Questions for Inova XO owners?

NorthernStar

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Hi.

I´ve just made up my mind and ordered an Inova XO,and i am waiting for delivery. The XO i a 1 watt and not as powerfull as the coming Inovas,but it has mouch longer burn time which i hold as a higher priority than the brightness.I have been lurking around here since spring reading all stuff i can find about this light. I read a review about the XO with pictures of it´s light beams.Now i have some further questions:

How does the XO stands up in water resistance? Is it just as waterproof as the Inova X5? Does it realy have the capability of creating a light beam as long as 200 feet as the Inova website claims?

Northern Star
 

suppin

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Hi NorthernStar, the X0 is pretty much dunkable and water resistant, thought I don't advise you to go diving with it. So far, I don't have any problem of water getting into the body when it's wet. As for the 200 feet light beam rating, I'm not too sure about that yet, it throws pretty well, but a little less than the Pelican M6. From my testing, it'll throw to about 100 feet away at least.
 

coachbigdog

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[ QUOTE ]
suppin said:
Hi NorthernStar, the X0 is pretty much dunkable and water resistant, thought I don't advise you to go diving with it. So far, I don't have any problem of water getting into the body when it's wet. As for the 200 feet light beam rating, I'm not too sure about that yet, it throws pretty well, but a little less than the Pelican M6. From my testing, it'll throw to about 100 feet away at least.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'd say the 200ft would depend om other light sources.My modded arc ls looked twice as bright in Panama because we were in the mouintains with no lights.
 

NorthernStar

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Thank´s for the info guys! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink2.gif

Now i am realy eager to get my XO and testing it.Like coachbigdog said that the length of the beam would depend on other light sources in the surrounding. let´s say that you are in a completly dark forrest,with no bright stars or moon to assist you and then you test the XO´s beam,will it then light up to 200 feet?

Northern Star
 

suppin

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Yep coachbigdog is right, I tested mine in a rather brightly lit place, so in a very dark area without ambient lighting, it'll probably go up to 200 feet
 

Hoghead

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Playboy Joe Shmoe,

No spill light, but as the distance increases the concentric rings spread out. It's not as bad as it sounds.

The switch is press on or twist on and it does lock out.
 

sotto

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Originally, because of the size, I dismissed the X0 from consideration as a purchase. Since the price has come down, $39 at Fry's in Manhattan Beach, I've picked one up and it's become one of my favorite lights. If you like LED lights with good throw, you'll like this one. Be sure and try several at the store before you buy, because there is a noticeable difference in brightness and LED color across different lights.
 

NorthernStar

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I chosed the XO with black body and white light. I already own an Inova X1 and X5 and i like them both. The X1 has a spotlight beam which i like but no sidespill light,while the X5 have alot of side spill which i like but a minimum of centered light which i wants.I use my X1 at work,and the X5 heading outdoors.

I think the XO will be a perfect mix of the X1 and the X5,with a more powerfull optic(TIROS) and higher watt. When reading the plot time that some one posted earlier at this forum,it indicates that the XO has a powerfull throw for 4 hours and after that it lights further for additional 4 hours but weaker and weaker. I like that light performance! One have to prioritate effect versus burntime,and in this case i choose burntime.

The new XO3 and T3 looks fine,but from what i have read they only have two hours burntime. That´s way to short for me. Now i am realy eager to receive my new flashlight! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Northern Star
 

Tentou

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If you did get a 3 watter, you could use that for special situations, but the X0 is a great all-purpose flashlight. It's well-balanced and bright, plus that 4-hour regulated runtime is worth a lot if you can't afford to buy 123s every week (even if they're a buck each.) The only thing you really need is a good belt sheath and you can find those by poking around here with the search feature.

By the way, if you DO ever get addicted to using your X0 (it's easier than you might think!), be sure to head over to BatteryStation for those unbeatable prices on 123s and the excellent service.
 

NorthernStar

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Today i got my Inova XO! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinser2.gif
It´s still sun outside so i have not being able to do some night beams tests yet,but i went down to the basement that is totaly dark and tested the XO. I was impressed by the clear white beam that came out of the XO. I compared the light between the XO and the X5 which i also have,and there is no question about which light who is going to be my favourite! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

The only drawback is it´s little bulky size. If it has been slightly bigger,i would not consider it comfortable to carry. I noticed that the beam from the XO has small rings aside from the middle beam. They don´t bother me,but why are there small rings to surrounding the beam? Does anyone know?

Now i am eager to test this light in the night,in real darkness!

Northern Star
 

suppin

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I think the optics have something to do with the rings. If you look into the bezel of the XO, you'll notice that the optics consists of a lot of rings too. That's probably the cause of the saturn rings for the beam.
 

sotto

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The rings are a "feature" of the focusing optic in the X0. The light is too big, for sure, but it's got a great beam.
 

NorthernStar

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Thank´s for the input,guys

Yes,i understand that the rings are suposed to be there,but i can´t figure out realy why? Maybe they are there for pure cosmetics?

Northern Star
 

suppin

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I think it's like sotto put it, they're like a feature, or rather a side effect of the optics. I don't know about everyone else, but I don't consider it any more appealing to have them there. In fact, I'll stick my neck out and say that most people would think that it's a bad point (not a very big issue though)
 

Ray_of_Light

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I believe the rings are the least problem of the X0, being barely noticeable. The good news about it are the small power consuption, only 250 mA, that provides from 4 to 5 hours in regulation.
Also, the measured figure of 30 lumens is pretty close to the reality: this means that both the LED and the power supply are properly matched and designed.
The throw is good, even if I find my Arc4 to have a more concentrated beam of my X0.
What really bother me is the bulkiness of the X0. I believe it IS possible to make the same light in X5 size. May be I am talking as a pure flashaholic, that never consider the price tag of a light.
I have two X0s, I believe it is a perfect engineering balance between price, runtime, ruggedness, throw and brightness. Its "wurstel" size prevents me from EDCing it.

Regards

Anthony
 

NorthernStar

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TheProphet,
we seams to share the same thoughts regarding the XO. I read at the package,and it says that the XO has 32 lumen.I would also like to see the same performance of the XO,bu in the X5 body. I think the X5 is perfect for EDC carry. From what i have read the coming Inova T1 has the same body as the X5(so far so good),but it only has 2 hour burntime and has a 150 feet throw compared to the XO´s 4 hour burntime and 200 feet throw.

It seams like it is the TIROS optics that steals mouch space in the XO´s body.I would realy like to see a X5 with the XO´s performance Maybe it will be in the future?

Northern Star
 

Ray_of_Light

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It has already been done from a modder (Commander, I believe). If INOVA would make it available to the general public, this, I don't know...

Anthony
 

NorthernStar

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[ QUOTE ]
It has already been done from a modder (Commander, I believe).

[/ QUOTE ]

What is a "Modder" and a "Commander"? Can you please develop this further?

Northern Star
 

357

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I just received my 2 X0s today (one grey, one black). After many positive reviews on this board, I decided to try these lights out.

I'm impressed, nice white beam and the hotspot has no artifacts.

This is obviously a spotlight (no usuableflood whatsoever), as there is little sidespill and the tiny bit of light outside the hotspot is very ringy and unusable.

The fit and finish is very good, and I like the switch feel. To me, its a 4 out of 5 stars.

There are some improvements I'd suggest though:

1. Make the head larger, and put a textured reflector in place instead of optics. The right reflector would give a nice balance between sidespill and hotspot, and would improve the corona beam quality a lot. In order for this light to be useful for more than throw, we need much better and more usable sidespill IMO.

2. Use a 3-watt luxeon like the new X03 will use, along with the textured reflector I outlined in suggestion 1

3. Type III HA

This flashlight is very nice, and has 5 star potential with some modifications. Anyone have any other ideas of how to better the X0?
 
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