aa and aaa are universal battery. I bet you can walk into a shop at the base of Mt Everest and find aa batteries.
I will even bet an entire bottle of beer that you can find nimh rechargables almost as easily.
And because of cell phones, usb is just as wide spread.
Also, at 500 lumens for three hours or 150 lumens for 14 hours or 15 lumens for 4-5 days, it’s more then enough to cover the vast majority of emergencies.
The choice of batteries is what makes this universal with more then adequate performance.
Well, here’s the deal. We’re at the BLF, where the flashlights are more than “pedestrian-friendly.” Why not make both BLFers and ordinary flashlight folks happy? At least compatibility with 14500 batteries - it’ll be like an “Easter Egg” feature of the flashlight that hot-rods it, in a way the Dodge Demon can run on 93 octane pump gas and M&S tires, or 104 octane race fuel and slicks.
Also USB is wide-spread but not ubiquitous. I know of more than one person who still uses a flip-phone. Not to mention there’s mini USB, micro USB, USB-C. Not every car has a USB port. Everyone’s car though has a cigarette lighter however. They even make flashlights that can plug into them as well. So you’d need really a Type A plug on the light that would double for charging the batteries and charging a phone, otherwise you’ll need 2 ports on the flashlight., or have to sell the light with a micro USB to micro USB, or mini USB, or USB-C, or Lightning Port, etc. They Type A port is a lot larger as well. To ask a non-BLF consumer to spend $40 on a flashlight alone is tough, and it’s a lot tougher when you tell them the USB phone charging feature is a useless as teats on a bull if you don’t also buy a separate cable - which I should add, if you don’t have a MicroCenter or Fry’s around, is NOT easy to find. That’s why USB power banks have both micro USB for charging the bank, and USB Type A for connecting a charging cord.
Like I said before, if I wanted a typical 2-AA light but with a red emergency light, I’d just get something like a NEBO Slyde, make the COB lens red, and put a driver that allows strobe. And I’d save about $20. In fact, it’s probably a better idea to propose this idea to NEBO. It even has a magnet on one end - though if you own a Corvette, Tesla, or Ford truck that’s useless. A magnet won’t work on a McLaren either, but if you can afford a McLaren, you won’t have a need for this light anyway.
Everyone has a USB Type A to whatever phone they have…
The usual receptacle for a power bank is micro USB. NOT EVERYONE has a micro USB to micro USB cable, or micro USB to Lightning Port, or micro USB to TYPE C…
All BLF efforts I’ve seen here are done by a group of people. You’ve singlehandedly have put all the input into this. You get defensive about any questions or critiques regarding your ideas, and dismissive of everyone else’s input. Far from a community project if you as me. Just saying…
Well…i was looking for constructivre input, which some have done.
Some don’t like the idea because it’s not an enthusiasts product.
Some don’t like the idea because it’s not what they would like in a “EM1”.
You chose to argue about usb accessibility where logic and facts don’t support it. Sorry.
I realize that when you have 30 flashlight enthusiasts you will get 30 different concepts of what it should be or do. But no manufactuerer will entertain that.
The concept needs focus to make it viable.
I have a design of what this flashlight should look like but i wont post it because the entire point is for a manufacturer to pick it up and produce it. At this point…it wont help them if it’s there for everyone to copy.
As for being defensive, my bad. I’m trying to focus in and make it palatable for a manufacturer to pick it up.
As i have made it clear before, this is a hobby for me. The idea/concept was meant for community recognition….and satisfaction of creating something that is universally useful.
My last great idea was a square tire. It was a bouncing disaster.
So, there is a difference between wanting recognition for your design, and not asking for a collaborative BLF effort. So, if it’s solely your design, why give it the BLF moniker? This has been a community of shared ideas, and there are countless contributors here whose designs and firmware are made public, with recognition as payment. You say “we” in your opening post, but you really mean “you,” using the community’s ties with the manufacturers as an “in” to push your idea.
I’m not arguing about having a USB feature, as I think it would be handy. I merely pointed out that most USB rechargeable flashlights have a micro USB port, and not everyone will have micro USB to micro USB cable, or micro USB to USB-C, or Lightning, etc. Try finding one at a local hardware store or supermarket - the “target” audience. I guarantee it won’t be as easy as you think. Hardly the thing you want to look for when you’ve already dropped $40 on a flashlight. Yes, USB-A to micro USB is plentiful, but that would require two ports on the flashlight if you want to use it as a power bank.
As to your stat about 4.68 billion cellphone users - I’m willing to wager a beer that at least half of them spent less than $40 on their cell phone, let alone make $40 a week.
I think there are a LOT of great ideas here. You want focus? Get the best of them and put them on a list, then maybe we, collectively, could come with a consensus as to what the most important aspects are.
Or maybe, as Lightbringer had already said, this is just a solution looking for a problem. Then again, people are stupid enough to buy a $19.99 Tactical Flashlight on TV that they could buy on eBay for $3.99, so…
The heading on the post reads…BLF EM1……NOT ….Spartan EM1
It’s an idea that I thought had merit. Posted it to add ideas to it. At some point, I realized that it was going to go all over the place so it needs to be focused.
It was and still intended to be what the title says.
Constructive criticism. Now we are getting somewhere.
I think the vast majority of people around the planet will have micro-USB CABLES……because this is what we are really talking about. The C type is relatively recent and by definition, those who are moving into C will already have a pile of micro-USB cables in their legacy outfits.
A good guess would be that 90% plus percent of the 4.7 billion will have micro-usb cable either in current use or in legacy.
If not, if that 10% does not have micros-usb cable, it is such a world wide ubiquitous and cheaply available product that I don’t see it as an issue.
I do know that micro-usb will be relatively slow but then again, this is a convenience and a back up feature. Particularly if it has to be recharged within the car to make it available again.
As for making it a charging bank. I would argue against it because it would defeat the idea of “emergency”. Although, one can argue that needing to recharge a phone is useful. It could be extremely rare that one need to charge a a cell phone from a flashlight.
Having said that……great. If the port can be a two way without affecting reliability of the electronics, why not.
Good argument…and this is EXACTLY what I’m looking for.
Neither one of us can help that.
I am “focused” and made a list. The design has change multiple times. The reason I’m not making the overall design public is to be able to entice a manufacturer to take it on as a somewhat thought out package.
If you were a manufacturer called out to look at a potential product, how interested would you be if there was a CAD drawing and specifications available for anyone to copy? It’s not going to take too long before it’s copied, but at least give said manufacturer a head start. As a businessman, I would want that.
As a enthusiasts, obviously we want the whole world to make it and sell it for $1.99
Last but not least……
This is a hobby for me….for us…for all of us. I see the merit of adding great ideas, debating features, including constructive criticism…….but not arguing about it.
Thanks for the info, Barry! I’d rather have 4xAA if it can be made to work, even if it means we need stronger magnets. Here is a magnet shop where you can see what amount of pull is available in different sizes and styles of Neodymium magnets. They make Neodymiums of sizes from tiny to huge and a few different grades as well. It should be easy to find what is needed, then decide whether 4xAA can be made to work with what’s available. If 4xAA can’t be made to work, I would rather have 3xAA or as low as 2xAA, instead of changing to AAA size. but that’s my own preference. Others may disagree.
