This light is about 1.7x in length compared to the $5 light. The body is about the same diameter but the head is about 2x the diameter of the $5 light. It is at least 2x brighter than the $5 light. I'm using a 750ma 14500 battery in the $5 light and a 2300ma 18650 battery for this light. Both freshly charged nitecore batteries. This light is not as bright as the $20 HD light. This light is bulky compared to the $5 light although the $5 light is now $8.
So I'll add my 3 cents here. These T6 lights are indeed brighter than the beloved $5 AA lights... even when using a 3.7v 14500 in it.
I bought both the OP's spotlight version, as well as the zoom-able one suggested by WorkerAnt. The awesome thing about them both is they will last much longer than the $5 light using a 14500––despite also being brighter. That's awesome. I like the zoom-able one if I'm just lighting up a room/car engine/etc, and it's also wider when zoomed out. OP's spotlight one is noticeably brighter overall, and is best used for longer distances (lighting up a room down the hall, night hiking, shotgun mounted?). It probably wouldn't be good for biking since it can't adjust the zoom and would likely shine into oncoming traffic. I also like that it's a slightly warmer color.
lordoffire's picture above is a good example, though that distance really favors the "hotspot" of the spotlight one... you'd likely want to zoom in $5 light and it wouldn't look so dim on the snowman... but then it loses again on not lighting anywhere else.
HOWEVER, what's killing me on these lights is that there is no memory on the modes! Can anyone suggest alternatives (perhaps on èbay/amazön/mèritline/etc) that are either 1-function (who really uses "medium" on a hi-med-low light?) or at least has a memory feature? I see some alternatives here and here, but I'd like to get other opinions.
My conclusion is that the $5 lights still have their place, especially with a AA quality disposable or with 1.2v eneloops. But I think these lithium 18650's are awesome, and I'd love to find the perfect, low-cost 1-mode or 3-mode with memory.
lordoffire said: that was zoomed in...I stand corrected, that's pretty funny!
lordoffire said: and these do have memory...Really? Both the OP light and the zoom-able one will change to the next mode each time you do a full on/off. Ie, I turn it on and it's on high. I turn it off. I turn it on again and now it's on medium... etc. You're saying the one(s) you got will stay on the same setting? Which ones did you get, and where did you get them from?
Dotbody said: Really? Both the OP light and the zoom-able one will change to the next mode each time you do a full on/off. Ie, I turn it on and it's on high. I turn it off. I turn it on again and now it's on medium... etc. You're saying the one(s) you got will stay on the same setting? Which ones did you get, and where did you get them from?
no...it goes to the next setting....I thought you meant it didn't "start over" when you turn it off
Anybody have a solution to 9 switch clicks to get back to full power, once you turn it off from full power. Has anybody successfully swapped in a on/off switch from another light (like the Harbor Freight one).
HuggieBear said: Anybody have a solution to 9 switch clicks to get back to full power, once you turn it off from full power. Has anybody successfully swapped in a on/off switch from another light (like the Harbor Freight one).
lordoffire said: HuggieBear said: Anybody have a solution to 9 switch clicks to get back to full power, once you turn it off from full power. Has anybody successfully swapped in a on/off switch from another light (like the Harbor Freight one).how do you get 9 when there's only 5 modes?I think he means each click on and off are separate clicks.
I discovered this light (OP's light) will automatically "default" back to the first "high-beam" mode if you wait 10 seconds before turning it back on. In other words, you can have it on Medium, Low, or Strobe, and if you wait 10 seconds and then turn it back on, it will default back to High. I suddenly like it a lot better, since that was my biggest issue with it!
Now if I could find a zoomable 18650 that didn't use a white piece of plastic for the zoom part (eg, the one WorkerAnt suggested earlier). The $5 AA ones seem to have a better zoom piece: when you zoom in those lights, the focused light become much brighter. WorkerAnt's suggestion just becomes smaller without really increasing the brightness of the focused beam.
EDIT: And I agree with hakujin: Lord of Fire, your $5 zoomable light seems a lot dimmer than mine when it's fully zoomed...
Dotbody said: I discovered this light (OP's light) will automatically "default" back to the first "high-beam" mode if you wait 10 seconds before turning it back on. It has not done that yet.
lordoffire said: Dotbody said: I discovered this light (OP's light) will automatically "default" back to the first "high-beam" mode if you wait 10 seconds before turning it back on. It has not done that yet.I ordered this XM-L T6 light from Merìtline on 2/3/2013. When did you order yours? Perhaps they switched suppliers, or it was a different batch with different circuitry... ?
The only other reason I can think of is that you're counting to 10 too fast before turning it back on
Dotbody said: lordoffire said: Dotbody said: I discovered this light (OP's light) will automatically "default" back to the first "high-beam" mode if you wait 10 seconds before turning it back on. It has not done that yet.I ordered this XM-L T6 light from Merìtline on 2/3/2013. When did you order yours? Perhaps they switched suppliers, or it was a different batch with different circuitry... ?
The only other reason I can think of is that you're counting to 10 too fast before turning it back on
when this thread started...
counting too fast?...I can leave it there for a day and it still progresses to the next mode in the sequence
Anyone own both? Thoughts? Really like the cheap Amazon one. It uses one AA battery which seems to last a very long time. Zoom actually works. Fairly bright. If you stand one of these upright with the beam shooting at the ceiling, it will light up your whole bathroom with enough light to be functional. Great for power outages.
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