That "USB Rechargeable" thing is growing on me...

LED Flashlights – General Info
1

I love our flashlights and i’d like to share this with friends and family… But, those Li-Ion cells and special chargers are a pain for most people… Then comes “USB Rechargeable”.

Last Christmas, i gifted a few S2+, 18650, Liito 100 chargers and a few USB adapters along with the basic explanations about how to handle it all. But now it’s sort of hitting me… how much simpler it would be if they wouldn’t have to worry about taking out the cell, plugging the charger, getting the cell charged and then putting it back (the right way) into their light. Just use your phone charger right into the light!

And USB power supply is popping out everywhere… Phone chargers, TVs, computers, AC outlet, cars…

I don’t think i actually have any light that’s usb rechargeable… and i’m starting to look for some…

I just ordered this USB Rechargeable Torch from GB… and i’ll probably order more of the kind…

What are you thoughts?
Which lights have the feature?
How good/safe is it?

Thanks for your input! :slight_smile:

2

I have a few USB rechargable lights:

Anker LC130 - a bit pricey, poor UI, but otherwise solid reliable light
Lumintop EDC90 - just got it, nice light, haven’t used the charging feature yet, had to mod slightly to use protected cells
NiteCore Tube - too dim, waste of $6, splurge on the TIP

And I’m also waiting on an Eagle Eye E2R that’s in the mail from gearbest…

3

A popular one here……
http://m.gearbest.com/led-flashlights/pp_411559.html
And that company appears to make a couple more.
Utorch UT-02 for a thrower……2 amp built in charger at that.
First couple that came to mind.

4

Usb charging will be one of the most important features to me when buy flashlight( especially for gifting)
I always have trouble when buy flashlight for my friend. They dont have any charger, and usually a charger cost same as flashlight

5

I have a few including the Utorch UTo2, Imalent DN12 and the Nebo Redline, and like the feature. I am sure we will see more companies offering these types of lights.

6

I completely agree. It just makes sense to have the USB option if you aren’t in a rush to use the device continuously after its spent.

If anyone has a recommendation for a multi port micro usb charger, I’d like to hear about it. I guess I’m thinking some kind of powerbank with multiple micro USB male ends to charge the four phones, 3 USB powered flashlights, tablets, and Bluetooth watches and headphones we have in the house.

7

Yep, if you think about it a 14500/AA flashlight with a micro usb port is the most versatile flashlight in existence. You could go almost anywhere and still have power

8

when i got into this? i started out with the somewhat “traditional” wetting of the feet with a couple of 3xAAA lights, some zoomie and some reflectored. Nothing “awe inspiring”, naturally… i was getting my feet wet in the kiddie end of the pool.

of all places? WALMART a couple years ago? had a fairly higher end of lights.they “ran” this line of lights twice, 2 years ina row, under different brands each time, same basic lights.

sort of resemble a well known “china, but mid-grade” higher quality of light i have seen around…

now, i definitely overpaid “commercial price” for mine, but they were still good quality. much higher quality anodizing and overall build quality than any 10 dollar china-tastic entry level thing….

2x18650, wrapped with protection circuits both ends positive and negative… you can still put your own “2x18650” ’s into the light and they work fine… has built in “recharge just like a cell phone” port… and its also a “power bank” to charge your cell phone while river fishing,

while i am no reviewing expert? i am none theless impressed with the seal and quality of the various o-rings and the overall machining quality and anodizing.

reflector, something of a half throw/half flood kind of reflector. not my personal taste? but still kind of cool…

real xml2, well heatsinked setup, its not going to win any contests, but, i would guess its getting its 3 amps worth to make it “commercial high power”.

===

charging “like a cell phone”, and if its a powerbank too? is the ultimate in convenience, i must say…

9

I bought a couple of Eagle Eye X2Rs plus protected Panasonic NCR 18650Bs as gifts for friends who live in country areas. These folks definitely don’t want to mess about with batteries and chargers, but they have PCs and laptops and other USB charging sources.

I used each for a week first, partly from curiosity, and partly to make sure they worked, as I didn’t want to make gifts of duds. I was impressed with them. The built in chargers are accurate and they charged in reasonable time from the USB port on a PC. The lights are of good quality and performance, have last mode memory and don’t have blinkie modes. They are 4*7135, which means they get warm, but not hot, which is also good for people who are not into flashlights. The light output is vastly better than the other rubbish they’ve had over the years, and of course there are three levels, low, medium and high.

The disadvantages are the flap covering the USB port, which I think might break off, the fact that it’s bound to be more of a risk from water and dust, and also that the USB connector has a limited guaranteed number of insertions, maybe 100. It could also be damaged by people trying to force in the wrong connector or the right connector the wrong way round, or a damaged connector. These things can happen.

I’d rather remove the batteries and use a good quality charger with digital display, but USB charging is definitely a feature with much to be said for it.

I have doubts about how advisable it is for torches with cells in series. Whatever you buy I think it’s well worth checking with a DMM that the built-in charger doesn’t over charge.

10

manker u11 has usb recharge
it;s ok if you dislike removing batteries and futzing with chargers
it;s not ok if you need to quick reload and go again

wle

11

Or, if it uses a standard battery, then you can certainly quick reload like with any other flashlight.

12

In my collection, the 18650 flashlights with micro USB recharging:

Thrunite TC10 v2, TC12 v2.
Eagle Eye X2R, X5R, X6R.
Nitecore MH20.
On The Road X5 (can take 26650).

If you gift these flashlights to someone, you need to remind them to press the switch and turn ON the flashlight to activate the recharging.

13

I carry a Fenix UC35 in my backpack. I’ve stopped using it, because high CRI 5000K light looks vastly better then the UC35’s low CRI 6500K, but it’s found a new role as a waterproof portable USB charger, spare 18650 cell carrier and emergency backup light.

14

Thank you for all the comments and suggestions.

I’ll certainly grab a Eagle Eye X2R to see for myself. Although moderatly powerful, it looks like the perfect gift to non flashaolics.

I realize that i have a JETBeam E10R on the way that i ordered before starting this thread… I guess the seed was already planted! 14500/AA 600+ lumens with built-in usb charger (that can handle both Li-Ion and NiMH). What else? I hope it’ll honor the claimed specs but that should indeed be a very versatile light.

Even better yes! I can imagine a SRK clone acting as a very decent power bank with its four 18650. How about adding an R to next iteration of the BLF Q8?

15

I have several lights with USB charge capability. Klarus AR-10, Convoy BD03, JETBeam Mini-1 and Mini-1 Ti, Olight S10R11 (via USB charge dock), Imalent DN11, to name a few. I love them (even have a few more on the way (Nitecore NU20/30, JETBeam E10r…), but deep in the back of my head, I can’t help but think that sooner or later, that USB port is going to fail. I will say that the charge dock of the Olight is probably the most robust design, the clip-on USB thingy of the BD-03 coming in a close second, and the ports on the JETBeam minis probably third. In the case of the Olight and Convoy designs, their draw back is, one more thing to possibly lose. Oh well, more stuff to buy, I guess. :slight_smile:

As with many things, adding features can also add complexity which often increases things like MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure). Adding a charge port means one more thing to break, HOWEVER that does not mean they don’t have their advantages. It’s definitely nice to have the option to charge your battery in your flashlight when packing light, etc… I like the bullet-proof reliability of simple lights, like the Convoy S2+ or even more so, the JETBeam Jet-1 MK. With so little moving parts, there aren’t a lot of things that can go wrong with a twisty head, so from a reliability stand point, they get top marks in my book. That being said, tactical tail switch lights also have their niche.

Fortunately, as flashaholics, we don’t need to limit ourselves. :smiley:

16

For a budget option, you can also look at this

Zoom flashlight.

For non zoom, there is the A5

17

My Eagle Exy X2R just arrived - very nice light, well-made, simple low-med-high modes. The only negative I see is that the rubber flap over the USB port seems a bit cheap. Not sure if the flap will hold up to repeated use.

18

Look up the jkk35 has 3 18650 and two USB slots. 3x xml2 LEDs as well. Claims 2800 lumens I believe there’s a code on blf that still works brings it below $50 on bangood

19

Here is a review of the light mentioned & linked in the OP.
I have three of them. They are actually a pretty decent little light. Well worth the money.

It was dubbed with the name “CFG-01”. (Cheap-Fake-Good-01)

Again, well worth the modest price.
:slight_smile:

EDIT: To add video review
.

20

I am more into rechargeables that ever before, with first choice in design like the magnetic Klarus, Olight and Supbeam/Acebeam, then the micro-usb ones.

All for these reasons: Very convenient, can easily be given or sold easily if I grow tired of them, and if the recharging eventually malfunctions, the cell/batteries can still be re-charged outside of the light.