Why there is no good answer to which light is best.

The best light is when you stop buying another light after your last purchase.

I too am still searching for it and just ordered a couple of Jet Mini-1. Maybe this? :slight_smile:

If there will be a flashlight that is small and has a lot of output, there will be a light that is bigger but has even more. When there's a light which can throw or zoom out for spill, there will be a light that cannot but is a lot smaller/lighter for the same output. As the technology progresses the lights will get better but none will be "best", as they'll still be different for different pros and cons.

Well, there is. Try the sc600w mk III hi and see for yourself :wink:

The best light is the one that is on your person when you need it.

Technically there is a limit, because with a point source a large reflector will not perform better than a small one. If you can collimate 100% of light then a large light will be useless.
Maybe in like 50 years we will have this.

Bottom line, every light is a balance (or comprise) of throw/flood, LED brightness, battery type, battery life, cost vs features, weight vs size vs utility hence there can be no one does all light.

If a flashlight were monolithic, all light forms lit everything equally, cost was no issue, only one type of battery in existence and all this was small enough to fit on a keychain then you could have a one light for all needs. However the laws of the universe preclude this :frowning:

As they say, the right tool for the right job, no one would ever suggest that a pair of pliers could be the perfect tool for every trade, it simply cannot pound millions of roofing nails, screw every bit, strip every wire, wrench every size and so on all in one light hand sized tool. Just in hammers you have roofing to ball peen to lightweight, you can’t even make one hammer do every hammer job.

there are too many possible features for any single combination to be ‘best’ - either for one person, or for all purposes…

wle

“Well, there is. Try the sc600w mk III hi and see for yourself ”

--not best for me though, it is too big and too expensive for what i want

==i want, for instance, a single 18650 light, as small and light as possible, with 4 - 5 brightness levels, under $35

==i have that, DQG 18650 IV, but it doesn;t have the EXACT light levels i really prefer, plus i had one whose switch broke in a REALLY bad and unrepairable way, yet i still bought another one.

I’ve had people ask me that and I always show them some lights. I have a buddy who wants a Kronos BLF X5, but doesn’t understand that it’s a very niche light. I suggested an Eagle Eye X6 which is more along the lines of what he would actually need. He wants a traditional sort of “flashlight” beam with a good hotspot (the type of beam that he’s accustomed to). He’s an older gent and doesn’t understand that a flood beam can be just as bright in the center AND at the edges, or close to it. Could he use the X5? Sure he could. But he doesn’t really understand that the runtime on higher outputs will be a serious liability for his use. He just sees the output and the size and loves it.

Too, a light with rechargeable cells is more of a system than just a light. That makes the recommendation a bit more difficult for those who aren’t flashlight nerds the way we are. (not meant in a derogatory manner)

Another lady asked about a light for when she takes her dogs out so as not to walk into skunks and such… about 100 lumens was what she wanted. I suggested a C8 since there appeared to be no X6s available at the time (that I could find). I explained that she can choose a lower output if that’s what she wants but that 100 lumens might not be available. She also wanted under $30 for the light, cell(s), and charger. She went over budget but also went with 2 good cells. The charger will get the job done, but is an entry level charger. I have no doubt that she’ll be happy with what she’ll have.

I gave a friend of ours a $10 zooming light and she just loves the thing because it’s much better than what she was using. She bought a decent cell and I gave her a charger I wasn’t using and she’s happy as a clam. She doesn’t want to walk into skunks when doing nighttime chores and the wide beam is exactly what she needed.

Whenever someone asks for the “best” of anything I have to ask, what do you plan on doing with it? Right now I have a TG06 in my pocket because that’s what I carry at night due to our somewhat frequent power outages during inclement weather. So right now it’s the best light. I don’t even know that it’s there. I’ll use it to get me to the best light for use if I need a light for a longer period of usage at which time that will become the “best light”. When I do chores at night the slung L6 is the best light.

But for most folks who aren’t “into” flashlights I think that a blend of runtime (18650), decent brightness with a central hotspot, and relatively small size will do fine. To me that means an X6 or a C8. Now if they get into flashlights the way we are they’ll be able to fine tune the choice. So far I haven’t had anyone request a keyring light. My other choice if they want a flood beam with reasonable runtime would be an S2+. I try not to guide them to FET lights, but to more sedate lights that are foolproof. But again, all of that flies out of the window if the person is flashlight knowledgeable, but most folks simply aren’t. They just want a usable light that’s better than what they’ve been using but frame the question as being the “best” light since they don’t really know what they want or need. It’s up to us to decipher what they’re asking for.