Generally yes, but protected cells often donāt work in a light like the D4. There are two reasons:
1) It just doesnāt physically fit. Either itās too thick, and/or itās too long due to the protection circuit. The D4 probably wonāt contact when tightening the tailcap.
2) 99% of protected cells are going to trip most likely due to the current thatās too high. Only recently you have 15A protected cells; those might workā¦ if they fitā¦ But they probably donāt fit anyway.
Finally, I receive 18500 tube from intl-outdoor. I like it better than 18350, Tiny size but still have enough length for nice grip! Too bad, there is no good 18500 battery on market right now .
It can drop down in large steps. Stepping back up only goes one small step at a time though.
The step-downs could be made smoother with a bit more code, but it also has a high risk of introducing bugs. I actually tried it at one point, but the direct approach was too buggy and the indirect approach was fragile. So I went with a more robust but also more visible method.
Also, the regulation is not based on the current temperature, but on the predicted future temperature. This means itās sensitive to the rate of change. If itās below the target temperature but rising quickly, it will step down pretty quickly. But if itās above the target temperature and falling quickly, it wonāt step down (and may even step up a little).
When it first turns on in turbo, it will generally exceed the target temperature before it stabilizes. This is because, even with the predictive algorithm, thermal lag still delays the measurements too much to avoid the initial peak. Basically, thermal regulation is rather unpleasantly like trying to steer a fast-moving cow around a hairpin turn on an icy race track. While wearing someone elseās glasses.
Yes, itās based on the predicted temperature, not the current temperature. This helps it compensate for thermal lag. Without that, the racing cow was slamming into each turnās crash wall a lot harder.
The light makes a distinction between the actual ramp level and the target level. The button sets the target level, while thermal regulation can change only the actual level. This allows it to step back up when the actual level is lower than the target level and the temperature is no longer too high.
To change the behavior, the ramp button code could perhaps use the actual level instead of target level, when theyāre different? I doubt it would be a difficult changeā¦ and patches are welcome.
If I understand correctly, this isnāt a software bug. It means the power wasnāt disconnected long enough for the driver to lose power. To make this happen, do the following:
Ramp to a low level.
Click to turn the light off.
Wait at least 6 seconds so the light will enter sleep mode.
Loosen then tighten the tailcap quickly.
Notice that the light doesnāt blink. Click to turn it on, and see itās still at the last-used level.
This happens because the standby current is so low that it is able to tolerate short interruptions while itās asleep.
I wonder how hard it would be to add an inductive charging circuit in a tailcap. I really donāt like poking holes in a waterproof light for USB ports.
Not that I have an inductive chargerā¦ but it might be a nice way to do these things without incurring the usual problems associated with built-in charging.