[Review] LUMINTOP TOOL AAA Cooper (Nichia 219B, 1x AAA)

LUMINTOP TOOL AAA Cooper (Pre-production sample)
LED: Nichia 219 NW
Battery: 1x AAA
Modes: 3 (Low-Med-High)
Switch: Reverse in the tailcap.
Date: November 2015
Links:
Lumintop · Banggood · HKequipment.net · RdL · ForoLinternas

INTRODUCTION:
Lumintop is about to launch a special version of its popular Tool AAA, a compact AAA flashlight with a rear clicky, but instead of the typical anodized aluminum finish, the surprise lies in the material used for machining the body of the flashlight, which its copper. It is offered in two versions: Cree XP-G2 R5 for Cool White and Nichia 219B version for Neutral / Warm version.

The Lumintop marketing department contacted RdL blog to provide a pre-production sample for testing and analysis in the form of review, as well as using the review comments to collect opinions and feedback on this unit, so if you have any suggestions or comments you want Lumintop to take into consideration, do not hesitate to leave a reply or comment, since Lumintop will be reading this review to collect your feedback.

Being a fully machined copper flashlight, Lumintop has sent the unit in vacuum-packed foil pouch to protect the metal from premature oxidation.

Inside the protective bag we have the flashlight, which comes fully assembled with the clip installed and with the tip isolated from the body by a small piece of felt that will prevent any scratches during transport.

It is also accompanied with a small plastic box, identical to what can be found in the aluminum version, were we have a small bag with two spare o-rings.
Presumably, the presentation of the product once sold will be slightly different.
Here you have the pre-PDF version of the user manual.

EXTERNAL FINISH:
Machining is twin to that found in anodized aluminum version.

It is a quite compact AAA flashlight incorporating a mechanical switch in the form of reverse clicky in the tailcap, just like other AA or bigger flashlights have. This makes its length somewhat longer than the average for the twisty family flashlights.


The most striking feature of the flashlight is the material that has been machined: copper. Copper is a metal which changes appearance by external factors, developing over time a patina layer, a layer accumulated on the metal due salts produced by the corrosion process.

Of course, fresh out of the bag, lantern shows no sign of this process and shows excellent uniform polished shine.

Externally the flashlight is dominated by an excellent aggressive knurling, which gives a really excellent grip.

At the base of the head there are two engravings, with brand and logo on one end and the model in the other end.

The optics of the small Tool AAA consists of a Nichia 219A (final production version will have a 219B), perfectly centered in my sample on a small OP reflector. A glass lens with AR treatment and GITD o-ring tops the optical end on a flat bezel.

Inside the head we have direct view of the driver.

The threads are thin and triangular cut, as usual in these small AAA flashlights, and come clean and lightly greased from factory.

The central tube has a small pocket clip preinstalled. The clip can be placed in both directions, but by using the same thread on both ends one can reverse the position of the clip without removing it from its track (just changing tailcap-head), thus avoiding any risk of scratching the flashlight during operation.

The tailcap clicky has a small, reverse type switch. The switch is easily removable by unscrewing through the two slots in the ring that holds the packet from inside. The feel of the switch is good, but maybe a bit stiff or hard when new.

The switch has a silicone coating of black color, that stands quite on the two crenellations of the tailcap, thus precluding the possibility of placing the flashlight in tailstand.

USER INTERFACE:
The Lumintop Tool AAA has a very simple user interface, with only three intensities.

  • On and off: To turn on or off the flashlight you have to operate the mechanical tailcap switch. This is a reverse type switch, so you must completely push all the way down and release to turn the flashlight on.
  • Changing Modes: With the flashlight on, simply partial click on the switch (just enough to turn off the flashlight without actually clicking and release) to change modes, alternating between the three intensities in order: M-> L-> H. We can also switch modes without using the switch, using the twisty action on the head of the flashlight.
  • Memory: Lumintop Tool AAA has NO memory function. This means that after turning it off (after 1.5s from off), the light always turns on in the Med mode, regardless of whatever last mode was used.
  • Block-out: We may block-out the flashlight by partially unscrewing the head thread, thus preventing inadvertent or accidental activation. Due the switch type used, there isn’t any standby current going on when the flashlight is turned off.


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The distribution of modes is fairly balanced, with good agreement between measured and specified. Recall that this is a pre-production unit and the values of the final product may be different.
One detail that I would make clear is that, according to the manufacturer, the use of 10440 batteries will damage the flashlight irreversibly.

PERFORMANCE:
It was time to take a look for performance details of the new Lumintop Tool AAA, and then compare it with other popular flashlights from the same segment.

We have a strange curve, slightly exceeding the 80LM at activation, and then suffers a light fall to quickly stabilize and start curiously increasing its performance during the first five minutes. After this, we have a kind of stepdown where it acts as if it were a direct drive flashlight.

By comparing the behavior of the Tool AAA Copper version versus the anodized aluminum XP-G2 same Lumintop, we see the pattern is very similar.

Compared to other popular AAA flashlights, the Lumintop Tool AAA Copper not particularly outstanding, even for maximum output nor efficiency. Click here for a version of the higher resolution chart.

BEAM PROFILE:
The beam profile of this flashlight with Nichia 219 emitter is very similar to what we find in many other AAA flashlights that use a combination of OP reflector and XP-G2, as the Nichia 219 family is very similar to the Cree XP-G2 in size, so there is not much to say here as this is one of the most widespread profiles currently in this segment.


We have a hotspot of medium-large size that blends smoothly and fairly evenly around the perimeter spill light. Thanks to the small size of the reflector the beam along the edges of the illuminated area is not sharp, and instead we have a pretty nice soft gradient.



The strength of this emitter is in its superiority in reproducing illuminated colors with greater fidelity as would sunlight do. This Nichia emitter tint is neutral/warm, something between 3500K and 4000K.

PERSONAL CONCLUSION:
The new copper Lumintop Tool AAA is a really special light, which retains an identical look and functionality to its anodized aluminum base model, but incorporates the charm of being machined in an “exotic” material, such as copper. Some will argue that the tarnishing of copper and corrosion are the inevitable cons but also some will argue that this process has its own charm as it provides a certain “life” to an inanimate object such as a mundane small flashlight. Personally I like to see how the passage of time leaves its stamp on these special flashlights, providing certain hearth and character.



Lumintop Tool AAA Cu · Fenix LD01 ss · Klarus MiX6 Ti · Thrunite Ti Ti · Olight A3T · Maratac AAA Cu · DQG TinyAAA Ti II

Negatives: One of the big negatives that I see in this flashlight is its low efficiency, especially when compared against new generation flashlights such the K18 or the D25AAA Mini. The inability to put in tailstand is another important point, although in anodized aluminum version has been solved by providing an alternative tailcap that turns the flashlight to a twisty one. Some might prefer a different mode order, especially given the absence of memory function. Finally, it is a real pity that the flashlight is not compatible with 10440, because with the excellent mass to dissipate the heat it could have been a real pocket monster.

Positives: I especially like the care that has been taken even in this pre-production unit to protect the light against external factors that could cause premature corrosion before it is delivered to its owner. The fantastic aggressive knurling makes holding this small flashlight in your hand a nice feeling, and also provides excellent grip, which in this segment seems to be something anecdotal. I also see with satisfaction that it will be offered with two choices of emitter, cold white with the classic Cree and neutral/warm using Nichia 219B offering superior CRI than the typical warmer Cree emitters.

I love the visual aspect of the light.
My only concern as a “pocket carry” guy who likes tiny lights—
is the protruding switch which appears susceptible to accidental activation
in pocket carry mode.
I would prefer a full circumference tail “ring” that more fully enclosed the switch.
( and could also allow tailstanding)
I wonder if I could find a short section of copper tubing to fit in the tail around the switch boot?

great pictures!

Copper is great! Nichia 219B is perfect.

Tools formerly had great efficiency, disappointing, wonder what happened?

Great review with lots of details, seems these copper Tools are really getting some exposure.

Shame about the regulation/efficiency. The high of 80 lumen seems to only hold true for 5 minutes before it steps down to ~50. Runtime seems quite short too. I’d hope future revision includes a more efficient driver with better regulation.

really disappointed with the runtimes and efficiency here…

It's my understanding that neutral or warm LEDs like the Nichia 219B are less efficient than cool white LEDs; you sacrifice run time for a neutral, high-CRI tint.

A nice review :slight_smile:

The packing in an air-tight bag is great; it shows that somebody was thinking and cared.

Runtime and efficiency are sad, and if a light is to be used and not just seen they matter a lot. I also prefer 10440 compatibility which is lacking here.

No light this small tailstands well so I don’t count that against it; they are not really intended for that kind of use. The keyring attachment is great which does matter in these small lights. The clip seems OK but I’d prefer a deeper carry with a wider bend for blue jeans pockets.

In conclusion: There are many good AAA size lights on the market now. Pretty is as pretty does, and this one just doesn’t do it for me- it’s a shelf queen as it is now. Add performance (and maybe a deeper clip) and then I will add it to my collection.

Phil

A single AAA battery only has so much energy to give
if a user is interested in mainly a 30lumen usage pattern, the AAA is a great option
if a user is looking for extended run times above 60 lumens, a larger battery is more capable

my understanding is that the Lumintop Tool with XP-G2 has a high of 110 lumens, and the N219 version has 80 lumens. I dont think runtime changes, I think brightness and CRI are inversely related. More bright, less CRI

my solution is to have both Cool White and Neutral White options for different situations. Example, daytime, looking under a car, Cool White works best. otoh, in the evening indoors with warm white house lighting, the N219 will seem more natural white, while the Cool will look too blue.

If I wanted a Tool for working on a car, I would get the XP-G2. For indoor evening use, I prefer the N219. If I want to spot intruders in my back yard at night, I would pick the XP-G2 because its brighter. If I wanted to ceiling bounce in my kitchen at night, the N219 will make my hands and food look more natural.

courses for horses :slight_smile:

The Maratac is extremely stable for tailstanding, seen here with the N219 head of a group buy Tool, a grail configuration for me:

I think the Tool is the Only single AAA, High CRI, Copper, NoPWM light with reversible pocket clip, currently available. And it Legos with the latest Maratacs… Whats not to Love :slight_smile:

I’ve had this light for a day and I think it’s beautiful, in terms of the way it looks and the light it produces. Worth every penny. It oozes quality, from it’s appearance and it’s heft to the feel of the clicky switch. So far I love it.

I also don’t think the runtimes are too bad. The runtime seems awful when compared to other runtimes in the graph kindly provided in the original post. However I’m thinking that first of all, when comparing the runtime to my other AAA lights, I should imagine it has an output of about 1.5 times what it actually does (due to the lower efficiency of the nichia led). So for example, on medium mode, if I compare it to another light which has roughly (18 * 1.5 = 27 lumens), which in my case is the Streamlight Microstream (28 lumens, runtime graph here Streamlight MicroStream Review - LED-Resource), then I’d hope to get just over 3 hours.

I’ve just performed two runtime tests, one on a standard eneloop and one on alkaline, and the alkaline got just over 3 hours before dimming rapidly. The eneloop was a bit more disappointing, after 2.5 hours it had already started it’s rapid decline (I didn’t see exactly when it started, but it was so rapid that I must have just caught it, so I’ll say 2.5 hours pretty much exactly) and became very dim. But still not atrocious. Just not great. [Edit: I have since measured a runtime of 4.5 hours on an Eneloop Pro, making the original measurement of 2.5 hours on a standard Eneloop unreliable. Efficiency is actually very good.]

What I don’t like, however, is:

1) The difference between advertised runtime and real runtime on medium. It’s nothing like 10 hours. It could have been ten hours of ANSI runtime if the brightness sloped off, but that’s not how it works. It regulates and kills the battery dead in about 3 hours. It leaves a bad feeling when you’ve been told you’ll get something very different. I really liked the idea of a nice medium mode for 10 hours!

2) The way the medium mode is regulated doesn’t seem sensible: When both battery types were almost dead, I let them rest for ten minutes, and then quickly turned the light on and switched through to low mode. It could maintain a decent of level of light - on the alkaline battery, I let it run for ten minutes with no apparent dimming. However if I then did the same but left it on medium, it rapidly dimmed to a very low light, much lower than the low mode. So it seems that instead of automatically dropping down to low mode, the medium mode tries to get everything it can from the battery, making it worse. I’m not sure that is what the electronics are doing, but that is the apparent effect anyhow.

And of course the other problem with it, is it is just too nice. I don’t want to put in on a keyring to get scratched up. But is hasn’t fallen out of my pocket yet, even after a couple of miles cycling:).

Oh and of course the purple lanyard that came with it. Seriously, does anybody think that is a good match for copper!?

Anyway just my observations so far. I like it lots, and if they make a version with an improved driver, ideally allowing it to be a battery vampire, I’ll be getting that.

This post condensed into useful observations:

  • Medium mode lasts about 2.5 hours on eneloop [Edit: I have since measured a runtime of 4.5 hours on an Eneloop Pro, making the original measurement of 2.5 hours on a standard Eneloop unreliable. Efficiency is actually very good.], and 3 hours on alkaline. It then drops off rapidly to nothing.

thanks for sharing your runtime test

> if I compare it to … Streamlight Microstream (28 lumens… then I’d hope to get just over 3 hours.

thanks for posting links, and for all your detailed comments
the XPG2 Tool is rated 32 lumens for 10 hours (18 lumens for 10 hours with the Nichia… same driver, less efficient LED but with more CRI, same power consumption), so I would expect N219 medium to last 27/32 of 3, which is the 2.5 hours you actually got. Good JOB!

Note the Microstream lumen levels after 1 hour have fallen by 30%, I would be thinking of changing batteries or lights by then. (I carry extra eneloops, housed in extra lights :-))

Im still glad you made me aware that the 10 hour spec is totally unrealistic. Reviews are much more informative, and I thank you for including links.

> if they make a version with an improved driver,

Changing drivers to increase runtime comes mostly from offering less lumens.

There is only so much energy in a AAA battery. If we use an N219 we get more CRI, but less brightness. I think the runtime does not change though, unless a driver is set to a higher Lumen output.

For example, the Maratac driver has a 40 lumen medium, rated for “up to” 7 hours… (compared to your 28 lumen micro stream that gives 3 hours per the review, the XPG2 Maratac would give 28/40 of 3 = 2.1 hours on medium.)

Anyway, thanks for the runtime reality check, I think its true for all AAA lights (once you account for lumen levels and LED)

a range of choices I have accumulated, left to right, stock Maratac, stock N219 Worm with same LED as the Tool, modded Maratac:

the XPG lives on my nightstand, the warm tint is nice waking up in the dark

Ive been carrying both of these lately

Happy Tooling!

In terms of this light ‘not leaving you in the dark’ it wasn’t looking too promising initially, as the driver doesn’t seem to drop out of regulation, rather it takes everything it can get from the battery and kills it dead.

The exhausted eneloop, after resting, could only sustain low mode for about 5 minutes before the light died. Fairly typical behavour for NiMH, and this showed that the battery had indeed been used up (it could only light a non-regulated light very dimly, I checked).

But right now I’m getting good results running on alkaline.

The alkaline battery I ‘exhausted’ in the initial test, I left to rest for a few hours. Then I ran it down on high mode again, to well below the brightness of low mode, to make sure it was very exhausted.

Then I let it rest for about ten minutes, then tried turning it on again. It powered up into medium mode and I quickly switched to low mode, and let it run.

It’s now been running for 4.5 hours in low mode. It appears to be full regulated brightness of 3 lumens or so. Plenty bright to walk around in an emergency, it could even get you off a mountain once your eyes are adapted.

The drain also seems to be so mild in low mode that the battery can actually recover voltage even while running. I’ve just tried cycling modes and all 3 work (although no doubt not as bright as on a fresh battery).

Some observations:

  • It requires a higher startup voltage than it does for a working voltage. I.e. on a battery close to exhaustion, even if it had been running okay, if you turn it off then on again, it won’t light up at all. However…
  • If it leaves you in the dark on an alkaline in medium/high (which it will eventually), then you can turn it off for a couple of minutes (maybe even as little as ten or twenty seconds) and then quickly turn it on and switch to low mode - that will give you many hours more runtime of very usable brightness, and it can even recover somewhat while running in low - to give you short bursts of higher modes if need be.

I’ve been trying ‘depleted’ alkaline cells in low-output aaa lights recently to see what they can do. It’s remarkable how many times an apparently dead cell will recover to give many more hours of very usable light. In some ways alkaline even has advantages over lithiums for a low-power emergency light.

I initially thought this light isn’t very good for making the most of a ‘depleted’ alkaline, and while it might not be designed to be a ‘battery vampire’, it’s actually rather good.

I’ve just taken the battery out and put it in a maglite solitaire led. It lit up dimly then died completely in about ten seconds. I then put it straight back in the Lumintop and it worked, and I expect it will run low mode at full brightness for a few more hours.

I’m going to let it recover for ten minutes since it’s been in the maglite, then I’m going to leave it running on low overnight to see how it does.

I like the look of the copper Maratac. The efficiency seems excellent from the runtime graph in the op as well. If it was available with the Nichia 219 I’d probably get it.

Me Too!

The result of the latest run on low with the same alkaline: I woke after 7 hours and it was still in apparently fully regulated low mode, giving off very useable light. It could still change modes though the higher modes were much dimmer than normal. I then came back to it 3 hours later and it was dead. To err on the conservative side I’ll just say it ran for 7 hours while I was asleep.

So the total was 11.5 hours of fully regulated low mode, and that was after running the same battery to near-death twice in the higher modes, and at the 4.5 hours mark I even ran it in the maglite solitaire led until it completely died, and cycled through the higher modes briefly a few times.

I’d say it therefore isn’t a light which will leave you in the dark when running on alkalines, just so long as you remember to rest it when it dies, then quickly cycle it to the low mode when you switch it on - it doesn’t seem clever enough to do that electronically.

Quite the opposite, the low mode is an excellent balance of being much-brighter-than-firefly, i.e. you really can walk with it, but also low-drain enough to make full use of a nearly-exhaused alkaline for a very long time.

Finally I took the alkaline out of the no-longer-lighting Lumintop and put it in a good battery vampire, the original Thrunite Ti, and it didn’t light, so that confirmed all the energy had been used up. Then after letting it rest for an hour, I put it back in the Lumintop. It lit up but didn’t have the energy to sustain a switch to low mode - it turned off when I tried to change modes. So I let it run in medium mode, then it died in about ten minutes.

Summary of testing:

  • You need to manually switch it to low mode to get the most out of a drained battery.

On An Eneloop

  • 2.5 hours runtime on medium mode then a very quick drop to nothing. [Edit: I have since measured a runtime of 4.5 hours on an Eneloop Pro, making the original measurement of 2.5 hours on a standard Eneloop unreliable. Efficiency is actually very good.]
  • After resting, about another 5 minutes on low mode.

On A Panasonic Alkaline

  • 3 hours runtime on medium mode (probably with a gradual drop not visible to the naked eye) then a fairly quick drop to nothing.
  • After resting, well over 10 hours of fully regulated low mode, with enough light to walk by. I got 11.5 hours and that was after ‘killing’ the battery twice in higher modes. Therefore it’s conceivable you could get much, much more than 10 hours if you’ve just run down the battery once.

I contacted Lumintop to ask them what battery they used when they got a 10 hour runtime in the medium mode.

They replied quickly with an apology and have updated their website to state a 4 hour runtime in medium mode, which they say they got in a test, but with no mention of what battery type. I guess a lithium could do it. [Edit: I have since measured a runtime of 4.5 hours on an Eneloop Pro, making the original measurement of 2.5 hours on a standard Eneloop unreliable. Efficiency is actually very good.]

This isn’t the first time I’ve wondered whether a manufacturer actually bothered to test things before they published specs.

Still, as much as you have to wonder how they got it so wrong initially, you have to give them credit for making things better pretty quickly.

I have to admit I’d lost faith in Lumintop’s published specs, and even their latest revised spec of ‘4 hours’ for the medium mode seemed a bit optimistic to me.

However I’ve just performed a runtime test on medium with a brand new, freshly charged Eneloop Pro. I was very surprised to get exactly (to within a minute or two) 4.5 hours of regulated output, followed by a very fast decline to less-than-low-mode over the next 5 minutes.

Unless I’ve just stumbled on a magical Eneloop Pro, this puts my original runtime of 2.5 hours on a standard Eneloop into question. It didn’t seem right that it got less time than an alkaline, which further puts it into question.

So although I’m glad I got in touch with Lumintop and they’ve revised their spec time, I also feel I’ve done them a bit of a disservice with a poor initial measurement.

The efficiency and regulation on medium mode now seems, rather than ‘not great’, actually very good.

So in summary:

  • Medium mode lasts about 3 hours on alkaline.
  • Medium mode lasts 4.5 hours on an Eneloop Pro, and is very well regulated with a quick drop-off at the end (whether this is desirable is of course a matter of opinion, but as discovered earlier, if you don’t want to be left in the dark, you get great results with alkaline for that purpose, as is the case for many lights).
  • Lumintop’s claimed runtime for the high mode is an underestimate, according to the graph in the op.
  • Lumintop’s revised runtime for the medium mode is also modest - they could use an Eneloop Pro as standard if they wished.
  • Judging by the measured current draw on low mode in another thread, the claim of 60 hours runtime on low seems reasonable.
  • They responded very quickly (less than half a day) by apologising and updating their website when informed of the initial overstating of the runtime on medium. Overall, it’s pretty clear that they never intended to exaggerate their runtime claims, they just were a bit clumsy.
  • As stated from the start, this is a very nice light indeed.

I’ll go back and edit my posts if I can, to make it clear that the original Eneloop measurement is not sound. I don’t want to put anyone off buying this very nice light.

I just ordered myself one. Very excited to experience a Nichia 219 for the first time! I will add my comments when I get the light.

Congrats!
fwiw, on sale for $25, Copper Tool w Nichia, use code e8b575