Olight S1 review by a non-flashaholic

lumenbeing · 2018-04-25T19:42:56.000Z

I was looking for a flashlight that I could carry on my keys, but was powerful enough to use for work around the house. I was looking for one with different modes, ideally with direct access, and I wanted a clicky rather than twisty (I already had an iTP N1, but it’s kind of annoying to pick out from between the keys and requires two hands to turn on and change modes).

I was considering Nitecore TIP in the lower price range, and Olight S1, S1 mini, and S1A, all more expensive. The Olights have a lot of advantages over the Nitecore, and the decision came down to cost — I decided to splurge. Because I was going to carry it on my keys, size was a factor, so I eliminated S1A due to size, and eliminated the mini since with the clip removed it can’t be attached to a keychain. The S1 also has the following advantages:
strong tail magnet
medium modes — I thought I’d like 8/80 better than 5/50 (S1A) or 15/60 (mini).
UI (e.g., moonlight not memorized)
keychain-attachable at the back rather than front

I’ve been carrying the S1 for some weeks now, attached to my keyring using the clip from the N1. My impressions so far and reflections on my decision:
Clicky is definitely better than twisty. Direct access to multiple modes is great. I’ve never had it go on in my pocket.
Quality is quite good, pictures of the TIP make it look like it’s not in the same league. Makes me feel better about splurging.
Magnet is strong, can be annoying since it sticks to the keychain clip, but I’d rather have it for when it’s useful than have a weaker magnet that doesn’t do the job.
I like the existing modes, but could use another mode between 80lm and turbo, maybe ~200lm.
I don’t actually like mode memory, I’d rather have one configurable default so the behavior is more consistent (i.e. so I don’t forget that the last time I used it I happened to use turbo, and when I turn it on expecting 8lm I get 500). Direct access somewhat eliminates the need for and reduces the benefit of mode memory. I’m glad moonlight is not memorized.
I use moonlight more than I thought I would.
Would prefer a more floody beam for most of my usage.
Size seems to be less of a factor than I thought, I carry it with the pocket clip even though I don’t use it much since it’s on my keychain. I probably could’ve gone with the S1A for the battery versatility and additional 200lm mode even though it’s slightly larger.

Overall, I’m happy with my purchase. If I were buying two flashlights, one for home use and one for my keys, I’d probably get the TIP for my keys for the floodier beam and slimmer case, and the S1A (or S2A) for home — magnet, tailstand, IPX8, longer run time. But as a jack of all trades, I think I made a good choice.

DavidEF · 2018-04-25T20:53:21.000Z

I had the S1A (until I let someone use it and they never brought it back) and I like the size of it for EDC. The versatility of being able to use AA cells is a really nice thing. I noticed the driver had some confusion with LiFePO4 cells. The driver wouldn’t let me use Turbo, I guess because of the slightly lower voltage compared to IMR, even though it is far above the voltage of a single AA cell.

Some other S1A reviewers found another oddity. When the flashlight is off, if you shine another light source at the LED, it would come on! After I was told about it, I tried it with mine and it did that too. I wonder if your S1 does this. Would you try it and let us know?

lumenbeing · 2018-04-26T16:59:19.000Z

I’ll try when I get a chance, but in this thread there’s a post saying it’s only the S1A.

WalkIntoTheLight · 2018-04-26T17:17:32.000Z

DavidEF:

Some other S1A reviewers found another oddity. When the flashlight is off, if you shine another light source at the LED, it would come on! After I was told about it, I tried it with mine and it did that too. I wonder if your S1 does this. Would you try it and let us know?

Wow, that’s a pretty major design flaw! It must be the driver responding to the slight current that an LED will generate if you shine light on it. But… wow… it should not do that, or they should put a diode in the circuit to stop it. Luckily it’s just a AA light so doesn’t pose a safety issue; I’d hate to think of a 18650 light coming on in max if daylight hits it.

jon_slider · 2018-04-26T20:33:07.000Z

lumenbeing, congrats on your new Cool White, Negative R9, Low CRI Light w tail cap keyring connection. Thats a nice feature but I dont use a light on my keys, I like it separate. I dont use the magnet feature on my Olight S1 Mini High CRI

The Olight S1 Mini High CRI is the smallest, and lightest of the Olights. It also has a useful high mode, in addition to moon, low, medium, and Turbo, a total of 5 modes. It also has a low battery warning light in the switch, so no need to open the light to measure battery voltage. I recommend the S1 Mini High CRI (despite its green tint). You might be able to swap on the S1 tailcap to gain the keyring connection.

I dont mind the mode memory, it can be useful, and I can always start on moon directly and ramp up

my cool white, negative R9, low cri lights see the least use
my High CRI lights see the most use, particularly the ones modded to Warm and Neutral CCT

~~X3~~:

Okay, something strange about the S1A :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XmhmzPSE10

he seems to be using a UV light to trigger the S1A to turn on
I tried my UV light on my S1 Mini and S Mini and they do not do that

mattlward:

I just tested mine and it does it as well! The brass, copper and aluminum S1 Batons and the S10R II do not do it! That is so cool…

StandardBattery:

~~X3~~:

Okay, something strange about the S1A :
…

That is one cool find.

S1A SS - Activated by UV

S-mini Ti - not activated

S-mini Copper - not activated

S1 Ti - not activated

here is what I mean by negative R9 (the Red bar)
images from this post by maukka

you can also see that the CW LED in Olight Batons makes red look brown and makes orange/yellow more lime green/yellow

for comparison of R9, here is the Olight S1 Mini High CRI that uses an XP-G3, compared to a Lumintop aaa Worm w N219b (similar to the LED in the Lumintop aaa Tool and Maratac aaa)

spectrum images from maukka’s post
the hand and coral are mine