Guys, I have not open new topic here for a long time. This time I bring new model, some may already knew, the SC28 max 2800LM with a single tactical switch.
I designed 3 programs meet different needs.
Program 1 (default)
moonlight, low, medium, high, turbo
Program 2
turbo, strobe, medium
program 3
moonlight, low, medium
It is easy to understand program1 is for most users who need as many brightness levels as possible.
While program 2 is for tactical use, hunting, or for users who love few modes.
As for program 3, I don’t know how to explain but the “gramma light” was in my mind when I was thinking about some special users who don’t need too much lumens but some light with enough lumens and easy on/off operation. So, it has only 3 brightness levels and max is 350 lumen which I thought is enough for daily use.
Some people who tried the SC28 and complained about the UI. Especially switch programs is not easy to figure out. They said the UI is the cons, too complicated.
I made a video to show how to choose brightness levels and switch programs.
Thanks, but for me (and many others), “No Anduril, no deal”.
I wonder why Sofirn, which already has a strong tradition in terms of Anduril flashlights, doesn’t simply encode whatever UI it wants to ship with in place of Anduril’s “simple” mode. That way, everyone who wants that interface can have it right out of the box, and those of us who insist on Anduril can have it after 9 quick clicks plus a long one, and Sofirn would have lights that appeal to everyone and so able to sell much more of them.
The only requirements would be an e-switch and an ATTiny MCU (but please use the AT1616 with easily accessible flashing pads, just like you already do with the Sofirn SC31 pro).
As it’s designed and being marketed as a semi-“tactical” light, I can appreciate what Barry has done here. I enjoy Anduril as much as the next person, but there’s some applications where I prefer a straight forward UI without excessive bells and whistles to program or navigate through. Likewise, I prefer single tailswitch lights for serious use.
This looks promising for a budget “things that go bump in the night” torch, with some added versatility to set a different mode group for less “tactical” applications when desired.
There’s no need to choose one or the other. Anduril works fine with boost or buck drivers, and has been compatible with those since 2018.
It’s not that simple. There are complications involved. It doesn’t appear that the SC28 is even physically compatible with Anduril, since it has a tail clicky and no e-switch. It’s designed for completely different purposes, so it has a different interface.
Anyway, Anduril isn’t relevant for a light like the SC28. While I appreciate the enthusiasm people have for Anduril, it seems like BLF’s initial response to this thread has been a little rude. The thread topic kinda got hijacked right away, and we should probably be discussing the OP’s light instead.
I know anduril works with boost or buck drivers. But you only see a handful of lights being made that way, maybe due to that making flashlights more expensive? I don’t know why but that’s what I can observe.
Hello, thanks for sharing your experience designing a commercial light.
I tried just watching the video, but I found the text from Amaz helpful to describe the current design.
To toggle through these 3 programs, wait 5 seconds from ON, when you see it flashes, do fast double-click to the next program. It flashes twice to remind the success. If you keep going double-click quickly, it keeps changing programs. After the program being selected, wait for about 3 seconds before changing brightness levels.
I feel like I could potentially switch programs after reading that and watching the video. I might restate it as
“ To toggle through these 3 programs, turn on and continue holding the switch for 5 seconds. When the light flashes, then quickly double-click to advance to the next program. Additional double-clicks will continue advancing. When finished, the light flashes twice to indicate success. After the program being selected, wait for about 3 seconds before changing brightness levels.”
A flow chart diagram would be a great enhancement as well.
Since you asked for feedback, how about Program 3: medium-only? The simplest flashlights are just on/off. That said, picking just three modes to ship sounds like quite a challenge and I think the design seems pretty reasonable!
Thank you for pointing this out. I have my fair share of Anduril lights and they are great. For my tactical (i hate that term for flashlights) lights it has to be simple and quick. I want light and I want it now and I definitely don’t want single mode medium
The UI on the 28 doesn’t sound all that difficult. I would bet that most folks would pick the mode group they want when they first got it and leave it there. I love my “tactical” lights. I have more than I should.
I would keep three modes for Grandma. The biggest problem is it’s cold White. I would tell Grandma to burn candles before I would ever give her a cold white flashlight. Not happening.
If it’s being marketed as a tactical light, for me, forward clicky, always starts in high and goes down in brightness from there. Medium and low are the only other modes I want. But seeing as this is a 2800 lumen light I can understand not everyone wanting it to start in a blinding 2800 lumens.
Its a tactical flashlight. There are much better choices for grandma. If you start watering it down then you run off the folks it’s marketed to. As a duty light and the people who need a lot of light in a hurry “gee this light must be 6349K” doesn’t enter the equation for people needing this kind of light. This isn’t a collectors item hobby light, this is a lets go do work, light.
I do think if you change the description a bit (see my re-written version) then it might help consumers be less confused and able to reprogram the light without any product changes!
The user interface is not complicated; it is impractical and irritating. Accidental and unwanted mode changes are not only possible but also, from time to time, unavoidable, especially when the flashlight is used by children or elderly people. However, this is the only problem with this flashlight; the method of switching modes needs to be changed; the rest is fine
