Disclaimer: Wuben provided this light to me free of charge. Wuben had no influence on the review, it exclusively reflects my own opinions, experiences and measurements.
The light is a pre-production sample; the production version will likely differ in some points. If Wuben updates me about any differences, I will add them to the review.
Introduction
I was extremely excited to see how Wuben evolved
this light. A total revolution, or perhaps “just” a slight improvement? I had followed a few discussions about the light beforehand and therefore already knew what parts of the community were wishing for—but I had no idea what I actually expected myself. You can hopefully expect a somewhat sober comparison to the original, with a few excursions to its 18650 brother, the X4.
Specifications according to Wuben
You can find the website for the light here:
| Parameter | Main Light | Side Light |
|---|---|---|
| Modus | Turbo ~ Low / Strobe | white / red / red beacon |
| Lumen | 1500 ~ 5 / 1000 | 400 ~ 1 (white) / 80~1 (red) |
| Runtime | 1.5 ~ 160 hours | 4 - 289h (white) / 4,5 - 205 (red) - 22 - 1000h (beacon) |
| Distance | 205m | 82m(white) |
| Intensity | 10506 Candela | 1681 Candela |
| drop rating | 1.0m | |
| IP-rating | IP65 | |
| weight | 129g (with battery) / 90g (without battery) | |
| Size | 41.8 mm x 25.8 mm x 91 mm |
Package Content, Quality, and a Brief Comparison
The light is delivered in the white-and-blue folding box typical of the X-series. The light is securely stored in a plastic tray and is nicely presented upon unpacking, initially wrapped in a plastic bag. Underneath the plastic tray are a lanyard, a USB-A-to-C cable, a multilingual manual, and an adapter for mounting on helmet or bike brackets.
All important information is included on the outer packaging.
The quality is at a similarly high level as the X4, significantly better than my copy of the original X2 Pro. On my X2 Pro, the side light can only be adjusted with a lot of force, the thumbwheel is very scratchy, and the integrated button does not react well. All of this has been fixed with the X2 Pro+. The wheel runs smoothly, the button responds great to pressure, and the side light pivots with gentle pressure.
Externally, the light is almost unchanged, only the two contacts for the tail switch are missing with the hole being cleanly sealed.
The battery indicator was adopted from the UV version and sits below the side light, near the USB port. Blue indicates full, red indicates charging. When you turn the light on, the indicator lights up briefly. It features constant blue, blue flashing, constant red and red flashing - I would guess each indicating 25% remainíng charge, but I couldn’t find anything about this in the manual. Of course the indicator works for the side light as well.
The light has no Low voltage protection, if I read the manual correctly, but the included cells are protected. That wouldn’t be very surprising, at least given the possibility of also using 1.2/1.5V cells.
Speaking of the side light: there is no more RGB, no UV. Now there is only red. If you ask me, this is a good decision. I never had the UV version in my hand but read many timesabout the UV light beeing weak. The RGB version is okay, but the colors are not very bright. The new red is bright. Really bright.
Size
Sofirn IF24 Pro, X2 Pro, X2 Pro+, X4, Sofirn SC13 copper, Olight Arcfeld.
The size is unchanged from the original X2 Pro. The light weighs 136g, and I measured 92x41x25/20mm (incl./excl. clip).
Carrying Options
-
Lanyard: A lanyard is included and can be attached to an eyelet on the hinge of the battery compartment flap.
-
Clip: The clip is unchanged and therefore equally good. Stable, good tension, good attachment with screws that don’t block the path into the clip, enough space even for thick pocket hems.
-
Magnet: There is a magnet in the battery compartment flap. This, too, is the same as the X2 Pro and could be a few percent stronger, the light slides slightly on smooth, vertical surfaces. It never fell off, though.
UI
Please note that Wuben explicitly pointed out that the UI is not final and shortcuts may still be added if possible.
Slide switch on Lock: Button and thumbwheel deactivated.
Slide switch on Sidelight:
- No shortcuts from off, only single-click with memory for on and off.
- From on: Hold to switch between white and red.
- Turning changes brightness (both white and red).
- Double-click in red leads to a beacon, which can be adjusted in brightness.
Slide switch on Frontlight:
- Single-click for on/off.
- Double-click for Turbo, also from off.
- Triple-click for Strobe.
- The thumbwheel regulates the brightness.
I have already mentioned to Wuben that a shortcut to Moon or the lowest level would be nice - even better to both Moon and red.
Speaking of levels: The light, like the original X2 Pro, is not infinitely variable. There are about 7 fixed levels that are cross-faded very gently so that it appears stepless.
Beam Profile and Measurements
The beam profile of the main LEDs is the same as the X2 Pro (and X4) when all LEDs are on. No crazy throw, but a balanced beam with good spill and a soft spot. Good for most everyday tasks, if you ask me. If you need it floodier, there is the side light. This results in a slightly narrower light cone, which is, however, beautifully uniform. The two white light sources complement each other well, I could also imagine a version of the light with high CRI side light.
The light lands at almost exactly the same values as my X2 Pro. Just under 1500 lumens, the brightness follows the battery voltage. I have followed many discussions about regulation; there are certainly fans of this declining brightness, but in this point, I prefer the characteristic of the X4, which holds its brightness constant.
On the other hand, the X2Pro + can be operated with 1.5V cells. The X2 Pro+ does nothing magic and I did not conduct a full runtime test since the differences between 1.5V batteries and 1.2V rechargeables can be quite large. With (older) Eneloops, the light reached 160 lumens for the front light and 120 lumens for the side light.
CCT: ranges from 6500K (main) / 6100K (side) in Low to 6700K (main) / 6200K (side) in Turbo.
CRI: always in the range of 67-70.
DUV Main Light: ~0.004 across the entire brightness range.
DUV Side Light: 0.004 on high to 0.009 on low.
PWM: I could not detect PWM with my eyes or a camera.
Flicker is in the same range on all (white) output modes:
I would consider Wuben’s range specification confirmed, I landed at a solid 200m. The side light reaches 80m according to my equipment.
Summary
The X2 Pro+ is a solid but gentle update to the X2 Pro. The “Plus” refers mainly to the red light and the build quality, but that is to be understood in an absolutely positive way. I don’t miss the focus function at all, just like with the X4, even though it was a cool gimmick. The new UI is solid, though a few shortcuts would suit it well.
Perhaps the X2 Pro+ won’t be for every enthusiast - but as an everyday companion, even for non-enthusiasts, the versatile light is well-suited, not least because of the multiple possible purposes and the variability in power supply. For me, the edged-futuristic design is a very welcome change from the many round or flat and rounded lights on the market, Wuben really pushes my buttons with the ECL line.