Recently, I got a new SC52w L2 to replace an old SC52w (which I gifted to my brother). I also recently got an Eagletac D25A2 with the same neutral white XM-L2 T6 emitter as the Zebralight. Comparing the two was actually rather interesting. In turbo, the D25A2 initially produced an output that was somewhat brighter than H1 in the SC52w with NiMH (but NOT brighter than the SC52w on H1 with a 14500). After a little over three minutes, it stepped down to an output that was more or less equal to the SC52w on H1. Maybe a little less. All of this got me wondering. If a good 1xAA light can equal one of the brightest 2xAA lights on its highest setting, is there really an advantage to going 2xAA rather than 1xAA other than runtime? Or is the 2xAA format basically obsolete?
I think the answer is yes and no.
2AA will always offer more potential over 1AA (NiMh/lithium primary) in runtime and performance, if the light is configured and setup to do so.
But it’ll always be bigger too. And at this end of the market a 2AA light is bigger than an 18650 (if not as wide). So the benefit is diminished.
So in the premium and hobby end of the flashlight market, yes they are probably redundant, as other alternatives can be smaller, more powerful, better run time or all three.
In the wider mass market, then a 2AA on alkaleaks has a definite performance advantage over a 1AA light.
This kind of makes me wonder why nobody has felt any need to ‘configure and set up’ a 2xAA light to actually put out. Or why no high current 2xNiMH drivers exist. For YEARS now, drivers providing much over 1A are simply not available.
Runtime is/could definitely be better with 2AA cells..
size and handling is another thing.
Even if 2AA would have the same brightness and runtime as 1AA I probably still wouldnt feel bad using it.
Its not always that you have to compare it with another flashlight.. sometimes the feel/quality/mode spacings/output levels/tint are more important (for the user).
if someone only cares about brightness, than I guess a 1AA light (like the one you mentioned) would look more interesting if you compare it with 2AA lights?!?
So my answer would be no...
its not just about brightness!
Have a look:
http://www.thrunite.com/thrunite-neutron-2a-v2/
http://www.thrunite.com/thrunite-archer-2a-v2-cw/
The neutron is the only AA or 2AA NiMH that doesn’t feel outdated to me.
So which lights do you feel are outdated? And why?
Have some examples to share?
Literally every other AA and 2AA light has much less output than the neutron, which also leads me to believe their efficiency is also much less. The only ones I have are a 1AA by CQG and the ST25 and I don’t care for them compared to li-ion lights. My ST25 might be defective though because it sometimes flickers on turbo.
Ok gotcha! I guess I grew over that. For me not every light has to be the brightest.. in a year I'd have to find yet another light to keep it on top. These days I care more for other things, like ui,modes,ease of use, handling,fitting in my hand, quality,and a little about tint. Brightness is nice, but not the ruling factor for me anymore. (At least not for every light).
If your AA has a magnetic tail cap feature, that is another advantage for the single AA over 2AA. The Olight S15 has a magnetic tailcap and optionally comes with a 2AA extention. The magnetic tail cap feature makes it an awesome work light but the magnet is not strong enough to support the 2AA version, but I do like the extention option of longer run time when needed.
The 2AA light is only as obsolete as single AA lights without the magnetic tail cap feature.
The option of 2AA extention makes the Olight S15 among the best of all possible worlds
I agree. Output is only part of the story. I like basic AA lights for size and runtime.
14500 lights often get too hot and just don’t last on max output due to the low mAh of these batteries.
I keep a NiMh powered POP lite (like a Led Lenser) 1xAA by the bed, as it’s small, bright enough and lasts for months on a single charge with regular use. A 14500 light only lasts a week or less.
I built up a 2xAA P60 light for a friend of mine who I don't trust with Li-Ion cells. I think 2x-AA lights have a niche for certain users, but I vastly prefer a single-cell configuration for my personal AA/14500 sized lights. I would prefer a single 18650 light over the extra length of a 2x AA-cell light. One of my earlier flashlight purchases was a C3 with the extension for a second AA cell. I've never used the extension though as I prefer to use a single 14500 instead.
I still keep a couple of floody 2AA lights around the house. With eneloops, they can sit for weeks with no charge and then handle everything from walking the dog to a power outage.
I have a Nitecore MT2A as my EDC, it is slim enough to fit a Maxpedition “Fatty” with ease, the 2xAA giving it a decent runtime on Eneloops with four spare in a battery case inside the Fatty as well. The slim size makes me carry this every day yet I have more Solarforce L2’s than I can easily carry, using 18650’s. I use them for specific tasks like ceiling bounce light for photography.
2xaa driver is possible I guess.
Despite the single aa 7880 driver from DX is designed for one aa, I’ve tried 2xaa with it and got readings up to 1.96a and fried 3 of my Chinese switches and springs just from 2 aa alkaleaks.
Tossing eneloops fried the board immediately but I do hope someone could improve the 7880 driver for modding use
Consider the Olight S20. It is equally as slim as the MT2A head while offering higher output, longer battery life, lighter weight, a tailcap magnet, and a better ui.
+1, well stated.
The problem here is that neither of these lights maintain their output (much like the Eagletac). They appear to step down to lower outputs after a VERY short time. They’re certainly not very forthcoming about these stepdowns. But when you see that the runtime of the Neutron goes from 212 minutes to 230 minutes when brightness is dropped from 730 to 230 lumens (which, by the way, is less than many 1xAA lights), you KNOW that there is a QUICK stepdown. Also, with the Archer, you are NOT getting 450 lumens for 100 minutes! Two AA batteries just can’t do it.
The only trick is finding one that works properly.
The other trick is getting the light in neutral tint. Lately, cool white has become a MAJOR turnoff for me.