Hi All, Folomov sent me this sample to test and I wanted to post my thoughts.
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You may have heard of Folomov in regards to their battery chargers, but they also have a few lines of flashlights as well, this one being the first of the “EDC” series and the EDC-C4 is a bit of a hybrid between 2 of their other lights called “CAMP-D4” and “TOUR-B4”. Folomov has applied their batter charging and to this light which can ALSO act as a power bank. If you are looking for an every-day-carry light which can also charge up your smart phone in pinch, then say hello to the Folomov EDC-C4!
Link to manufacture product page: http://www.folomov.com/en/content/?134.html
OVERVIEW
Overall, I like the small but useful form factor with a wide beam and that it can also be a battery bank in a pinch. Also, this is the FIRST light that I’ve finally found to have “dual-layer” lockout where unscrewing the tail cap does not cancel any electronic lockout, high kudos there. The beacon mode is kind of cool as it it more like a light house effect (gradual bright then dark then pause) than a very infrequent strobe. The brightness cycles by walking up and down but you have to get to the end of the range before going back so I don’t think you gain much over the typical loop-around. Also this light is missing a ultra-low 1 lumen mode.
QUICK SPECS
FEATURES
INCLUDED
- EDC-C4 light
- 18650 Cell
- Charging Cable
- Lanyard
- Pocket clip (not in my picture)
- 2x o-rings
- Manual
OPTIONS
This is the only option.
PRICE
Current price is about $50 USD (buy links at the very end of the review)
LOOK & FEEL
OUTSIDE
Overall this light feels very easy to carry and knurling is useful but not too aggressive. The main power switch has a tactile rubber and textured cover but seems that one corner was not cut quite perfect so it sticks out a bit. The head has a little bit of heat-sink fins but it is very minor and smooth. The tail cap has hole for a lanyard. There is no magnetic tail cap.
INSIDE
The light is easy to open, in a good way, and has a decent spring at the tail cap and flat anode contact. Flat-top cells will work in the light. USB cover fits well and is easy to access, and the cover swings out of the way very nicely. I did notice that if using shorter flat-top cells there is less tension on the battery and if the light is tapped the battery can momentarily loose contact. The tail cap can be slightly unscrewed for physical lock-out.
ACCESSORIES
An interesting accessory is the USB cable which has a built-in adapter for the main USB port. This might not be a proprietary cable as I have charged the light using a separate (regular) micro USB cable and it charged fine. Additionally, as operating as a power bank, I had some success in using a regular micro USB cable with a female-to-female USB adapter to use an additional USB cable to charge another device.
OPTICS
LED SPECS
CREE XP-L V6
BEAM PROFILE
Folomov does not advertise the angle of main LED but from what I’ve collected it seems to be a 80 total degrees spill with a 20 total degree spot.
The first rectangular graph is cut across the beam and helps a bit better to see what angle the spill starts at as usually it is quite a bit dimmer then the center. It’s quite possible that a very low lumen outer spill might not register using these methods. The percentage is a relative comparison to the brightest light recorded (generally, in the center).
The second, polar graph, is a simulation of the light along the beam.
Currently, these readings are strictly sensor recorded, and are not adjusted based on human perception of light but may be an interesting idea for the future.
TINT
The tint of the EDC-C4 (left) is cooler than the Nichia 219B (in the Nitecore MT06MD) (right).
OUTPUT LEVELS
I’m not really a snob about output spacing but I did notice that there is no ultra-low 1 lumen mode which I’ve found useful as an average user.
OUTDOOR BEAMSHOTS
All the pictures below are taken with the light in TURBO.
POWER
BATTERY
The standard package comes with a 2600 mAh, 18650 button-top cell.
INDICATORS
The light has a two-color indicator light under the power switch which is used during charging and when the light is turned on.
BATTERY LIFE
You can check the status of the battery by turning on and off the light; the light will either be green steady for battery greater than 50%, red slow blink for less than 50%, and fast red blink for less than 10%.
DURING CHARGING
The indicator light will be red while charging and bright green when completed.
CHARGING
It took a little more than 5 hours to charge the included battery using the on-board charging. The charging resulted in a lower calculated 2400 mAh rating. As mentioned before, the light uses a unique USB cable but I don’t think it’ proprietary as I have used other USB cables and adapters to charge and discharge from the light.
PERFORMANCE
NOTES ON METHODS
I measured the light output in relative LUX and I have not spent time yet to calibrated for lumens so I’ve factored it to % of max output. The charts I’ve provided, while are literally quantitative, I suggest using as a qualitative reference for how the output may behave over time; typically lights aren’t left on this long and the max output can be reset.
PWM check using a 50 millisecond test period with a sampling rate of 3,000 times per second.
Temperature measurement condition is at room temp and currently no fan cooling.
I am still very new at doing these types of measurements so I am no authority on on this subject, but please let me know if things don’t look right or you see anything that I could do to improve for next time.
RUNTIMES
The light runs on turbo for about 2m 15s before dropping down to ~45% output (in green).
TEMPERATURE
A max body temp of 125.6°F (in orange) and out-the-front temp of 166.2°F (in red) was observed for TURBO.
PWM CHECK
There appears to be no significant PWM on any constant mode.
STROBES
Strobe frequency is about 12hz.
USER INTERFACE
The light uses a single-stage electronic switch and features a “walking” UI which cycles the primary output from low to high and then back down to low, but in around-the-block fashion. It’s an interesting variation but you still has the same issue as the regular start-from beginning where if you miss the brightness you wanted you kind of have to start over, especially if you’re trying to get turbo or low. From what I’ve said before, the electronic lockout and the physical lockout are independent so you can enact both methods to have a very secure lockout! I’m a bit surprised that a single click of the button, from off, does nothing. Also a note that when you turn on the light the indicator will always display a color indicating the battery life while you have the light on so this is not a very discrete light. Maybe a drop-and-find mode would have been nice.
CONCLUSIONS
HIGHLIGHTS
- Great small and smooth form factor
- Electronic lockout actually works WITH the physical lockout making DUAL-STAGE lockout possible! Finally!
- Illuminated switch
- Wide beam angle
- USB power bank and charger
- Comes with battery
- Can run the light while charging
COMMENTS
- Brightness cycles up AND down, very unique but you have to go all the way to one end before switching directions, would have liked a quick single press quick combo of a quick single press then a long single press to cycle the light in the opposite direction
- Spring could have a little more tension, if using shorter flat-top cell, if the light is tapped, the battery can loose connection
- Rubber switch cover is not cut quite right on one corner
- Bottom edge of lanyard hold can be a little scratchy
PURCHASE
The current price for the light is about $50 USD and if you appreciated my review and would like to support me, feel free to check out this product on amazon using my affiliate link (does not cost you more, amazon gives me very small % of their profit):
Amazon Link: https://amzn.to/2L4kqED
NOTES
Disclaimers:
- CivilGear Reviews received this product for testing and providing an honest review.
- CivilGear Reviews was not paid for writing this review.
- CivilGear Reviews is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com