Here are my thoughts.
Advanced Knife Bro – by far my favorite. I wish I could write-speak-think with his sense of dry humor. His reviews may or may not give me the info I want – But I’m always entertained. The time lapse rundown tests are often informative.
Wish he did more flashlights reviews.
Flashalolics has good music and he almost always compares the light in review to 3 other lights – one of which I might know something about. Consistent lumen measurements across reviews are good to see. Frequently there is a set of close white wall beam shots. Hard to tell much, but it gives some sense of what the color and beam pattern might be.
And you never know when you might catch a quick peak of the mighty Ludo.
I don’t often watch the Dangerous Place walk, but I do like to guess where the sound track came from.
He did one a while ago using a clip from ZULU when Shaka and his buddies first show. Now there was a movie! Still makes the hair on my neck stand up.
I admit it. I do watch Charles – Another flashlight review! - WOW! Look at that output! - everything is Amazing! - and – I got it for free (or I won’t review it).
I can get a look at the UI, how the batteries fit, and what the light looks like in the hand.
His consistent outdoor shots are a good way to take a look at beam patterns and throw.
Not much else there. No measurements – just opinion.
And the opinion is always - the light is awesome!
Sometimes there are good discount codes.
Matt’s (adventure sports) videos are usually fun. They are not real consistent, but he is often showing different mods or DYI stuff. His measurements look to be consistent.
What should be in the video.
The other posters have good points. Mine include…
A very short intro. I hate having to wait through 20 seconds of cutesy crap before the actual video starts.
Quality Audio.
You don’t need a great voice – though it helps. But the audio should be clear and correctly modulated.
Keep the intro audio music or noises sound level lower that any voice audio.
I hate having to turn down the audio for the intro and then jump it way up to hear the commentary.
Never make the music louder than the vocals.
Make sure the audio level is constant across the whole video. Don’t blast us out the table talk and then have an outdoor section 20db lower.
Re-shoot or overdub if you get tongue tied or start (em, err, ah, eeerrr, annnd (you get the idea)).
Camera work.
Get a tripod. Use the tripod.
Keep the object of interest centered and in focus.
If needed get a second person to run the camera while you do action with the light.
Make them use a tripod (or a steady mount) too!
Nothing will drive people away faster than out of focus, camera in one hand – light in the other, action taking place out of frame, - videos.
Youtube is full of them.
Don’t be one of them
Be up front about how you got the light. If it’s a freebee or if you spent your own $$ or a loaner (if such a thing exists in the flashlight world).
A quick look at the battery compartment, head, switch, reflector, and any other areas of note. If something is out of the ordinary, tell us about it.
Opinions about the ergonomics of the light are, I think, a requirement.
Will it work with gloves on?
Can you find the switch in the dark?
A quick look at size and weight. Set it up next to the soda pop can and some well known lights.
Don’t beat us to death with the UI. A quick overview should do. Once again if something is new or unusual, point it out.
Output vs run time graphs should be included. It’s so useful to know just how fast a light steps down and what output it can hold long term.
Really accurate lumen measurements are awful tough. Just be consistent across all the reviews.
Also link to a video about how you make measurements. No need to go through the whole process on each review.
Consistent beam shots across all reviews is important. Show it close, middle, and far.
Always use the same targets and outdoor location.
Be aware of color settings and exposure in the camera
And for gosh sake, don’t use auto anything on beam shots when comparing lights.
Color Temp and CRI is not something easily measured – or so I think.
Show us a beam shot against a consistent background comparing the review light to known standard lights.
Show us the Throw.
The calculated value for throw often doesn’t (at least to me) tell me how useful the throw will be.
A comparison with a few known lights gives a better understanding of how useful the throw is.
Keep the test the same across all the reviews unless you have something out of the ordinary to show us.
Show us the spill.
Compare it to other known lights.
Mention and show, if possible, any beam artifacts.
Always a bummer to get something that rings like a bell or has a huge doughnut dropout area or ugly colors off the hot spot.
I always like to look at the PWM. It’s cheap enough to do these days.
A crappy PWM is a deal killer for me.
What batteries fit or what is needed to run a flattop (or whatever).
For example, many WOWTAC lights have tubes that are extra long to fit their batteries with the charging built into the battery.
Without spacers the light won’t work with normal length cells or will flicker if bumped.
If there is a built in charger, what does it pull from a quality power source.?
What voltage does the charge terminate at?
Can it revive a protected cell? (it that is what the light uses).
Does the light have low voltage protection?
AT what voltage?
How is that accomplished?
What happens as the battery nears the cutoff?
Measure current draw - if possible.
Measure parasitic drain – if possible
If batteries are included, test them to see if they meet the specs.
If the light claims to be waterproof or an IPX rating – it should be tested for that rating - if possible.
Destructive testing? – I’ve got mixed feelings on that. A sample of one is not a good measuring point.
Not many are willing to drop test or run a multi-hundred $$ light through the washer.
If a light is advertised as being super tough – then perhaps…?
Better to point out any possible weaknesses like poor construction or ??
Case in point. All those nifty, ultralight, and too expensive big name AAA camping headlamps.
They will pass a drop test – till the end of time.
Every darn one of them I’ve owned has failed at the battery door or striped out the tilt mechanism.
Lengthy unboxing and tabletop rambling are a real turn off (TNP anyone?).
Last thoughts
Edit – Edit – Edit. And if needed re-shoot. Cut out whatever is not needed.
Try to develop a style that’s unique to you. Keep refining it over time.
Consistency is key.
As you can see – rambling on is my style…
All the Best,
Jeff