What was the 1st LED flashlight?

I was going through some of my lights tonight, and I came across my first LED flashlight I ever bought. It's the old Pal Light. I got it around 1997, I think. It got me wondering, what was the 1st commercially available LED flashlight, and when did it come out? Also, what was your first LED flashlight and when did you get it?

I believe that there was a red LED keychain light (Tekna?) available in the late 1980s. My first LED flashlight was the Dorcy Cool Blue, which I bought in 2001.

I melted down my first Cool Blue by overdriving a 3.6-volt incandescent bulb in it. When I saw them in the store for $9.99 last December, I quickly picked up a new one. That light still has some unique features, including amazing throw for its output. (I imagine that the new lambertian EverLED will put it to shame, though.)

Wow, What a great question! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
It really makes me think. I even had to go look at my collection and try to think what my first LED light was.

It has to be the Tekna RED key chain light that Asdalton is talking about. I can't think of any that I would have bought before that. It is a button cell light about 1-1/2" long and 5/8" in diameter. It's switch is in the end that is attached to the keyring. (I wish I knew how to post photos here!)
It had to be back in the 80's.

Then it was probably Photon Microlights in 2000. That date I'm sure of since I have invoices for them!

Darn those Photons, I've been hooked on LEDs ever since!

It will be interesting to see the answers to this question.

Thanks for bringing it up Big Ed! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Flashlightman

I remember when HP came out with some red and yellow leds that were a *big* jump in efficiency [up of a whopping 5 lm/w or so] they distributed a crude little single LED light to engineers at trade shows and such. I think that this was around 1989 or 1990.

Back in the '80s (I think) I bought a minimag clone with a red LED at a gunshow. Dim sucker, but LED. Haven't a clue as to what it was.

Larry

About the time I got my Tekna Splash Lite (?) the 123A incandescent plastic light I also got a bullet styled red keychain led. That would have been somewhere between 1987 and 1991. I did not see or hear of another until I picked up a copy of Home Power Magazine and CC Crane had an article on the 4-led light. That was 1996 or there abouts. Not a firm date but the times I became aware of it.

Funny thing, in the early 80's I was in a digital lab and we asked the Professor if led lights would be viable. He thought about it and then replied that he thought not since the current draw of the led was 20 milliamps and a nine volt battery had a pitiful milliamp hour capacity so it would not be feasable. I guess he did not know the current draw of a 2 cell incandescent lamp.

Then of course I found the LED Museum and CPF and it has been downhill from there /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I bought 3 of those little Tekna red LED's in the late '80s or early '90s. Called a Private Eye or something similar. Two have titanium shells over plastic bodies. The third is brass colored. I still have them and keep one in my car for stealth use.

What is more unusual about them is they are lensed. They focus the light into a very tight spot of light--making them ideal for stealth purposes--unlike Photons.

I think my first COMMERCIAL LED flashlight was a turquoise Photon II that I bought in mid-1999.
The first LED light that I remember making and using was in the early-1980s, and consisted of a Fairchild FLV-104 red LED and a couple of AA cells. I can't remember what I used for a switch, but it was probably made from tape, aluminum foil, and a paper clip.

My first real LED flashlight was also a Dorcy Cool Blue. I think I got it sometime in 2000. This was followed by an Energizer Folding Lantern a year or two later.

Geoff

I bought a 3 white LED 3AA light in 1998 or maybe 97 from a guy in St Paul. (This looks like the right place) That was soon followed by 3 similar lights from C.Crane. (They say 1998, but I got the Delta Lights earlier) These were great as we were using Mini-Mags for 1-3 hours a day for 2-3 people. Talk about a waste of batteries (and bulbs).

My first LED light that i can recall buying was an Inova Microlight in about 98/99 - its still floating around somewhere - the second LED light i got was a ASP sapphire - but it got run over

My first Luxeon Light was the L4 and the second was the LB micra

Doug, you'r right,/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/au.gif
I get 2 of them around 90 with red bright led gived to me from my brother, farmer HP employee. Thes flashlight worked with 2 side by side AA in white plastic boddy and slide up/down switch, it was write on it somthing like "Red L.E.D new Al Ga As technology". When i had these lamps, i always tried to project a smal red spot far away with a big magnifying glass and all i can obtain like that is a big spot around one feet, at 20 metters away with the square image of the die... it was my first laserpointer too /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif
My seccond led was a Led lenser V8 blue. Is there some one knows that inside the tail cap of it there are a spare swith cover????
The first led Flashlight that i had seeing in a shop was in 91, the keychain Tekna Micro led using 3 LR44 button cell, and it was sold verry expensive in France about the same price of a Mini Mag light.In the same shop there were also a Mini Mag clone made by Tekna too in a black plastic boddy with battery level indicator 3 led, green, yellow, and red, less expensive that a standard Mini mag.
Sorry for my poor english,i stop the torture /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif, but i hope it's understanding... let me know
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/knight.gif

My first was an Arc-AAA which I got 1-2 years ago. Until a few weeks ago, it was my only LED flashlight. Now I've got a nexgen sandwich on the way so I'll have 3 soon.

I remember using a small keychain red LED flashlight back in 1972. My cousin, who was just entering college at Seton Hall had received it as part of an award, (and jealously guarded it), and he allowed me to use it when we visited. A small rectangular black/clear light about 1" long, 1/2" w & deep. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

I bought a white Inova Microlight from my college bookstore in either '98 or '99. They were test marketing them there, and had green, red, and blue LEDs available as well. The blister pack was showy and did not have any brand ID on it at all, and only after opening the light did I find out who the manufacturer was as the lettering was molded into the body at the bottom of the battery compartment. It says,

Emissive
Energy

Patent
Pending

I had never heard of Emissive Energy (Inova) prior to that. I still EDC the light to this day. However, it now houses a 390nm UV LED instead of the original white LED. For me, the Arc aaa pretty much replaced the Inova for a small white 5mm LED light due to the high cost of the coin cell batteries the Inova ate.

[ QUOTE ]
Doug S said:
I remember when HP came out with some red and yellow leds that were a *big* jump in efficiency [up of a whopping 5 lm/w or so] they distributed a crude little single LED light to engineers at trade shows and such. I think that this was around 1989 or 1990.

[/ QUOTE ]

As I wrote in Originality of Multi-LED Flashlight I've seen them in August 1988 in a cave in Alabama.
I have made red LED lights with two AA cells somewhere in the late 70ies, but probably early 80ies. But they were not really used as flashlights, they were station markers for cave surveying. But we used them as flashlights just to try them (and they were useless).

[ QUOTE ]
Scott@Tektite said:
I remember using a small keychain red LED flashlight back in 1972.

[/ QUOTE ]

I would doubt that if it would not come from you, Scott.
LEDs back in 1972 (I think I've read first about LEDs about at that time) could not even be used to find a keyhole.

I think the Fairchild FLV-104 red LED came out in the early 1970s; they had a clear 5mm package and produced a narrow, 2x3 degree red (660nm) beam. And they were bright enough to find a keyhole.

I lost my only specimen during a recent move, but may have a picture or two in The LED Museum...BRB...

of course Craid would know...

Certainly not the oldest, but I really got interested in LED lights when the NightHawk yellow fingerlight came out in 1995-6.

They claimed that it was designed for u.S. Air Force used during Desert Storm-1991. It was $24.95 in the Johnson-Smith catalog. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/huh.gif

The first was a Led Lenser V9, then came the Inova X5T. You know the rest of the story... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif