REVIEW : Nitecore EC22

For review : Nitecore EC22

Product Page @ Nitecore

Nitecore EC22 provided for review by Nitecore

I was looking at flashlights one night ( as I some times do ) and I spied the Nitecore EC22 . Two things grabbed my attention right away , the first being the infinitely variable output and the second was the rotary dial . Never mind the 1000 lumen output or the fact that it it’s all put in a very handy package powered by a 18650 or two CR123 . The very first thing I did on receiving the EC22 for review was to take it for a walk . Nope ! , I did not measure current or put it in the light box or anything else . I wanted to experience the EC22 first and then see what the numbers were . When I went for my walk I swung past a friends place and let him and his wife have a play with the EC22 . Now my friend took to the EC22 like a duck takes to water , without any prompts from me he had turned on the light and was adjusting the output . For a non flashaholic to simply use the light so easily tells me that the user interface is universally simple , kind of reminds me of a transistor radio with its rotary dial for on and of and volume control .

After visiting my friend I swung past the local park ( its a big park ) and the great thing is that the road / foot path is raised several meters above the park allowing some one with a flashlight a nice elevated position for shinning a light . For a light with small head and short reflector the EC22 did not disappoint , lighting up an awful lot of ground in front of me ( close to 200 meters ) . At that distance we are talking mostly flood and it is a very pleasant beam profile for those that appreciate flood . Up close ( 3 meters ) the light is more like a thrower , and produces a nice hotspot for detecting dog poop as you walk along at night . Maybe around 20 to 30 meters the hotspot blends into flood really showing you more of what’s ahead , again I found this very pleasant especially with a light you would use for walking at night .

Performance :

Nitecore has put one Thousand Lumens on the box and after playing with my light box , I would comfortably suggest that you can take that output figure to the bank . Unfortunately when trying to get a current draw result all the light would do for my Multi Meter was 1.5 Amp . Now the cree XP-L HD V6 is rated at something like 535L - 1050mA , so I had to take out my light box again and recalibrate it to see what was what . With the MM reading current I got some 1.5A current draw and 738 Lumens output . ( If you do the math = that should be rather good ) Apparently what is happening is that the light ( EC22 ) has a safety mode that the MM activates and so only gives 50% performance . Well if 738 Lumens is 50% performance ? I got over 1000 Lumens in the light box and no I am not going to say exactly what I got but rest assured that Nitecore may have under claimed performance for the EC22 . Now I will tell you that the lowest reading I got was 1 Lumen ( not sure I can read lower than that ) , so what you get is a very broad range of light to chose from . I got some crazy low current draw figure @ 1 lumen of around 3.2mA . ( ? )

Nitecore EC22 :

So what we have is a compact 18650 light that is easy to carry in the hand / pocket ( actually rode in my pants pockets real easy ) , has a user interface that is universally easy to understand and performs really well . The only thing I can possibly complain about is that the rotary switch is addictive , as I was walking I was constantly adjusting the light output for every conceivable circumstance I came across . I just could not stop fiddling and adjusting the output as the surface ( concrete / grass / bitumen ) changed and lighting changed . By the time I got home I was a little angry with myself for not just picking a light level and sticking with it .

It was a cool night so I wore my padded leather gloves and from time to time I found myself taking the gloves off to make fine adjustments , the rotary dial is a little fine for getting a really good tactile response through medium heavy gloves . But then you would expect no less to be honest and while you can use the gloves , making fine adjustments is some what tricky .

Do I like the EC22 ? = Hell Yes ! , PWM = None detected , Parasitic drain = Yes 0.25mA measured

If you are going to store the EC22 with a battery in it I would suggest unscrewing the tail cap a little to break the circuit . The Nitecore EC22 does EDC rather easily and I could barely notice it in the pocket of my pants and if you were to utilize the included holster then the EC22 would be very easy to live with . I really like the EC22 and I would like to see a Tail switch made available for it to make it just that much more .

Superb Build quality .

Anodizing is excellent and durable .

Comes with lanyard / holster / spare O rings - and a battery if you option it .

Clip is firm and strong .

Infinitely variable output from 1 Lumen to 1000 Lumens .

Smooth reflector .

Rotary switch is universally easy to understand and use .

No detectable PWM .

Parasitic Drain 0.25A ( Unscrew the tailcap for lock out )

EDC capable .

Single 18650 or dual CR123 ( 8.4v max ) .

Fits protected 18650 .

Well lubed O rings .

Threads well cut .

Light assembles drum tight .

Bottom line , the Nitecore EC22 is a fantastic little light and everyone I show it to simply loves it . ( Hell I love it ) The only improvement I would suggest for the EC22 is a tail switch . Now I did also get the MT22C for review and I could not help playing LEGO with the two lights . So I used the lower half of the MT22C on the EC22 and ………………. OMG ! Really , Nitecore should offer the EC22 with a tail switch . ( At least as an optional extra ) . The tail switch would achieve two things … First bye pass the parasitic drain and second allow you to set the light level and not mess with the rotary switch after doing so . As delivered the Nitecore EC22 is a fantastic light , do I recommend it = YES I do . And if you insist on a score out of 10 it would be 9.5 .

Thank you for your review :beer:

Does the light flicker at any level or when you turn the brightness up or down, or does it appear smooth?

Ramping up and down is smooth , well as smooth as you can turn the wheel …