A review of the new Olight S10R III torch

Vive la revolution !!!

Well, maybe it is going to be more a case of “long live the evolution……”

At first glance, there doesn’t appear to be anything markedly different to be seen in the Olight S10R III to set it apart from its predecessors. But what it does do is incrementally build upon a tried and trusted torch design.

The retail packaging is the familiar clear plastic box allowing you to see the goodies inside.

Unboxed, it is clear that the build quality is uniform, consistent and flawless - as it always is in my experience with a wide range of Olight torches that I own. Included with the torch is a customized 650mAh 3.7V RCR123A battery, a user guide, a small catalogue of some of the other torches in Olight’s range, a padded and adjustable lanyard with a fine cotter-pin attached to aid threading it onto the torch and a USB desktop magnetic charging dock (which also allows for “USB out” so other peripherals can be linked through it) with a 50cm cable.

The torch has a magnetic charging circuit meaning that as well as using the desktop dock (annoyingly called a “Micro-Dok” - that doesn’t sit well with me I must admit….), it can also be charged “on the go” with the optional Olight Magnetic Charging Cable (these are about a tenner). It now sports a Luminus SST-40 LED emitter, which gives an improved output of up to 600 lumens, doing so more efficiently. It is 5mm shorter than the Mk II version and includes the familiar timer function that many of Olight’s other torches employ, operated by a “double click and hold” of the switch to access a three or nine minute timer.

Comparing it to the Mk II, the output is a little higher, the beam distance a little longer, the runtimes are more impressive.

Here they are, comparing the Mk III against the Mk II:

Beam distance - 118m vs 105m.
Output - with both torches the Turbo burst (accessed by double click from on or off) is maintained for a few minutes then steps down to a high of roughly half of the Turbo output to prevent overheating:
Turbo of 600 Lumens then 300 Lumens (60 mins) vs Turbo of 500 then 300 (45 mins)
Medium 120 Lumens (2.5 hrs) vs 100 Lumens (3hrs 20m)
Low 12 Lumens (33 hrs) vs 5 Lumens (48 hrs)
Moonlight 0.5 Lumens (15 days) vs 0.5 Lumens (seven days)

Both torches have a strobe function, accessed by triple click from on or off.

The S10R III measures 68.5mm (2.7”) long by 23mm (0.91”) wide and weighs 58g. In common with many of Olight’s torches, it is pretty touch and is rated at IPX8 for waterproofing and has an impact resistance of 1m.

In the hand, it feels really great. You can get a good hold of it in your fist. I think this can be an important factor because if you look at the likes of the Olight S Mini (around 14mm shorter), which pares back some of the features to make it as compact as possible, it can sometimes feel a bit too small which makes it a little less easy to use as an everyday working torch. But with the S10R you can get a good grip without it feeling too big. I think it’s a good compromise between performance and size.

The beam is quite floody but that is fine for a compact torch in my view. The beam tint is stated as Cool White but I didn’t find it particularly cool and it was quite pleasant to my tired old eyes. This torch employs a normal reflector instead of the TIR (Total Internal Reflection) optics of Olight’s other small torches. It has a hardened glass lens, coated on both sides with a 99% light transmission rate.

Here are a few pics.

In summary, this is a high quality compact torch with plenty of features. It is likely to be just as durable as the other lights in Olights range.

Thanks for reading and thanks to the utterly marvellously charming Sandra of Olight UK for letting me have this light for review.

Paul