Jetbeam mini-1 TI: driver and battery questions

cdm-dude

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Oct 8, 2016
Messages
107
Hi,

I could not find a proper discussion of this light, so if there is one, do point me right to it.

First of all, I am not talking about the flashlight that comes in the stupid heart-shaped box but rather this one:

http://www.banggood.com/JETbeam-Min...chargeable-Mini-LED-Flashlight-p-1112196.html


I've had it for 2-3 weeks now, and overall am pretty happy with it, however, some of the specs remain unclear.

1. The stock, 1610 battery is rated at 70 mAh. I take it that it's unprotected (please correct me if I'm wrong). Is there a "better" battery for this flashlight? By which I mean: Greater (confirmed) capacity, maybe built-in protection? My main concern is the accidental over-discharge. I carry the Mini-1 on my keys. To have it turn on by itself in my pocket is a real possibility. It could stay on for hours, until it ran out of power. Losing the juice in the cell is bad enough but not the end of the world. However, actually killing the battery in the process would be a catastrophic failure. Replacing this particular cell with a new/working one is highly improbable, when I'm God knows where. Running this flashlight on a protected cell would solve the major part of the problem. Or would it?

2. What about the driver? Is it smart enough to shut down the unit once the voltage drops, before the battery starts taking damage?

* I know there's probably no connection but I thought I'd ask. The Mini-1 TI appears to be a fairly close copy of the Fenix UC02SS which I happened to own (not anymore). Not really a copy but they are very similar. Given how little info there is on the Mini-1 TI, maybe the answers can be found in the specs of the UC02SS. For all I know, both the flashlights have the same driver.

Thanks!


PS: Almost forgot. Is the output regulated on this thing? I have a consistent way of measuring the light output but at this point I don't really want to put this unit through any runtime tests, given that I don't know what's going to happen towards the battery's depletion. All I have for now are the initial currents:
In Low: 0.025A and in High: 0.2A
*The battery wasn't freshly charged and it measured 4.1V
Anyway, those currents look right to me, though it would be nice to know how much of an increase we're talking once the voltage begins to drop. More interesting, of course, is what happens with the actual beam intensity.
 
Last edited:

dudemar

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jan 11, 2006
Messages
2,406
Location
Arnieland
Hi cdm-dude,

The battery is not protected because it is far too small. Even if it was it would cut the size of the battery significantly, reducing the capacity as a result. You are right about the battery possibly pooping out. Once it gets below a certain brightness, I strongly advise charging it again with the micro USB. You can also buy extra 10180's fairly cheaply. It never hurts to have a few extra handy! :)
 

cdm-dude

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Oct 8, 2016
Messages
107
Sorry, I've stopped monitoring this thread a long time ago.
Yeah, that's what I thought too. This looks to be it and in the specs it appears as 'unprotected':
http://www.ebay.com/itm/JETBeam-10180-3-7V-70mAh-Unprotected-Li-ion-Battery-/152324356549


I doesn't really matter as I'm looking to replace the stock battery anyway.
I've had the Fenix UC02SS (for a very brief period and then gave it away) and that model came with a 80 mAh, protected 10180 cell, at least that's what they claim on their site.
I've been trying to get my hands on one of those cells ever since I got the JB mini-1, with no luck so far.
One of the sites had a battery like that listed but it appeared as "out of stock" for a long time. I think it was the AliExpress. It doesn't matter, I can't find the listing anymore.
At any rate, I would replace the stock 70 mAh, unprotected battery only with something tangibly better, which, in this case, would have to be an 80 mAh, protected cell. The price would also have to be reasonable.
 
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