Preface
For most, this light may not need much introduction, it being one of the more popular flashlight introduced in Q4 2017.
It’s hard not to see why it is that popular – single & small 18650 form factor hitting 3,000+ to 4,000+ lumens with a great UI to boot. Or is it really too good to be true?
Oh and before we begin, just want to give a special shout-out and thanks to my buddy, Job, for lending me his personal light for as long as I needed for this review.
Note: This is a V2 model but with the pre-Noctigon 4XP V2 MCPCB.
Packaging & First Impressions
This is what the light will come with as shown below.
- Packaging is minimalist.
- No clip is provided to pocket carry the light (available for purchase separately).
- The threads and o-rings were mildly lubricated. Threads were rather smooth and clean (no gritty feeling).
- The side electronic switch requires a somewhat firm press to activate and is possible for accidental activation in pocket.
- Anodizing of this sample is uniform in color but thin.
- Battery compartment holds a LG MJ1 (3500mAh 18650 flat top unprotected battery) with sufficient room for a slightly longer battery width (those with button tops). Protected 18650 batteries do not fit and are not recommended for this light as well.
Top (NOTE: The box should read Model: “D4”, LED: “XP-L HI V2 3A” and Color: “BLACK” [due to mix-up of boxes] instead):
Box Contents:
Quick Overview (Manufacturer Specifications)
- Body Material Options:
- Black Aluminium (Smooth Surface Texture)
- Grey Aluminium (Smooth Surface Texture)
- Cyan Aluminium (Grainy Surface Texture)
- Green Aluminium (Grainy Surface Texture)
- Titanium Variants
- LED Options with Carclo 10622 Narrow Spot Plain Optic:
- XP-L HI V3 1A (6500K)
- XP-L HI V2 3A (5000K)
- XP-L HI V2 5D (4000K)
- Nichia 219CT (5000K – 90CRI)
- XP-G2 S4 5D (4000K)
- XP-G2 S4 3D (4885K)
- XP-G2 S4 2B (5700K)
- Battery Format: 1 x 18650 / 18500 / 18350 High Drain Unprotected ONLY
- Output [XP-L HI / 219C / XP-G2]:
- Low (< 1 lumens)
- ~Mid (100% 7135 chip – 145 lumens / 138 lumens / 161 lumens) – *special thanks to ToyKeeper on BLF for the measurements*
- Turbo (4300 lumens / 3000 lumens / 3300 lumens) at 30 secs
- Waterproofness: IP67 Standard (1m)
- Dimension: 24mm (body diameter) / 28mm (head diameter) x 94mm (length – 18650 tube) / 80mm (length – 18500 tube) / 63.5mm (length – 18350 tube)
- Weight: 64g (excluding batteries)
- NO battery reverse polarity protection
- Accessories Included:
- 2*Spare O-rings
- Optional Accessories (purchased separately):
- 18350 / 18500 tubes
- Carclo 10623 Medium Spot Frosted Optic
- Pocket Clip
- MSRP: ~$40-$58 (Aluminium variants) / ~$80-$113 (Titanium variants)
UI (User Interface)
UI for this light is good for Every Day Carry (EDC) as it is extremely straightforward to use.
Switching ON and OFF is done by the side electronic switch on the light.
From OFF:
- 1 Click – Last brightness level used – last mode memory / 100% of 7135 chip output if after LOCKOUT mode has been deactivated.
- 2 Click – Direct access to TURBO; 2 Click again for Last brightness level used or 1 Click to switch OFF.
- 3 Click – BATTERY CHECK mode; 2 Click again for TEMPERATURE CHECK mode.
- 4 Click – Activate MOMENTARY mode (LEDs will blink four times upon activation); repeat 4 Click to deactivate MOMENTARY mode (LEDs will blink twice upon deactivation).
- 6 Click – Activate LOCKOUT mode (LEDs will blink four times upon activation); repeat 6 Click to deactivate LOCKOUT mode (LEDs will blink twice upon deactivation).
- 8 Click – Activate BEACON mode; 1 Click to switch OFF light.
10+ Click & HOLD – THERMAL CONFIGURATION mode; release switch when the light gets hot to set. - HOLD (~1.5 sec) – Direct access to MOONLIGHT and the light will keep ramping up to TURBO; release switch to set light at desired mode level (150 levels in total).
From ON:
- 1 Click – Light will switch OFF.
- 2 Click – Direct access to TURBO; 2 Click again to go back to last mode.
- 3 Click – same as above (3 Click from OFF).
- 4 Click – same as above (4 Click from OFF).
- 8 Click – same as above (8 Click from OFF).
- HOLD (~1.5 sec) – Light will ramp UP/DOWN till TURBO/MOONLIGHT, release switch to set at that level; HOLD again to reverse ramping sequence. When the light reaches 100% of 7135 chip output, the light will blink once during the ramping sequence.
*Ramping Sequence is extremely smooth and ramping from either direction takes only ~2.5 secs for the 150 levels.*
For those who prefer a picture for the above UI instead, the below is courtesy of Tom E & ToyKeeper on BLF.
The light is temperature regulated on the FET modes (outputs above the 100% 7135 chip are all FET modes), i.e. the output will drop when it gets hot and will increase again when it cools down. Hence, setting the THERMAL CONFIGURATION is recommended as this light gets HOT real fast on Turbo.
Form Factor
For flashlights that are intended to use on a daily basis (EDC) and for possibly a long period of time, form factor is extremely important.
This light fits a medium sized hand easily. Switching between overhand and underhand holding method wasn’t an issue and its (lack thereof) weight certainly helped in it feeling rather well-balanced on hand. Due to the lack of knurling on the light’s body, it tends to be rather slippery, especially with wet hands/gloves.
The light could certainly do well with a provided clip. However, attaching and then removing a Convoy clip on the light causes some of the anodising to be scrapped off at those point of contacts (as seen in the pictures below).
It can tail-stand perfectly without the slightest wobble.
Beam Style/Beamshots
For this quad lights, the spill, corona and hotspot is somewhat predictable – often producing what is known as a “wall of light”. With the sheer output from the LEDs used, the beam is still sufficiently “throwy” for recognising items in the near to mid-range distance.
The above beam profile is rough interpretation of what is seen when white wall hunting. The beam has a rather large circular hotspot with some slight corona and a squarish spill (current gen models will have Noctigon 4XP V2 MCPCB installed so the spill will be circular in nature). There are no rings in the beam when whitewall hunting/in real world usage.
Note: The top left optic may appear cracked to some but it is part of the Carclo’s design (flaw?) whereby it actually is a “Gate Crop”. The beam profile is not affected by this phenomenon.
All of the beamshots taken below are done so with the following camera settings (LOW: 6″, F3.5, ISO100, Daylight WB, MID: 0.8″, F3.5, ISO100, Daylight WB and TURBO: 1/10, F3.5, ISO100, Daylight WB).
Some pictures have been adjusted slightly to depict as close as to what is seen in real life. The distance of the light from the door is 4.6m.
Control shot:
LOW (<1 lumens):
~MID (145 lumens – 100% of 7135 chip):
TURBO (4300 lumens):
Mode (Output) Spacing
Mode spacing (150 levels) appears to be progressively brighter to the eye and the modes are well spaced enough to be able to select just about any level one would need. With that in mind, TLR tend to view mode spacing as battery life indicators (amount of runtime left) rather than the specific output (lumens).
The MOONLIGHT mode is perfect for those bedtime runs or with night-adjusted eyes. And this light is capable of going all the way to the extreme end of sheer output with just 2 Clicks.
Is it just me or is it plain mesmerizing viewing triples/quads in their lowest modes?
Tint & CRI
Emisar did not disclose the CRI (Color Rendering Index) for the LEDs used in their light. For this light, a guesstimate would be in the 70ish CRI ballpark. The tint on this light is 5000K.
There are some tint shifts throughout the beam profile. The hotspot is almost creamy white whilst the corona and most of the spill possessing a neutral white with slight pinkish tint; and the extreme end of the spill having a squarish ring of slight yellowish-green tint. This is however, not as noticeable in real life.
Waterproofness
Note: Prior to this test, the head was disassembled and the O-ring was found to be between the lens and optics. The O-ring was then placed between the head and lens instead for this test.
The light was subjected to warm water submersion, followed by cold water submersion and left under room temperature running water tap whilst running on Turbo.
No signs of water intrusion in the head, switch or body was seen.
Lockout Capability
Both mechanical & electronic lockout is possible for this light when needed, like during transportation in a bag/pocket.
With the slightly protruding side switch, it is highly recommended to lockout the light when not in use.
For electronic lockout, see above UI (User Interface), on how to activate and deactivate LOCKOUT.
A quarter turn (anti-clockwise) of the tail portion of the light will enable mechanical lockout.
Summary
To sum up, we believe that the most important part of any review is if given the chance to purchase the same light for our own EDC or to gift to our loved ones out from one’s pocket (wallet), would we still do it?
For this light, it is a definite YES.
The smooth ramping, straightforward UI and the ability to have anything from MOONLIGHT to crazy output TURBO are just some of the many reasons to get one, if you have not. However, all that output on Turbo also means that this light is a heavy battery-guzzler.
As the quote “with great power comes great responsibility” goes, this light definitely is befitting of it.
A few seconds of this light in Turbo on any dark materials will leave a 4-hole burn mark or even catch fire; so please do remember to lockout the light before placing it into any pocket/bag.
The only gripes we had for this light were the lack of clip provided and we hope for a day when Emisar uses a more flush side switch button like on the Zebralight lights.
Here’s a bonus size comparison picture of the light next to TLR’s recently reviewed Zebralight H600w Mk III.
As with all gears, two is one and one is none.
Stay safe,
The Lite Review
Disclaimer: Light was loaned to me by my buddy Job for the duration of the review period.
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