Provided for review by: https://www.zanflare.com/
Product page: https://www.zanflare.com/category-flashlight-zanflaref1
For review I have the Zanflare F1 and I have to be honest and say I could find nothing of consequence to complain about . What we have here is a flashlight that is well made and works as it should , as well has the blinky modes hidden which makes me ever so pleased . A quick description = Single 18650 / 2x CR123 or 2x RCR123 ( 16340 ) with a USB charge port that charges either a single 18650 or 2x RCR123 . I have tested the USB charge port with a single 18650 but not as yet with 2x RCR123 . ( More latter ) .
Using the F1 is as simple as turning the light on with a press of the tail clicky , then clicking the mode switch once to change light levels . What I absolutely love is no matter how hard or fast you click the tail switch the light will not change modes , you need to click the mode button for that . To get to the blinky modes just hold the mode button down for about 3 seconds and to get out of disco mode just hold the mode button down for about 3 seconds again . Now this light also has a hidden TURBO ( I’m calling it that ) mode , so no matter the light level your at , a relatively quick double click of the mode button will put you into TURBO mode and a single click will then return you to the light level you were in . I have been taking the F1 for nightly walks for the last 3 days and I am seriously impressed with the user interface . I find low mode just about right for most instances ( 58 Lumens by my light box ) , and higher levels are a simple click away . Also every time I turn the light on , I know exactly how much light I will be getting as the light will not change modes because of the speed with which I turn the light on or off . ( A lot of lights suffer from this = Turning on and off to fast changes modes ) .
Modes = Moon mode - low mode - Medium mode - High mode - TURBO mode - STROBE and SOS modes .
Changing modes is as easy as clicking the mode button .
TURBO mode is accessed by clicking the mode switch relatively quickly twice and once to exit
Disco and SOS are accessed by holding the mode button down for about 3 seconds and the same again to exit
Light Levels
Moon Mode = Too low to measure / 0.002 Amp
Low Mode = 58L / 0.116 Amp
Medium Mode = 288L / 0.58 Amp
High Mode = 556L / 1.36 Amp to 1.49 amp ( Varied according to location of probe )
TURBO mode = 1050L / 2.1 Amp
TURBO mode and thermal protection
A lot of lights that do 1000+ Lumens suffer heat related output sag . In the old days when 1000 Lumen became a reality the current the light pulled was north of 3 Amps . With many lights pulling up to or more than 5 amps and it became quite a bragging right to be pulling lots of current . Now this current often did not equate to light output as the emitter would over heat and drop output as energy wast turned into heat rather than light . With the F1 I was able to run TURBO for 45 seconds before the thermal protection kicked in . In that 45 seconds the light went from 1035 Lumens to 995 Lumens . That’s about 1 lumen per second which is a lot better than I have seen from other lights .
Measurements are what I was able to get at the time of taking the reading ( so please accept as ball park )
Recharging VIA internal USB port
There is a ring that unscrews just bellow the head / mode button , turn it anticlockwise to expose the USB port ( When I got the light it was unscrewed )
I used my slightly better USB monitor ( charge doctor ) to keep an eye on the charge cycle . With the 18650 at 3.7v the charge current ( what the USB monitor saw ) was about 0.40 Amp to start with and after a while it settled to 0.39A until the battery went over 4v then the current began to drop . When the USB monitor showed the charge current at 0.0 Amp I pulled out the 18650 to check on the voltage level achieved using the internal USB charge port . ( it was 4.16v ) . The USB monitor showed some 1900mA having gone in for some 5 hours and 26 minutes charge time .
I have not at this time attempted to use or charge 2x RCR123 , so when time permits I will update the review with the relevant information .
Zanflare F1 :
I am really impressed with this light , especially with the mode switch and the simple fact you can hammer the tail clicky like rabid monkey suffering Tourette Syndrome and the F1 will not change modes . For quite some time this has been a pet peeve of mine for normal flashlights as using the light quickly to just take a peek changes modes ( so annoying ) . The F1 has simply proven itself to be the best night time walkies light I have used to date . The UI is simple to use , reliable and frustration free . ( What more can you ask for ) The light levels are really good , I found low and medium modes the most useful in my urban environment with high giving me more than enough light for when needing a little power . 1000 Lumens is nice to have , but where I was walking ( suburban streets ) it did light things up better but there was so much glare from car windows and house windows it was a little overkill compared to 500 lumens .
With the battery at 3.7v I decided to see how much light I got .
Low mode = 58L
Medium mode = 273L
High mode = 556L
TURBO mode = 758L
I was very surprised to see such good light output with the battery at 3.7 volts , especially Low / Medium / and High . A drop in performance was certainly expected for Turbo mode , but I was pleasantly surprised by the performance showed in the regular modes . The F1 comes in one of those boxes you will want to keep ( cos its so well made ) , as well a clip , lanyard , USB charge cable and a belt holster / bag that is made from the nicest softest wet-suit style of foam . How can I describe just how nice this light is ? The anodizing is really good ( and scratch resistant ) , the threads are really well cut , there is no slop fit here . The tail clicky is really nice and firm and solid without being a bear . The mode button is just the right tension , not to hard or soft , almost perfect . There is no battery slop with the 18650 nor is there any binding . I have found nothing to complain about ! For the last 4 days the Zanflare F1 has been the only flashlight I have used , and the more I use it the more I like it . With some lights the more you use them , the more things you find that might be less than impressive , not so with the F1 . The more I use it , the more I like it and I think it has just became my go to light . ( I keep a flashlight on my desk for when I need such , and said position is usually occupied with my Favorite flashlight ) . What can I say , I have a few flashlights to chose from and at this time I chose the F1 .
Conclusion :
First I would like to thank Zanflare for sending me the F1 for review , because this light ROCKS hard ! It has been a while since a light has impressed me so much and with nothing to complain about , not even a niggle of an issue , nothing ! As well the F1 ticks all the boxes and simply surpasses expectation .
Who would want this light ?
With on-board USB charging - Anyone that travels or is in a car / truck a lot . Security / police / fire personnel that want a reliable fuss free light ( a lot of these folk relied on single mode lights because of the light level ? mode issue I mentioned before - when you turn the light on you need to know what you get ) . Anyone that is looking for a reliable easy to use light with a simple User Interface . ( One can use the F1 as a single mode light or as a multi mode ) . Now when it comes to a score , it has to be 10 out of 10 and I would add ( +1 ) because the F1 has gone to the top of my list of liked flashlights . I never thought there was a flashlight that could be better than a P60 host , well I have just been schooled !
