PD68 Review: Thrunite TN4A HI - 4*AA Light

LED Flashlights – General Info Multiple AA / 14500 Flashlights
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(Click pics for full-size)

The Packaging/Accessories
The light comes with a very nice holster, a lanyard, two extra O-rings, and an extra gasket for the switch. The light comes wrapped in a satin-like plastic bag, then in the holster, then in the pictured box which has more foam on the inside. My sample was provided by Thrunite through their Amazon store, so it was then in a separate cardboard shipping box with air shippers.

The Construction
This light is about what I expected it to be: high quality. The finish is not shiny, but also not rough under your finger. I like it alot. I could not see any flaws or machining marks poking through. The only sharp edge is on the lanyard cutout, which you can see in the top picture. The knurling on the battery tube is on the aggressive side, which is good because there isn’t any knurling on the head at all. The bezel appears to be SS with a bead-blasted finish. The lens is AR coated and both it and the lens are immaculate. No dust or smudges inside (until I opened it up myself). The switch surround is pronounced so it is pretty easy to find, but the switch itself is level with the surface so an accidental activation would be rare. The base is flat so it tailstands perfectly, even with the lanyard attached. The battery carrier is also very nice; polarity is the same on both ends. The LED is mounted on a very thick copper MCPCB, not sure if it’s DTP or not but that doesn’t really matter at these amp levels.


The dimensions are:
115.4mm long x 45.6mm wide
The reflector ID is approx 34.5mm

Here is a comparison with the Supfire M6, EagleEye X2R (same size as Convoy S2+), and an SK68.

The UI is as follows:
From off:
Click and hold: Moon
Single click: last mode memory
Double click: Turbo

From on:
Click and hold: jump to low, then ramp up through L > M > H > L > M > H etc

  • So if you are in Medium and want to go to High, you will click and hold. It will first jump down to low, then ramp up from there.
    Single click: off
    Double click: Turbo
    Double click from Turbo: Strobe

Moon, Turbo, and Strobe are not memorized. So if you start the light in Medium, then double click into turbo, then click off from there, the next time you turn it on it would go to your last used “normal” mode, which was Medium.

Input Current: This was measured with my power supply giving 5v to the stock driver, with my DMM in series to get the measurements.
Moon: 1ma
Low: 28.1ma
Med: 200ma
High: 0.92a
Turbo: 1.47a
Strobe: 0.62a

Output Current: This was measured with the power supplied by the stock battery carrier, and my DMM directly in series with the LED.
Moon: 0.68ma
Low: 32ma
Med: 250ma
High: 1.26a
Turbo: 2.49a
Strobe: 1.14a

Performance:
Overall I think it’s quite good, especially for a light running on AA’s. The properly focused reflector partnered with the XP-L HI makes for a nice focused beam. Other than the typical Cree corona, there are no artifacts to speak of. The fact that you can’t go directly from Medium to High is weird, especially for anyone who has used the Olight UI before. If this was the first UI you learned, it wouldn’t be hard to get used to. This would be a great light for someone who wouldn’t do well with Lithiums, or someone who just doesn’t want the extra investment. The tint on my sample was Cool White. It isn’t as cool as others I have had, I’d guesstimate it is closer to 2A than 1A. Props to Thrunite for also offering it in Neutral White. There is battery monitoring with an indicator in the button. Blue for ok, Red for low, Flashing Red for very low. I’m not sure how reliable it is though, at one time it was flashing red on just-charged batteries.

Mod Forecast: Sunny
Nothing on this light was glued, it all came apart easily. There is a solid shelf under the LED, and the E-switch is on it’s own PCB. An emitter swap would be easy, though I suggest using the stock MCPCB since it is thicker than normal and it looks like there is a thermistor mounted on it. An XHP35 mod with 4S 14500’s would also be interesting.


Recap of the cons:

- The switch bump is the only anti-roll portion of it, so it will roll 80% of the way around before stopping.

- The sharp point on the lanyard attachment hole

- The UI isn’t perfect, but not awful either. It’d be nice to not step down to Low before ramping up every time.

  • The battery level indicator seemed finicky, but it could just be my old Energizers causing that too.

You can buy it directly from Thrunite using these links. Thrunite Direct does accept Paypal.
ThruNite Official Store: (5% OFF Coupon Code:THRUNITE , limited time!) http://www.thrunite.com/
Amazon US: Amazon.com: ThruNite

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I was bummed when this light came out some time ago. I Like Thrunite’s more expensive offerings, and this model looked budget, and well, not so exciting. But it performs so well. And everything I’ve read about this light is pretty positive. The build quality is just really good, and so is the finish. That’s the stuff you really can’t see just by looking at pictures. Solid shelf, and that thick copper MCPCB with temperature sensor; just nice. Maybe not budget price like Convoy, but personally I find the 50 bucks really well priced. It’s one of those lights that I keep checking out regularly (I don’t own one), as well as the TN36-UT (definitely not cheap) with the same design philosophy. And you know what? After its release, this light is still competitive with the latest offerings from other companies. Yeah I like Thrunite a lot. Thanks for the review sir :wink:

3

Thanks for the review.
The build quality looks very good.

4

Nice review, thanks.
Just look at all those wires coming from that driver.
Does the switch indicate cell status?

5

There is battery monitoring with an indicator in the button. Blue for ok, Red for low, Flashing Red for very low. I’m not sure how reliable it is though, at one time it was flashing red on just-charged batteries.

6

I feel like I owe Thrunite one free bump since I posted this on a Sunday.

7

LOL, you owe them nothing other than the excellent and comprehensive review in the OP. It was fantastic as always, PD.

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Anyone knows what payment methods accepted at their official store (http://www.thrunite.com/) ?
Do they accept paypal?

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They do accept paypal on their website

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wow, thanks man for the quick reply :slight_smile:

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I have this and I like it. It’s supposed to the max output king in its class (4xAA soda can format) and it runs well with Eneloops.

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What I also like about this light, is that it maintains max output really well (Selfbuilt’s review) until batteries are depleted. Moonlight mode, 15 lumens, 139 lumens…; really nice spacing as well for everyday use.

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Dang, nice gimme! I picked up the V4A and really like it, but this looks a step above. I am not sure about that ui, would love to memorize moonlight mode. I am very interested in the V3 1A with a neutral white emitter.

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I’ve had this light since it came out this one and the nw version. Just traded the nw one. I won’t get rid of the cw one. This is a great and tough light. Its not very cool like 1a but thrunite is known for that. My battery indicator works flawlessly and very accurate. But my nihm are only 6 months old.
The run times are pretty accurate about 1 hour on turbo. If you try to run turbo on alkalines. 15-20 mins there toast. But in a emergency situation the lower modes will run for a long time when with alkalines. Don’t recommend them because they can leak. But just saying in a pinch, power outage or storm can’t recharge alkalines do fairly well on the low and mid level. Ever since Katrina I keep a few hundred alkalines on hand at all times and enough nihm I shouldn’t need them. But just in case I can’t recharge what I need fast enough.

But anyways if anyone is looking to gift a nice aa light for christmas for people who can’t be trusted with lithium this is a good light. The light will get hot, when the thermal stepdown kicks in its not noticable it’s very gradual. Slow enough that your eyes adjust and don’t notice. But it gets hot before that happens and will stay warm. Seems to just cut it down barely which I like. In the cold weather like hunting season its great it sheds heat well and will warm your hands

15

Great torch. I’ve bought way too many of these as presents.

16

I guess I didn’t realize how long this light has been available. Normally companies send newer lights for reviews. Maybe it was a test if I could be trusted with their more expensive lights…

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I believe the CW version released almost a year ago. But the NW version is newly released, probably around a month (or less).

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1) The light is so good that it’s not obvious it’s been around for some time now.
2) I have noticed that companies recently sent out older flashlights for reviews as well (youtube); for example Thorfire’s divelight and several Lumintop SD75. I wondered why as well. One possible reason is that a review by a fairly popular youtuber means it’s advertisement. Anyhow, I wondered about this as well.

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Per Thrunite’s request, non-aff links have been added to the OP including a general-use 5% coupon.

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That is not correct, I’ve had the both versions for around 6 months just traded my nw version a couple weeks back