In the very beginning, there was darkness.
It was night shift.
In the earliest days of law enforcement, the only illumination readily available was lamplight. And that was crap really.
Fast forward a few decades, battery powered torches were the norm.
In 1989, when I joined the Police in the cold North East of England, I was issued a big rubber D cell torch which was crap really.
Of course, every Police Officer should be equipped with a solid, black, hard thing, about 15 inches long, in case he needs to clobber an attacker…… Yup, a Maglite. They were the pinnacle for most of us in those days, purchased from the coinage of our own pockets. We’d ooooooh and ahhhhhh at the raw illuminative power it had.
Remember, this was the 80’s I’m talking about - in reality, even if we thought they were the bees knees, these torches were bulky and heavy. A little bit crap really.
Mini Maglites were also purchased by some, yet with expensive bulbs that popped if you so much as sneezed at them, they were crap really.
In the 90’s and Noughties our teams had Dragon Lights. Huge things, as heavy as a Ford Fiesta, with shoulder straps, one single (admittedly bright) mode and stupid proprietary charging systems which all too often went missing, right at the moment you really needed them. The charge didn’t last long and even if it did you were talking a maximum of 40 minutes run time. Crap really.
The last decade or so has seen the rise of sophisticated illegal “green farms” set up in rented houses. My team and I are now skilled in the dismantling of these farms. But, you need light and plenty of it because it is a mucky, dangerous job to tear these down. One less-than-bright spark in HQ (who hadn’t been at the sharp end for a decade or more, if ever, I suspect) decided we needed big lights on stands. Great idea, apart from this fact: The farmers, given that their craft is (a) illegal and (b) very energy intensive with huge sodium lights, fans and irrigation systems set up in several rooms/lofts, don’t generally rush to pay their extraordinarily high electricity bills on time…… No, they bypass the meter and also occasionally string booby trap wires to the supply so that their rivals, should they decide to come and “tax” them, may get a nasty shock……
The practical consequence of this is that farms have to be made safe by the Utility Company who disconnect all electricity, just in case. Therefore big lights on stands can’t be plugged in…… So, instead we were given battery powered lights. Stupidly big, heavy things which hold a charge as long as you could hold a nettle. Probably from Argos or Maplin or somewhere. Crap really.
What HQ should do is let the likes of us, at street level, decide what lights or other equipment we need. We won’t hold our breath.
So……. In a VERY roundabout way, that brings us to my review of the Olight R50 Pro torch. Thanks for your patience so far.
There is also a “Law Enforcement” version available (Pro LE) which adds a couple of features - firstly a more powerful charging dock which can be attached to a dashboard or wall and secondly an emergency feature where the torch will light up in low if there is a power cut by means of the dock sending a message to a little IR receiver built into the torch opposite the switch. Neat really.
However, I’m reviewing the standard Pro version (sounds odd that) which was kindly sent to me by Sandra of Olight. Thank you Sandra, you’re an angel.
This could well be THE only torch that a cop could ever need.
Of course, you may not be a cop. You may be another Emergency Services worker, or a hunter, gardener, dog walker, hiker, even just a normal person.
If so, this could well be THE only torch you will ever need.
Looking at some basics, the box is solid and of high quality, held together with magnetic clasps. Open it up and there is the torch sitting snugly and resplendently in its tailored foam rubber packing with a neat ribbon to pull to pop it out. There is a big printed instruction telling you to turn the tail cap so the torch will work because a slight twist of the tail acts as a physical lock-out preventing accidental battery discharge and for safety in transit. Under a cover are your accessories: a strong, sturdy nylon holster, a 45cm USB magnetic charging cable, wall plug USB adaptor (UK three pin in my case) and the simple instruction leaflet.
The heavy duty nylon holster has Velcro buckles to attach to a belt and a strong plastic clip to hang it from a stab vest or jacket or whatever. It closes with a Velcro fastener. The torch sits very snugly in it, however if the torch is positioned so the switch is either near or opposite the Velcro, when you press shut the flap it can be prone to push against the switch and the torch be accidentally switched on. Therefore either be careful, or position the torch slightly off-centre, or lock it out by a twist or by the electronic lock out (see below) - a small point really and I’ve passed the suggestion on to Olight to perhaps have the Velcro fastener slightly repositioned to avoid this. Other than this, the holster is excellent and should last for many years.
The charging cable base and USB tip are colour coded in the same blue accent that is on the bezel and surrounding the switch. It magnetically snaps onto the bottom of the torch with a solid “click” and then starts charging when it is plugged into the adaptor or any other USB power source. There is a translucent part of the cable housing which glows red when charging, green when fully charged. Very simple.
My USB wall plug came in two parts, the main part and the UK plug style attachment which slots into it.
The instructions are simple and straightforward - this isn’t a complicated torch.
The measurements are 128mm long by 42mm wide, weighing 262g - the torch has a reassuring heft to it and though very compact for the power it has, is big enough to take a good strong handhold.
The user interface is nice and easy - the torch has memory: from off, hit the switch to turn on in the last used standard mode of low, medium or high (though this will default to medium if high was last accessed more than ten minutes earlier). Strobe and Turbo are not memorised. When on, press and hold to cycle through the low>medium>high modes. Double click from on or off to access Turbo. Triple click from on or off for Strobe (10Hz). To use the electronic lock, from off, switch on and hold - low mode will illuminate for a few seconds but keep holding the switch and the torch will then go out - it is now electronically locked - you need to press the switch again for a few seconds to turn it back on. Very simple.
The build quality is absolutely superb. The R50 Pro shares the same design characteristics as many of Olights torches with the hexagonal area where the switch is based, the incredibly uniform and neat square knurling and the blue highlights on the bezel and switch surround. The very clear lens is seated a few mm beneath the rim so it is less prone to get scratches. The reflector is a shallow, well manufactured affair with precise “orange peel” dimpling - this coupled with the perfectly centred quad-core Cree XHP70 emitter means the torch can throw its beam 250m but still has a very usable amount of flood rather than a precise but subsequently skittish ”pencil” beam. There is a sprinkling of Unicorn shite (otherwise known as Glow in the Dark material) beneath the lens, helpful to locate the torch if you drop it or place it down somewhere dark. Precisely machined fins in the head allow for heat dissipation with two deeply chamfered edges at the switch and opposite it to allow you to locate the switch easily in the dark. It doesn’t really matter if you pick up the torch the wrong way round because if so your forefinger locates on the switch instead of your thumb. The switch has a black soft feel rubber cover which is actually translucent - if you try to activate the torch when electronically locked or when the battery is low, the black switch actually lights up red. Opposite the switch is a small IR receiver for use in the R50 Pro LE version as previously described. The knurling is flawless - I’ve looked over every mm of this torch with my glasses on and can’t find a blemish. The finish has type III hard anodising to resist scratches and has a really attractive semi-matte appearance. The engraving of the Olight and R50 Pro branding is spot on. The threads on the tail piece are square cut, very neat and well lubricated. The base of the torch (which also incorporates the magnetic charging circuitry) is completely flat for stable tail standing. The lack of a lanyard attachment point is a shame - sometimes it is useful to have the torch fastened to your wrist so it isn’t dropped or simply to allow you to perhaps write something down or operate a radio or whatever.
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In terms of usability, heading back to the Police scenario, on low (60 lumens = 50 hours on a fully charged battery) there is ample power to search a room or house without being too powerful to make you have to squint. Medium (400 lumens + 7.5 hours) is a solid, strong beam for more demanding outdoor searching. If this torch was coupled with a diffuser, this mode would also be great to illuminate a full room (as in the illegal farms I’ve written about) for effectively a full shift. On high (1500 lumens which steps down after 10 minutes to 1000 lumens for a further 160 minutes) it would be an excellent long range searchlight for suspects or for rescue operations. Turbo of 3200 lumens lasts for 90 seconds but then steps down to 1000 lumens for 150 minutes. The step-downs are a safety feature to preserve battery life and also to prevent overheating. Strobe would be an effective self defence feature to temporarily distract or incapacitate a threat. The customised 26650 Lithium Ion battery cannot be easily charged in a conventional Lithium Ion charger as it has both positive and negative poles in its base to allow the magnetic charging system to work. However, other 26650 batteries can be used, though they can’t be charged magnetically and a separate charger would be required. Lithium Ion batteries can’t be charged in your average household battery chargers because they use a different chemistry to standard Ni-MH and Ni-CD batteries, the likes of which you get in Tesco (other supermarkets are available). In reality, I expect the bulk of customers who would buy this torch would already have an appropriate Li Ion charger. I use the Xtar VC4 for about £20 or so and it is superb. It also intelligently charges standard AA/AAA batteries too.
Pros.
Simplicity.
Compact.
Powerful.
Sturdy holster.
Very high build quality.
Cons.
No moonlight mode.
Holster Velcro position.
No lanyard hole.
Suggestions.
Other than the minor holster issue already mentioned, I think the addition of a moonlight mode and a lanyard attachment point are the only measures that should be considered by Olight. These would then make the torch a complete all rounder.
Conclusion.
I think this is a really strong, compact torch which would last for years and years. At the current price on Amazon of £119, it is a lot of torch for the cash.
Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it.
SP