Why buy a dedicated flashlight听instead of听just using听the one built into your smartphone? As you鈥檝e probably noticed, running your phone鈥檚 light quickly runs down the battery while providing a very limited amount of illumination. Worse,听holding your phone securely while shining its light may feel awkward, particularly in the dark听while you鈥檙e trying to work on something. And you really don鈥檛 want to rely on a light source that breaks easily and stops working when dropped.
Bright light has become a commodity product. You can buy a cheap flashlight online, or even in a gas station, that makes as many lumens as more expensive options.听So听the differences that may help determine if a light is right for you depend听on听other factors.
How Are You Going to Carry It or Store It?听
Like a good knife, a flashlight鈥檚 job is to be there when you need it. So听the most important thing听a flashlight can do is to fit into your pocket, nightstand, or glove box.
A very small key-chain flashlight can be carried with you everywhere, every day. But getting it deployed may involve fumbling through your pocket, around whatever else is riding in there, then using both hands to switch it on. A very slim light with a good pocket clip will still easily fit听in your pocket but will be much simpler听to access. That said, you鈥檒l听need to remember to move it between garments, which increases the听risk of losing it.
Larger lights are harder to misplace than smaller ones, but they鈥檙e also harder to carry. This becomes an advantage at home or in a vehicle听when reaching for a large light in the dark鈥攂ut it鈥檚 probably not the one you want to bring backpacking.
The size and form of a light are also going to impact the ways in which you control a flashlight, as well as听the amount of run time you鈥檒l be able to get out of its batteries.
How Are You Going to Power It?听
With modern LED technology, the emitters, reflectors, and lenses or optics have shrunk so much that now it鈥檚听often the shape and size of the batteries that determine the shape and size of a flashlight.
Lights can be powered by either standard batteries, like the typical AAs, AAAs, and C or D cells we鈥檝e all used for decades, or they can rely on less common, high-discharge rechargeable batteries, like 18650鈥檚 or 26650鈥檚.
The advantages of running a common, old-school battery like a AA听are low cost听and wide availability. You probably already have some AAs in a drawer, and if not, you can buy more at virtually any retail location. But听common batteries have limited output, and even lights that require only a single AAA battery aren鈥檛 necessarily small enough to fit on your key chain.
High-discharge rechargeables are capable of powering much more powerful lights听and can pack that performance into smaller forms. However,听they鈥檙e often expensive听and hard to find outside of specialty online retailers. Being able to recharge them may sound like an advantage, but it鈥檒l听require keeping track of cables听and maybe even charging docks.
I find听a good middle ground between commonly available batteries and high-performance ones to be . These were widely adopted for digital cameras and other devices, meaning they鈥檙e stocked in places like gas stations and grocery stores, but still pack higher outputs and longer run times. They鈥檙e shorter听and听fatter than a AA, which results in lights that may be just small enough to fit on your key chain if听only one is required听but still be large enough to fill your hand if your light needs听two or three. Some CR123 flashlights, like those in听the Foursevens听Mini range, may also be capable of running the high-discharge rechargeable version of the CR123, known as the RCR123, resulting in higher light outputs. Do not attempt to run those unless the flashlight manufacturer specifically states they鈥檙e compatible, though; RCR123s听can destroy unsuitable flashlights.
If you do want a flashlight that relies solely听on rechargeable batteries, look for one that builds a charger into the light itself, requiring only a cable to be plugged into it for charging. Skipping charging docks gives you one less thing to carry or lose.
If you run flashlights powered by common batteries, it鈥檚 worth buying lithium ones. Not only do those boast听a ten-year shelf life and better stand up to cold temperatures, but they may also offer improved听performance if a light is designed to take advantage of their increased power outputs.
How Are You Going to Operate It?听
Flashlights come with either push-button听or twist-cap interfaces. Buttons are easier and faster to operate听and can be manipulated with a single hand. Twist caps are less likely to be activated accidentally while riding in a pocket or a pack听and can be built into smaller packages, but they typically require two hands to operate.
Buttons are packed into a flashlight鈥檚 side听or its tail. Side buttons are easier to use with an underhand grip, as you may hold a light while casually walking along a trail. Tail-cap buttons require an overhand grip, which you use if you鈥檙e holding a light over your shoulder. Tail-cap buttons can either be exposed, preventing a light from standing on its tail, or shrouded, allowing that tail to stand.
These days, both buttons and twist caps tend to operate multiple light modes, which you access by quickly cycling between on and off听or presses and holds. Because it鈥檚 easy for a light maker to offer multiple modes of operation, and because more modes make听for more marketing, most flashlights now come with more available settings than is practical.
Whether it鈥檚 a very dim light output designed to help retain your night vision, or the maximum output available, determine which mode or modes you鈥檙e going to use most often, and make听sure they鈥檙e easily accessible on any light you buy. The last thing you want to do is spend time trying to cycle through clicks and twists and various strobe patterns just to turn a light on during an emergency. This can be achieved either by a simple interface that matches your preferences听or through a user-programmable function that allows you to customize a light鈥檚 function听to your needs.
Much more so than their commonly inflated performance claims, it鈥檚 these factors that are going to help you find a flashlight that truly meets your needs.