My friend is in need of a flashlight. I see their prices close to each other (Sofirn SP32A v2 - March C8 - Astrolux EC01). Can you give my friend some advice. Thank you.
I believe that I read that Sofirn was building the EC01 for Astrolux. I’d bet that their quality would be pretty much the same. For me it would come down to price and which specs I’d prefer.
How will your friend use the light? The SP32A is a nice general purpose light. It’s not real throwy, but is usable indoors or out. Most C8 lights are optimized for more throw, with varying amounts of spill. I can use my SP32A to light up my backyard, or my neighbor’s; I can use my C8 to look at a narrow part of a backyard a couple of houses away.
Sofirn SP32A V2.0
I like the EC01 for the 21700, USB charging and Anduril.
The SP32 is smaller, as a simpler interface, and only takes an 18650.
What does your friend want out of this light?
- pants pocket carry?
- jacket pocket carry?
- pickup and go as he leaves the house?
OK - I just put an SP32 and an EC01 next to each other.
The beams are generally comparable. The Sp32 hotspot is a little more well defined and the EC01 hotspot is a little more diffused.
Stepping through their intensities (EC01 in stepped ramping) they are pretty similar until the last step or two. The EC01 has more steps and does get a good bit brighter than the SP32.
If your friend is not a flashlight enthusiast, I’d lean towards the SP32. It has a simple, very muggle friendly user interface. The EC01 with Anduril is more flexible, and has some neat features, but it is much more complex.