A month or two back, I had been eyeing this flashlight on intl-outdoor, and somebody on the forum happened across an identical looking light on Amazon, for a bit cheaper. I had already spent my light budget for the month(year), so I instead conveniently used the wish-list option on Amazon, and mentioned to my wife that I had found something I really wanted for Christmas.
I sure do have a nice wife.
Well, here it is... in all it's glory: The "Zuwit T6 2in1 Revolutionary Double USB Mobile Device Charger 3*18650 XM-L T6 whateverthecrapthenamereallyis Flashlight"
Summary:
Battery:
3x 18650
Switch:
1x Reverse Clicky + 1x On/Off Charge Clicky
Modes:
Hi/Mid/Low/Strobe/SOS (Modifiable with solder tabs)
Additional USB to mini USB cable (If you want to be able to charge the light, and a separate device at the same time)
The breakdown:
The driver:
Without disassembling the driver, it appears to be a 8x71356x7135, and it also appears to have some mode selection solder points, which I have not yet tested. I'll report back on this later. The PWM although ever so slightly noticeable, is the highest I've seen aside from the Nanjg. I'll call it "mostly" invisible.
Update - July 11 2013:
I finally removed the driver from the pill. It is a 6x7135 with a no name processor and 380mA chips, for a total of 2280mA ouput. I also tested the solder tabs and they DO affect the modes as previously predicted.
Tab 1: H-M-L
Tab 2: H-M-Strobe
Tab 3: H-M
Major drawback:
I was extremely disappointed to find that my TrustFire 3000 cells wouldn't fit. Not even close. Luckily, I had spare tiny springs from some old Nanjg boards around, and after replacement of the battery springs, my TrustFire 3000 cells JUST BARELY fit. Unfortunately I don't have a plethora of cell types to test, so this is what information I can provide. Thankfully the batteries, once installed, should rarely ever be accessed again, as this light recharges via a charging port.
The photo below shows one of the three replacement springs installed:
The iPhone 5 charges beautifully:
Operation in all three modes simultaneously is possible. Self charging, external device charging, flashlight:
Overall:
As a flashlight, it operates pretty much exactly as a 5 mode C8, 2.8 amp, T6. It also boasts extended runtimes due to the triple 18650s in parallel. The major advantages are the facts that it will internally charge with any mini USB connection, and it will charge external devices with any standard USB connection.
...Personally, I find these features spectacular! I really dislike removing the batteries, just to top them off.
What it lacks:
Unfortunately, in my case this light required immediate modification to operate at all, due to they extra short battery bays. This fact alone is what knocked off the 5th star rating in my book.
My version is from International Outdoor Supply, but handles Redilast 3100mAh batteries no problem. There is just so much variation from battery manufacturer to manufacturer, but it’s good to know the Zuwit T6 doesn’t like Trustfire 3000 batteries without modification.
Scaru, I thought about extending the poles, but the center post on mine is soldered in, and although not impossible to lengthen, would be a small challenge. I figured shorter springs were the easiest route.
Richie068, I noticed in the photos on intl-outdoor site, their carrier looks almost identical, but lacks the copper “plates” on the positive end of the battery slots. I assume these were a later upgrade???, maybe to protect the pcb itself, but it appears it has shortened the bay slots a bit… which is why I had a problem.
Great review and fantastic photos! I actually bought one of these from a seller here on the forum and he’s dropping in a NW emitter in it. Can’t wait to get it!
Would you happen to know how many amps the USBs put out? I have a Nexus 7 tablet that charges best at 2A
I know the Apple side of the charge output is designed to recharge an iPAD that requires 2.1a+, the other side is for electronics requiring 1a. There should be no problem at all charging your Nexus 7.
Hi ChiggerPepi, yep, mine is exactly like the lower photo. I really don’t know why it was changed. Also, I was looking at my battery carrier and realized I did in fact lengthen the carrier to accommodate my Redilast 3100mAh batteries. Naturally, I used the “washer” method as most of us did with our DRY flashlights.
Its a very nice piece of equipment but i haven’t pull the trigger on this for one and only reason. I would like to have micro usb for charging instead of mini so i will have to carry one cable.
Hope you like it. Mine came from the same seller and shipping was very fast. It’s great around the house, and for light travel. I’m using weak laptop pulls for now, but I like the price point and utility for my needs even without 3400s in it. We’re also trying a ML102 with a 3100 to see if it can make it as a smaller, cased travel package. Still haven’t pulled the trigger on a 4 batt carrier, but that will probably be next.
More would be better if using weaker capacity batts, though. Suspect the other one would also be better for backpacking, hiking, etc. (as long as the carrier holds up). I’ll watch and hope the price continues to drop on it.
