimes. I was going on the measurements made in the OP, where Mhanlen reports that the step-down on his sample began at about 2 minutes. At the 4-minute mark, his sample leveled off at around 725 lumens.

This link takes you directly to that part of his video. In it, you can see the dimming, and read the clock.

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He must mean high mode- which appears to run pretty good in the mid 1500 lumen range for about 25 minutes. I've looked at the slightly slower time lapse video several times and don't see dimming until about the 25 minute mark. I mean I'm sure it does. But the light is so focused in one area of my HVAC closet where I do these, it's hard to tell at shorter distances if it's only a hundred or so lumens it drops by.

mhanlen your reviews are stellar as usual. Different strokes for different folks but this light just makes me angry I think its an awful design with a poopy proprietary cell. Why not make this a 26650 light? Just as with Olights proprietary charging and cells the whole point is to sell you more cells and that just gets me. I think the dual switch tail design is sloppy. Just when I have had nothing but praise for NC over the last year after being a NC loather for a couple I do not see this light as innovative at all. Still I look forward to your incredible reviews keep them coming

The dual switch tail design is probably made for use with weapons. I'm not LEO or someone who uses a light in conjunction with a weapon- so it's not much use to me.

But yeah... A lot of people don't like the proprietary battery. I wish at least it was higher capacity. I don't know Nitecores RMA data- but maybe this is their way of keeping people from using cells that could potentially be unsafe in a light.

I don't even know if that's a valid point though. I've use some low drain batteries in high drain lights before and the lights wouldn't work properly. And you could always build some sort of protection in the light too.

I don't know the answer, but I know a lot of people don't like the battery situation though. Which is a valid point.

It's actually easy to see why the dual tail switch design could be practical. With other two button light like P12, TN12, PD35, etc; the mode switch are harder to reach because it's far in the front.
But with this dual tail switch, you just need your thumb to operate both switch seamlessly.