Video + Written Review: Wuben Gecko E61 > “Multifunctional and Tactical Penlight" – 130 lumens - 4 tips

Hi BLF!

This is my Unboxing / first impressions video and my written review about the Wuben Gecko E61 multifunctinal and tactical penlight!

The Wuben Gecko E61 was sent by Wuben for review. As mentioned in the video, and as informed by Jelina, to whom I thank, this is a “review sample version, not the final sales package” .

You can find some more information about it here (non-affiliate):

Here’s another video review (in German):


PACKAGING & FLASHLIGHT

The ‘Gecko’ E61 is technically a pen and a flashlight, therefore, a let’s call it a penlight! We can also name it a multifunctional tactical pen! :stuck_out_tongue:

It arrived inside a “special” box, along with a USB to Micro-USB cable (60cm) , extra 2 tips (inkless and stylus), and a simple leaflet with some general information on the specs.

Aesthetically, I find it nicely done. Most part of the body is black, having grey parts namely the pocket clip, rotatable head and the rotatable head’s side pads.

Ergonomically, for my hands and handwriting style, it fits and suits me well, with those “pads” helping on the location of index and thumb fingers.

The Wuben Gecko E61 is made of aluminium and has a very solid feeling, which may be due to the one piece body structure, where the rotatable sections will couple. It is impact resistant up to 1m and it is rated at IP66 waterproof level.

In the middle of the body, this penlight also has a magnet (eventually removable) , which can be pretty helpful in case you need an emergency “work light” (when the light section is open).

Weight and Size:

In the front side it has the 360º rotatable “head”, constituted by 2 sections in which you can screw-in 4 different tips: stylus, inkless, ballpoint, and zirconium (aka “the glass breaker”).

About the ballpoint pen itself, it has a…small refill, which I think can be replaced by almost any common refill with plastic tube (not metal). I thought it would have a bigger refill but… I guess we’ll have to look to this penlight for its multifunctions beyond the writing :wink:




On the rear side it has a 270º rotatable “section” where the 5 LEDs, the e-switch and the USB port are placed, and it also has a non-detachable (or screwed-in) deep carry pocket clip. The rotatable section has 2 “detents”, on the 180º and the 270º degrees. However, it can be use almost at any inclination once it is open.

It has a built-in 120mAh Li-polymer battery, a side e-switch covered by a silicone cover with a transparent “W”. I am not able to identify 5 LEDs, I can only tell that it has 3 white light, 1 blue light and 1 red light LEDs.

One thing I like about this penlight is that the lights can be turned ON and used even when it is closed due to the “hole” through which we can see the leds. So, it doesn’t need to be open to be used.


USER INTERFACE ‘n’ OPERATION & OUTPUT ‘n’ RUNTIMES

About the User Interface, I can tell that it has 3 white light levels (Low-Medium-High) and a blinking mode in which there is “blinking blue” > “blinking red” > “blinking blue & red” (repeats).

It has memory for all the modes.

Operation:

- Turn ON / OFF: single click from any level/mode

- Change white light levels: from ON, press and hold

- Enter blinking mode: from ON or OFF , double click

  • To change from blinking mode to white light: from ON, press and hold 1.5s

Concerning Output and Runtimes, according to specifications:
Low output is 3 lumens for 15 hours
Medium output is 30 lumens for 2.5 hours
High output is 130 lumens for 1 minute + 40 lumens for 45 minutes

——/////——

To operate the “head”, you need to make a small press forward to unlock the rotating head, and then…rotate it to the other tip and lock it again! Done! :wink:


CHARGING & BATTERY LEVEL INDICATION

About the charging process, the cable needs to be plugged in into the USB port located in inner side of the lights’ rotatable section. When charging, the light on the e-switch will be RED, and when charged it will turn to BLUE.

When turning ON the lights, if the battery is almost full, the led on the switch will be constant blue. When the battery has already been used, the switch will blink blue 9 times. And I guess that when it is more drained, it will be constant red and/or blinking red, but I didn’t use it that long to know yet :smiley:


ILLUMINATION & FUNCTIONALITY

Altough I can measure it, the White LEDs are not High-CRI. They are Neutral to Cold white, but maybe due to the “diffuser” they have protecting them, the beam is what I would call “pure white”. No shifts, no artifacts.
The beam supposedly reaches 8m distance (maybe a little bit more on High, but not much).

It doesn’t have PWM on any white light mode. The blinking mode…well, it is already blinking :stuck_out_tongue:

With the light section open! To change modes, we need to press the switch up there, in the upper edge of the light section…

With the light section closed. This way, changing modes is easier, as the switch stay in a good position in the middle of the pen body.

Beam pattern, don’t pay attention to the “supposed to exist” light difference.

Some tint comparison!
Left to right:
Vs RovyVon E200u – 2 x XP-G3 S3 6500K (under 2 clear TIR optics)
Vs Wuben TO50R – 4 x Samsung LH351D 5000K (under clear quad optic)
Vs RovyVon A23 – Luxeon V2 4000K (under frosted TIR optic)

And about functionality!
The difference from Medium to High is not much in terms of eye perception, but it increases alittle bit, what is useful in some situations. For most of the time, I guess Medium will be enough, though.

When writing

The blinking colour mode is actually…not necessary. Nor when writing, not when doing other things, but here’s a capture. Now imagine it “strobing” :confounded:

Illuminating something at close range! The floody beam is pleasant to the eye, but is really just for close illumination !


THINGS… and OVERALL APPRECIATION

Just a slight comparison with other…pens and among the Wuben family! :wink:

——/////——

This is my first “multifunctional tactical penlight”! It is an overall well-built and versatile item, and I do appreciate the different tips and the different illumination levels.

I don’t actually see a point on using blinking modes on this penlight, I’d rather have non-blinking blue and red, or, instead, some High-CRI LEDs. Also, I’d rather not have memory for the blinking modes, once they can be accessed from OFF with a double click

I do like the click ON – click OFF operation, and I also like the magnet it has, specially for emergencies when a working light can be useful!

I wish the ballpoint refill was a bit bigger, to make the pen more…pen!

Despite this, I think this is an interesting and useful multifunctional pen that although a bit “gimmicky” can have a real use, even as back-up pen/light!

This said, I thank again to Jelina and Wuben for this opportunity to review the Wuben Gecko E61!

Thanks for looking!…
:beer:

Thanks for showing!

A civil version with blue and red pen colors instead of blue and red LEDs would be nice. No need for blinkies and glassbreaker. The foldable light bar in combination with the magnet is nice. Could be really useful.

Thank you Unheard :wink:
Yup, a version like that would be nice. No blinkies at all for me would be much better! Or at least not having memory for those modes.

BTW, here are some beamshots using the pocket clip and magnetic feature too!

For those interested, this is the link for a pack of 50 refills for this penlight:

Price is $9.90 (shipping not included)