It just seems to me it’s a mode that should only be there if you depress the button for a minute or so. 8) I’d rather see a moonlight mode start taking its place.
Thank god no! Never had a use for it. But I do think it might have it’s purpose so yeah, a hidden SOS (but not so hidden that you forget where it is when you need it). A moonlight mode would be more useful though.
I do have a JETBeam Jet-I Pro v.3 with a beacon mode that I have actually used to easily locate my tent in the dark.
Never have used it and hope I never have to. I tend to agree with Andreas that it should be hidden and that moonlight is generally more useful.
Does anyone REALLY have a use for strobe??
Cyclists have legitimate use for it, and some people think it’s actually potentially useful for self defense (although I really doubt that it truly is).
In another strobe discussion here someone mentioned the strobe mode as useful in situations where a steady stream of light is not alarming enough. I think the example was a car accident. IMO a strobe as a warning light would get more attention than anything else you can put out from a flashlight in traffic. Probably. But I for one would react to a strobe and be cautious. Whoever said this in that other thread, creds to you. You gave a new life to all my strobe lights (they are now primarily car lights).
Ya, like during the most critical few seconds of your life you are going to have time to cycle through the modes to find stobe.
(And by “you”, I mean any human being and not cainn.)
Never have and probably never will. That's why I prefer lights without blinky modes like the lights and p60 drop-in's that E1320 builds. 
SOS is about as useful as morse code. I bet 99% of peeps couldn’t tell if they were seeing an SOS signal or someone just had a spastic flashlight losing power. You know I was just thinking maybe in China SOS signals are used over there as frequently as on the Titantic.
I think the blinky mode thing is way overdone of course and if it is going to be included it should be hidden but still easy to access like 3 quick button presses.
The way it works in the UF T-50 is fine. I don’t think there is any real self-defense use for these modes however.
I think as a warning or to get attention a medium frequency strobe is fine. I don’t like SOS or the super high frequency strobes.
I don’t think I have any more light with non-hidden strobes though.
I have 1 light with blinky modes and its in the car for road side
emergency. If your a boater or do a lot of hiking or camping you
may find more uses for the modes, but even then they should be hidden.
Why should any of us buy Life Insurance, or insurance of any kind? It’s because every year, some people actually need it.
If I ever find myself sitting on the roof of a house after a hurricane or flood, I’ll be glad I have strobe and SOS. Remember all those people in exactly that situation after Katrina and some more just recently.
Every year a few people get rescued after they got lost while hiking. I feel sure the search and rescue people and pilots, Coast Guard, etc, can read an SOS and are glad to see one. It makes it easier for them.
Recently I was night fishing and used Strobe to warn a boat that was tearing up a creek, too close and too fast. He throttled back instantly when he was hit by that strobe.
There are lots of situations where strobe and SOS are useful.
Not every flashlight needs those functions but some do need them.
All very valid points, but I’d still like mine to be hidden.
I wouldn’t be too surprised if one day, strobe modes would come within the Geneva Convention; basically outlawing any fast strobe modes in private citizens’ hands - especially in England or in Germany. Other Euro countries would follow, soon, probably, and maybe even in the US of A certain laws could restrict the ownership and usage of blinky modes (unless the torch in question would be attached to the ubiquitous .12-gauge pump action or your favourite AR15-derivative, each of those strictly for home defense or skeet shooting only, of course)
So, all we have to do is to wait, and maybe hope some misguided chaps will attempt misusage of said blinky modes; that would speed up things a lot, indeed. Just remember the green lasers - it was just a matter of time until they’d been banned. Thoughtless youths aiming powerful lasers at airplanes just sped up the whole process of banning them to the public. Now, that’s quite another definition of a catalyst…!
cynical mode off 
An experienced Physical Therapist/Sport Trainer, actually a trainer/teacher, I work with spoke with a Navy Seal and said the strobe at a minimum of 600 lumens will disorient a person bad enough that he could be easily subdued. Now maybe in a seal's hand this would work, because he knows how to subdue someone easily who is already disoriented... Actually they were discussing one of the recent incidents in the news where a shooter/killer was put down with bullets, and the seal brought up the topic of a strobe flashlight, and that it wouldn't have been necessary to kill the guy.
But I think the seal's argument has merit. For personal security use, a very bright constant light may work well to scare someone off at a distance, being that you lit them up when they thought they were hidden in the darkness, but close up a strobe should probably be more effective.
which pretty much should call it a day for anyone’s belligerence unless they’re on bath salts or something.
I'm quite used to bright lights, so a strobe at 600 lumens would effect me much. It would probably work on most non-flashaholics. Bright lights also work well on some dangerous animals, like pit bulls with poor manners.
I think pepper spray with tear gas would be the best less-lethal choice for most dangerous humans. By the way, I've heard some very bad things about synthetic drugs, especially bath salts. If I remember correctly, Dr. Drew Pinsky described bath salts as methamphetamines on crack. Scary stuff.
LOL, um, yeah, that would be true.
I don’t use or want them on my mtb lights but very definitely want them bad hope to never use them on my dive lights. I too would like them accessible but not in the ordinary sequence. It would be nice if they were effective against bears or coyotes but I have no anecdotal evidence of this.
I only use strobe to annoy my wife! 