MiniReview - Preon P0-SS (picture heavy)

Summary:

Battery: 1 x AAA
Switch: Twisty
Modes: High (25lm), Low (.24lm)
LED Type: CREE XPE
Lens: Glass (AR on both sides)
Tailstands: Yes
Price Payed: $22.99 (incl. S&H, code "CPF8")
From: 4sevens.com

Pros:

  • Clean and wide beam
  • Small (smaller than I expected even if I knew the measurements)
  • Mode arrangement (only low-high, no strobes or other unnecessary modes)
  • Integrated magnet
  • GITD "reflector"
  • Perfect low (IMO)
  • Good build quality
  • Appears to work with Eneloops (only tested it once, felt a bit "tighter" but worked ok)

Cons:

  • LED not completely centered
  • Somewhat "dirty" straight from the package (covered in small black "fibres" from the faux suede (or whatever material) in the box)

I decided to order a Preon P0-SS since I'm still waiting for the Tank007 E09 I ordered two months ago. The Preon P0-SS comes in a black cardboard box (pictured above) that contains a plastic box with the flashlight and a battery. I also received a spare transparent o-ring in a small plastic bag inserted into the cardboard box.

The beam is clean and wide. In low mode (.24 OTF lumens) the flashlight provides just enough light to see what is in front of you (1-2 meters in complete darkness), while the high mode gives enough light to spot things at 8 meters (guesstimate, I've only tested this inside since the moon is interfering with outdoor testing ).

The magnet feels strong enough that you feel safe to use it on vertical surfaces. The magnet also helps keep the battery inside the tube. I also like the GITD material around the LED, it helps finding the light in the dark (assuming that you have used the light so it glows) and does not appear to affect the tint of the beam.

The Preon P0-SS appears to work with Eneloops. I tested it with an Eneloop and it worked, only thing I noticed was that it felt a bit "tighter". The button top on my Eneloops is a bit wider than the Duracell button top, so to avoid breaking something I won't use Eneloops.

The only thing I didn't like was that the LED wasn't completely centered and that the flashlight was covered in small black "fibres" from the box.

And finally some pictures of the Preon P0-SS. Note: Clicking on the images will open a bigger version.


Preon P0-SS | Compared to a XTAR 18700.


The box


Low mode (F5.6, ISO100, 1/40 sec) | The LED | The GITD "reflector"


Head | Threads


Keyring & name | The magnet


Some beamshots (F5.6, ISO 100, 1/6 sec). Low mode (mouse out) and high mode (mouse over).

Note: These beamshots are taken indoor without a proper holder for the flashlight and there are many things that could be improved. Any strange reflections/glares in the second beamshot picture is because I used the fridge door as "canvas" for the beamshot . The beamshot in the second picture appears "ringy" which it is not in reality. I used 1/6 second shutter speed since the low is really low. The high mode beamshots are therefore a bit overexposed.

... and nice light. Looks like high quality.

Thanks for posting.

Thanks for sharing!

what about the keyring.. cant it swivel back and forth the full 270 degrees?

Thanks for the review.

I won't order one until they fix the "eneloop" problem though.

More like 180 degrees, between seven o'clock and one o'clock when you have the flashlight standing head down.

Thanks for the review Dimlux!

Nice work. I didn't know about the glowing reflector. That's pretty wild. Makes more sense than a GITD tailcap though. The mouseovers don't seem to be working yet.

That's very good!! ( i assumed between 9 and 3 o'clock which would have s*cked )

i am still waiting for my 4th copy of the Tank E09 to arrive (DD). so small and light-weight, and really safe operation with 10440's incl Protected 10440's. the most notable issue (to me it's not an issue or problem) of the E09 is the low frequency PWM. fresh picture:

http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/7360/allmedandlow.png

Anyone else having trouble with the mouseover pictures? They should work, takes a while for the mouseover image to load.

There's a bit of a delay for me but the mouseovers do work.

mouse over pictures work here, thanks!

1st, thanks for the review. & 2nd, I too am sad to hear that eneloops will not easily slide in. Hopefully, future incarnations of this light will rectify this.

There is no problem getting an Eneloop into the flashlight, it is when you want to turn on the light that it feels "tighter". This is due to the button top of an Eneloop having a larger diameter than the Duracell's button top. I have yet to remove the foam to take a closer look, but apparently there's a chance of "squishing" other components around the positive contact if you tighten it too much.

Here is a picture of the different button tops.

Oh no -- here we go again!