INTRODUCTION:
For about $12 you get quite a bit of bang for the buck. The T2 is Convoy's first AA flashlight. We have been waiting for their first AA, and here it is.
WHAT YOU'LL GET:
- White box
- Lanyard
- Clip
As we are used to, the packaging for Convoy is always minimal. You'll get a simple white cardboard package, and it is very very thin. I received mine in a much bigger box, filled with stuffing. But its hard to complain at this price point. Convoy has been making nice budget lights for quite some time now, so I'm quite excited to see how this T2 performs.
HANDLING OF THE LIGHT
How many AA flashlights do you own? I have had a few dozen, and the Convoy T2 is not one of the smallest. It's a little bulky for an AA flashlight. The grip is good, and the included pocketclip helps with grip as well.
It's been in my pocket yesterday and most of today, so I can get a good feeling for it.
Pocket clip
The pocket clip itself is reversible, so you can either use it with the clip upwards, or downwards. This can definitely be a Pro for some. I personally don't care so much with AA flashlights. But it is definitely handy, so you can attach it to a baseball cap for instance.
Tailstanding?
- Yes, easily.
BUILD QUALITY, KNURLING AND ANODIZING
Anodization is the coating of a flashlight. The quality of anodisation with all Convoy flashlights is very good. I would say, it is even better that a big flashlight brand, Klarus.
The build quality is top notch in this price range! All parts are easily taken apart, and no glue is used anywhere. The knurling on the body is done really well for this price. Nothing to complain.
THREADS
The tailcap can be unscrewed and has some gorgeous threads.. LOL. Nicely done and no problems to be found. The parts screw in very nicely without any squeaky sound. They came lubed, as you can see in the following pictures.
The threads near the head are bare, so they can make good contact, and the threads on the tail side are anodized, so a quick twist of the tailcap does a permanent lockout. Is that necessary? Not really with this kind of flashlight. It is more useful for flashlights with an electronic side switch. Because they tend to discharge the battery.
LED, LENS BEZEL AND REFLECTOR
The reflector is made of aluminum and has an orange peel effect. This means that the reflector is not smooth, but has a "rougher" finish. This results in a smoother beam with less harsh hotspot and lines around the hotspot.
There isn't really a pill, it's just part of the head.
THE LED
Take a look at the pictures to see the LED, the reflector etc. Mine is a 4000-4500K neutral white LED.
DIMENSIONS AND WEIGHT:
- Length: 93 mm
- Diameter head: 21 mm
- Diameter reflector 15.5 mm
- Diameter body: 21 mm
- Weight empty: 51 grams
Below you can see a comparison with the BLF A6 and the Enogear AA stainless steel. And on the outsides, you can see an Eneloop AA battery and on the right a Panasonic NCR18650B 3400 battery.
SWITCH:
It's a reverse clicky switch. This means that you have to press the switch and release to turn it on. A forward clicky means that when you depress the switch partially the light will turn on. I don't think it is very useful to have a forward clicky on this style of flashlight. A forward clicky is only useful if you can do morse coding. Or at least not changing modes!!
MODES:Low-Medium-High
Just like it should be. From Low to High. But there is 1 thing I don't like about it, and that is the strobe. Strobe can be accessed a little too easy by a double click. This is in my opinion not very useful. I would prefer a double click to go to Turbo mode instead :--)
I scratched my head because I couldn't figure out when the strobe was accessed. Sometimes it would go from medium to strobe, and sometimes from High to strobe.. But then I realised I accessed Strobe because of the double click.
The problem is that I sometimes want to go from Low to High but accidentally enter Strobe. Now I know that I should be a bit slower change modes, and then this is no problem anymore. So once you know the "drawback" you're good to go.
MOMENTARY ON:
- No, and it would be impossible to have with this type of driver.
MODE MEMORY:
- Yes. The last used mode setting is memorized, and even doing a physical unlock doesn't change the thing, as it will memorize the setting.
LOCK OUT:
- Yes, it can but is not necessary with this type of light.
- Yes, on Low and Medium I could easily notice it by waving the flashlight in front of me. This is a little sad, but could be expected at this price range.
PERFORMANCE:
The following numbers are measured with a 1st gen eneloop cell. They are measured at the tailcap, not the emitter.
- Low: 0.03A
- Medium: 0.30A
- High: 2.7A
The 2nd 3rd and 4th column are my measurements in my integrated sphere, and can't be reproduced by anybody.. It's "calibrated"with a Convoy S2+ with a solid 137 lumens.
These numbers are taken within 5 seconds after turning on!!!!
| Convoy T2 | Low | 91 | 1 | 91 | 2.47 Lumens |
| eneloop | Med | 1046 | 1 | 1046 | 28.38 Lumens |
| High | 809 | 10 | 8090 | 219.47 Lumens | |
| A-Force Alkaline | High | 815 | 10 | 8150 | 221.10 Lumens |
| Panasonic red+white | High | 516 | 10 | 5160 | 139.98 Lumens |
Keep in mind that 100% just means the output when the light starts!!! Not lumens.
I've done several runtime tests. The first with a 1st generation Eneloop AA. The strange thing happens around 27 minutes, it will burst into a 400 lumen flashlight and then drops slowly to below 1 lumen after 35 lumens.
The next is done with a cheap A-Force alkaline battery, and you can see the jump in output much earlier. Around 7 minutes the burst starts and slowly reduces output till about 37 minutes, when it turns off.
Lastly I used a cheap Panasonic AA battery, red+white. The packaging says for Low drain device, but this ones can't handly any kind of boost.
Just to make a little more complete, I'm planning on doing a runtime test with a Duracell battery as well, as that is one of the most common batteries found on the planet, so keep an eye on review of the Convoy T2 on my website.
Measured at 5 meters:
- 113 lux on the old meter in High. That corresponds to 2825 cd or 2kcd. So, not very exciting, but we weren't expecting anything.
Conclusion:
PROS
- Simple UI with 3 main modes
- Good pocket clip
- Price is reasonable low
- Safe to use because of the battery type
- High output even on Alkaline (althouth I don't recommend using Alkalines)
CONS
- Strobe is too easily accessible with a double click (but once you know it, you can probably live with it)
- PWM in low and medium
- Little unpredictable that it will boost all the sudden in High mode.
Sample provided by Gearbest for Review.
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