LOL
Frankly, it seems that the plan has already forgotten about about granny…
I also wonder if a ‘granny light’ could end up being attractive to the average BLF flashlight nut,
or if a BLF member tempting light could end up as a suitable granny light.
You and others have some excellent points regarding geriatric ergonomics.
The idea of a ‘twisty ring for the thumb’ interface seems to be good though, as long as it requires only little force.
But still a press button would be better if the user has some trouble holding it, because the thumb is essential for holding things you don’t want to drop.
But, the idea is to have modes or stepless dimming, and not by ramping (which requires the user to react quickly), but by dialing (or sliding for that matter).
As for the shape, yes, a head that’s larger than the battery tube, and the tail should be larger too, and they shouldn’t be able to roll off surfaces, so they need flat surfaces or something. Maybe hexagonal? Challenging to make that look good, though…
How about the size?
A 18650 light seems a bit thin.
21700 lights too.
A 26650 (C-cell width) light would be better.
But how about the type of battery?
Is granny gonna use it daily?
Probably not.
So it should have batteries that keep their charge for a long time i.m.o.
Maybe the light shouldn’t be round at all, but more the shape of a remote control, which could house 4x CR123A, 2 pairs in series next to each other.
CR123A batteries are ideal for lights that always need to be able to work in emergency situations.
…or is she gonna use it daily? Or daily, but only in winter time?
Another possibility is to make it a light with a mains plug, with NiMH cells that can survive constant charging, so you can keep it charged and only take it out of the wall socket when you need it.
Makes it easy to find too, when it’s always plugged in a wall socket.
.
Okay, enough what abouts, what ifs, maybes and other speculations…
It’s gonna be a USB rechargeable, single cell light with a twisty ring user interface.
Probably 21700 Li-ion and with some flat bits on the head so it won’t roll off the table.
The manual stepless dimming should be good for any user.