[review] Astrolux E01 / E02

Hey my friends!

banggood sent me samples of their new Astrolux E01 / E02 flashlights

shoplinks:

Astrolux E01 CREE XP-L A6 Driver 900lumens 8modes Mini LED Flashlight 18350

Astrolux E02 CREE XP-L A6 Driver 900lumens 8modes EDC LED Flashlight 18650

overview

both lights have the same head/electronics and the battery tube (expected to be sold separately soon) can be swapped.
i like the look and feel – the knurling is big, but not too aggressive

you can choose out of 3 tints (colortemperatures of the LED):
1A (6500K) ~ cold white
3D (5000K)
~neutreal white (my favorite)
5A (4000K)
~warm white

but let some pictures speak:

secured in cardboard boxes with foam inside:

the included clips can be mount both ways

the E01 is meant to use with a 18350 Lithium Cell / the E02 uses a 18650

size comparison!
Olight S1 and S10R / nitecore EC11 / E01 / E02 / BLF A6


lets have a closer look!

the engraving is quite deep (3D-ish)

orange peel reflector (lens IS installed)

the lens is AR coated

the aluminium e-switch

the tailcap is simple with a steel spring

not soldered, just clipped into a groove

disassembled

threads ae nice cut and lubed on bothe sides

same thickness

into the head:

unsoldered the AWG24 silicon wires

aluminium MCPCB – with a fair ammount of thermal grease

the shelf

the dimple in the middle was removed:

drivers spring side

the driver cavity

the switch button is spring loaded and secured

the driver (switch board)

other side

unfolded (no glue between the boards) – diameter is 20,9mm

user interface:

i will add a video later….

short click switches the light on (always in moon)
short clicks toggle to low-mid-high-moon-low…
long click (>0.5 sec) switches it off

double click from ON or OFF activates “crazy strobe” (two alternating frequencies)
single click toggles “bike strobe” and beacon – back to crazy strobe…
double click goes back to normal

if you lock the light by 1/4 turn of tailcap or battery tube it stores the last mode)
-> that is why i have no parasitic measures; DMM was in mA when light started in high

due to a fever and a heavy cold i was not able to make beamshots – they will be added!

but i took some numb3rs:

all measures have been made with 30Q cells (4,1V)

Ampere Lumen
E01
moon 0,001 1
“low” 0,576 268
mid 1,36 523
high 3,85 1050
E02
moon 0,001 1
“low” 0,569 270
mid 1,35 522
high 3,89 1040
MH27 1060
BLF A6 3D 1610
Olight R20 790

clamped to the spring

connected to the tube using a DMM (the power supply is not very accurate reading current)

result: (Amps in Turbo)


the numbers show lo regulation at all – also no low voltage protection!

usage of protected batteries is strongly recommended!

conclusion:

not a great light in stock form – but good

i like them

Thanks for the revealing review (despite the illness), it answers all the questions I had! :slight_smile:

Thanks for the review and breakdown photots.
As some others have commented in the other thread, the jump from moonlight to low mode is pretty steep. My preference for the low mode is around 50-80 lumens.
The no regulation and no voltage protection are another bummer too.

Yeah thanks for the review M4D M4X…

Pity about the modes…

The lack of regulation would be fine… Sorta…

The lack of low voltage protection might be a bonus for the E01…? i.e. Can resort to CR123a at a pinch?

If an XPL HI’s “voltage forward” is lower than 3V, then a CR123a will work fine (maybe only on the “low 570ma” mode though)?

But will a protected 18650 or protected 18350 fit?

very thorough review! thanks!
looks like a promising host :smiley:

green protected Panasonic NCR18650B (longest cells i have) do fit

btw:
i can imagine cyclists will love the behaviour that no mode change happens after short disconnection of the cell
i have to verify by slamming the lights a bit :wink:

These look like nice little lights for the group buy price, but I would like to see them add a tailcap magnet.

just pull the spring and glue one in :wink:
there is space

Thanks for the review!! The side Clicky doesn’t appear to be water resistant?

it is!

Thanks for the review. I might be able to work with this ui and mode spacing.
It’s a bit wacky like people have said, but since they didnt require you to hold switch to turn on, I’m gonna give this one a try.

Thanks! I suppose we could layout an OSHPark driver to fit, with the holes for the vertical board. Looks like the vertical board is supported well by the side slots in the pill area of the body, so pressure on the switch won’t bend/break the board. Not the easiest to mod, but possible with a custom driver board. They certainly could have used a more standard design to make modding easier…
Can you measure parasitic drain?

as stated in the review…

i tried, but the light came back on high when i connected my 400 mA fused DMM :frowning:
in Amps config it barley toggles 0.001 - 0.000A

Ooops, yep. I think the Olight S15 or S1 I measured at 0.001 mA - that was the lowest I’ve seen.

Forgot to ask - looks like nothing is holding down the driver on the spring side? So is it loose or just press fit in place, and counting on the end of the battery tube to hold it down and make the electrical connection for the batt- signal?

correct
the driver is fixed and contacted by the batterytube alone

Is the led genuine? Looks a little weird in the photo’s.

Thanks for the very nice review!

First I was very curious about this light, but now “low” mode (around 40-80 lumens) and no low voltage protection is a definite no-go for me.

Martin some of the picture won’t appeared, or is just my isp blocked it?

hmm all of the (except the first one) are hosted on photobucket.com