21700 is the future

It’s not a strict EV, but Toyota did in the Prius at least, which is probably responsible for more cells on the road than the rest of the hybrid/EV market combined.

Power tool makers like Makita, Bosch, Ryobi, Metabo, Milwaukee etc are offering 21700 battery packs for their drills and drivers.

As one example, Makita has a new 21700 battery called the XGT 40V Max that they are offering for use with 6 hand held power tools: hammer drill, impact driver, reciprocating saw, circular saw, angle grinder, and rotary hammer.

Huh, that is interesting. Never seen those before. But those are likely to remain on the specialty tool fringe. Packs of 21700 in 5s2p (or in this case 10s) are too bulky for the majority of power tool users. Look at the amount of engineering and marketing that has gone into makita’s “subcompact” lineup.

If anything is going to unseat 18v 18650 in power tools it’ll be smaller cells or a radical change — like 4s1p 21700 if it can perform as well as the 5s2p 18650. Or some sort of asinine proprietary prismatic garbage. People who use these regularly are just not going to go bigger than the already very bulky current gen. I’m 6’6” and a little bit boggled by the clunkiness of 18v tools sometimes. I can’t predict the future, but I’d definitely be very surprised if 18650 based power tools disappear before 2040.

Ladies and Gentlemen can’t we just celebrate and embrace diversity. All batteries matter. Cute little 18350’s for EDC. 18650’s and the big brother 21700 for work around the place. Even that red headed 20700 and lumbering 26650 fit niches well. I prefer single cell lights and the cell variety allows lots of options. So no more haters.

:+1: It is surprising you got away with this comment, but it is so true!

Samsung is currently supplying 21700 cells to Jaguar, and is hoping to also supply two Chinese automakers, according to this 2019 report:

http://en.thelec.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=377

8 million a month, flashlights really are small fish for them. Thank you for the info.

day to day. (not recently) but I used to be in a suit most days. Usually that included a AAA keychain light of some kind and if I was doing retail with basement, or construction site tours, I would grab a 18350. Not even an 18650.

I have a PL47 on the way and it looks small so maybe I’ll try that and update.

For what most people use day to day, that’s more then enough. But I’ve lived through a blackout (our building only, flooding made FD cut the power to avoid getting electrocuted) where the windowless hallways were black once the emergency lights fizzled.

Just going to the community can and back, sure an AAA light would suffice, but if I were stuck somewhere that I might need decent light for a few hours, I’d definitely make sure to have a bigger donk at the ready.

And if we ever had another blackout like the one that killed the whole eastern seaboard, damnedstraight I’d want enough firepower to last me a while.

A twisted part of me almost wants another blackout, just to be able to use all my toys. :smiling_imp:

Pff… not for the headlamps.

Unless it’s for those with a separate battery pack.

I allready got a batteries and flashlights for AA, 18(3)650 and 26650. These standaards provide everything I need. From EDC to power hungry builds.

I don’t plan on investing into this new standard.

Also, depending on the light, eg, the C8F, the fatter tube just seems better balanced (both look and feel) and gives a better grip, and in a pinch you can throw in an 18650 and it’ll work. Won’t even need an “adapter tube” for it, as if you’re really anal-retentive about the chance of the cell rattling around inside, a quick wrap with a napkin or tissue will take up the slack and even provide cushioning.

It’s already a decent-sized light, so the difference won’t be as much as an 18650 tubelight vs its 21700 equivalent.

This post confused me on first read. You say you wouldn’t want to use your edc for more than 2 hours. Then, you wouldn’t buy any 21700 light because you wouldn’t use the capacity. I initially read that as 2 separate points but I think you intend them to mean the same thing. It highlights how differently we use our lights.

Certainly, on a typical need basis I can make an 18650 last weeks or months. I can get by with a minimum amount of light. On a recent 6 night camping trip I had an AA headlamp and 18650 light and didn’t exhaust a single battery of either with lots of use.

On the other hand I like going for walks in dark, solitary trails. 20-50 lumens is enough for almost anything I do. Maybe less. However, even 1,000 lumens doesn’t eliminate the creepy factor. But 3,000 of those units and I feel quite comfortable and let’s me explore some of the open spaces. I don’t need to do that but I can and I like it. And I like going out for hours. I can go through equivalent of several 18650 on a single walk.

^ I was replying to Ventsi from page 2. I see it didn’t quote.

Those of us with arthritis and other mobility problems have to keep the weight we carry down to a reasonable level, so I am actually needing to change from carring a 18650 light to carrying a single AA light. I might finally get a successor to my Zebralight SC52 XM-L. I’m looking at the SC53w. The cells larger than 18650 are definitely not a possibility for me for me now.

I’m liking my Rovyvon E300s Nichia as a home-based light - it is powerful and well-made, but too heavy for carrying on a commute.

Am I wrong to think that maybe 21700 is not as great as I had hoped? I jumped on the Thrunite TN50 but no one else is doing a multiple 21700 form factor. So far the Acebeam K75 and Acebeam K30 GT is perfectly fine with 18650 batteries. The BLF GT70 is also fine with 18650 batteries. I’m starting to think that the 4x21700 is a bit too thick, and the 21700 is only a huge advantage when used by the thousands of cells in a massive battery pack in the Tesla Electric Car? Ha-ha. Maybe the manufacturers outside of Thrunite hasn’t caught on yet. Or maybe the 18650 is perfect and the 21700 is just a little too big for a 4 times form factor; for flashlights? Why has no one manufactured a 3x21700 flashlight yet? -the thoughts of a flashlight aficionado.

Why does there have to be a one-size-fits-all solution? We have different battery sizes for different applications and preferences. This is a good thing.

You are so right, Rayoui. I think it’s just the recent releases of the excellent Orbtronic 3120mAh 30A-40A, Sony|Murata VTC5D, Samsung 24S, and other fine 18650 offerings have kept me captivated. :beer: Cheers!

Nah, we should create a new battery size that’s in the middle of all of them, that will be a one-battery-for-everyone solution!