Ledlight recommendation wanted....

Hello!
Im searching for a light, but im really NOT up to date concerning what modern led lights do or dont.
The light i want should have following features:

* runs with normal batteries / rechargebles at least 7-8*10 minutes
* <50$
* idiot proof
* beam should be more flood than throw, its going to be used to find the way in the dark, not spot planes
* Should be bright enough for non-dark adopted eyes (so i guess single led lights would be to dark)
* small enough to fit in a pocket without being in the way too much
* should be available in europe

Thx in advance for any hints what to get

What's a "Normal" battery to you?? The QIII would be great if the batteries are normal enough for you. .

One problem is the "fit in the pocket" criteria. Anything that uses 1.5 volt batteries will need a few of them to make one 3V, and so there is some size compromize. One real popular light is the UK 4AA LED that you can get for around $20. The Streamlight Jr. Luxeon is another good one, but the best deal might be the Costco Luxeons which are very reasonably priced and run AA's...if you're near a Costco, which is not likely in Europe. If it wasn't for the size issue, the EL XM-3 is a great solidly built light, but it's a little large for a pocket.

Two of the more popular carry lights are the Nuwai Quantum III (and to a lesser extent, the Quantum I) and the Inova X5T.

The Quantums put out very strong light for such a small mass-produced light in the price range.

The Inova lasts a long, long time or two 123 batteries and does a very decent job of lighting up a room. Not great throw though. The Gerber Trio has similar output but runs on AA batteries and is therefore a bit longer.

For an AA light for general use, the Streamlight Jr Luxeon would probably be my first suggestion.

Ok, a clarification: With "normal" batteries i meant AA or AAA cells. No 123s. The thing is for my mother (thus the idiot proof requirement /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif )

And the "fits in a pocket", arg, my english isnt up to the task to descripe what size i mean, but a 2D maglite would be too large. It doesnt have to be tiny like a mag solitaire.
Ive seen those peak-solution lights with 2 AA cells and 5 or so leds, they seem the right size, but what light output can i expect from one. (my led-experiences date back to the time before nichia.... never seen a luxon in action)

But ok, ill search for the lights mentioned above..

In that case, try the Streamlight Jr. Luxeon - it's about the size of a Mini Maglite (aka: 2xAA cells) and is fairly idiotproof, not that we're calling your mother an idiot. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Another idea is to try one of the Holiday MicroMags that haveblue is selling in the Custom B/S/t thread - it's $27.95 and they're pretty bright and run on one AA cell.

(Edit: It's $27.95, not $37.95)

Well, Luxeons are a step up for sure.

My cheapest Lux light ($15 shipped China cheapy) kills the Inova X5T which is one of the more popular 5 LED lights. I mean, they are barely even comparable, esp when it comes to throw.

The thing you get with 5mm lights, however, is runtime - even the Lux I will chew through batteries, if properly driven, like nobody's business. You'll probably get twice to three times the battery life out of several 5mm LEDs on a flashlight with the same batteries, if only because those lights can be driven on lower currents.

I think the phrase that applies is "The candle that burns twice as brightly burns only half as long" or something like that.

Gerber LX 3.0?

runs for 180 minutes b4 it drops to 50% brightness. takes 3AA batteries. the only way you can turn it on is by twisting the tailcap. puts out 1325 lux @ the center of the beam and 4600 lux overall, so it has a pretty good combination of throw and flood. costs about $50.

check out CPF member Quickbeam's review:
Gerber LX 3.0 review by Quickbeam

Hm. The Gerber sounds really nice, but i wonder:
NiMh rechargeables have only 1.2V, IIRC.
So if the light is unregulated, how much output will it give with 3.6V instead of 4.5V?

The Gerber has about an hour of really bright light, from what I remember of the LX 3.0 review, then it gets dim fairly quickly. Tried the MicroMiniMag thread yet? They're quite good, speaking from experience.

See haveblue's thread in the Custom B/S/T forum.

[ QUOTE ]
IMSabbel said:
Hm. The Gerber sounds really nice, but i wonder:
NiMh rechargeables have only 1.2V, IIRC.
So if the light is unregulated, how much output will it give with 3.6V instead of 4.5V?

[/ QUOTE ]

Most nimh batteries these days are about 1.3 volts a piece.
That's plenty, and it stays that way for most of thier discharge.