RFI: General Use LED Hand Held Light

[Jay585]

Shopping for a Christmas gift for my Mom. Looking for an LED flashlight. A pair of medium sized handhelds, a small-ish light for the pantry, and one of those big search light type deals (like this one Amazon link (https://www.amazon.com/Rechargeable-Searchlight-Flashlight-Spotlight-Ultra-long/dp/B076RWT7N8/)).

My parents live in the country (farmland mostly) so the lights get used when there's a power outage, and at night to see what the dogs are barking at.

Normally if I need a light I go for surefire, but in this case I'm not sure what brand to go with.

Thanks in advance!
-J

[RJ]

There are many good choices.

I've had good luck with Streamlight, Petzl, and Pelican products.

You mentioned parents; I'm probably not far their age. I recently got this glow in the dark Pelican LED light:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NULXSZK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I keep it bedside, near my glasses. The glow makes it easy to find, even after a full night in the dark (early morning, say). Good light output, and it has a low setting. Water resistant, also. I quite like it.

[JTQ]

I bought the non-glowing Pelican light Rich mentioned for my daughters for use at college and I've gotten this Streamlight Stylus Pro for my wife and daughters to carry in their purses.

https://www.streamlight.com/en/products/detail/index/stylus-pro

I also have a Pelican StealhLite at home https://www.pelican.com/us/en/product/flashlights/stealthlite/2410pl

[RJ]

I bought the non-glowing Pelican light Rich mentioned for my daughters for use at college and I've gotten this Streamlight Stylus Pro for my wife and daughters to carry in their purses.

https://www.streamlight.com/en/products/detail/index/stylus-pro

I also have a Pelican StealhLite at home https://www.pelican.com/us/en/product/flashlights/stealthlite/2410pl

I carried three Pelican lights scuba diving. Old names, but one was a King Pelican (8 D cells! OMG!), one was a "Sabrelight" IIRC, and one was a small penlight I clipped inside my BCD pocket.

Their guarantee used to include Bear Attack, but maybe I'm misremembering that. Kinda doubt a company would offer that now a days.

[JohnO]

Fenix makes decent lights from handheld to lanterns all good stuff especially with rechargeable batteries.

https://www.fenixlighting.com/

[BehindBlueI's]

My parents live in the country (farmland mostly) so the lights get used when there's a power outage, and at night to see what the dogs are barking at.

-J

I've come to appreciate the ones with the elastic band you can wear and keep your hands free for that sort of thing. It's much easier to get the generator going, use tools (including a can opener...), etc. with both hands. The little pop up lanterns also work well and the battery life is great.

[RJ]

I am pretty sure this is what I bought at Costco about three years ago:

https://www.amazon.com/Coast-FL72-Focusing-Lumen-Pack/dp/B01M5LGEM3/ref=pd_bxgy_469_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01M5LGEM3&pd_rd_r=a3e54f56-f654-11e8-a473-c98e48cd2d8e&pd_rd_w=PIHLt&pd_rd_wg=s1ivQ&pf_rd_i=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=6725dbd6-9917-451d-beba-16af7874e407&pf_rd_r=M9XEQ48V3XP827BCRBAH&pf_rd_s=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_t=40701&psc=1&refRID=M9XEQ48V3XP827BCRBAH

Pair of Coast LED Headlamps. The red is useful for dressing in the dark earrrrrrrly in the morning.

I use one or the other of these almost every morning walking the doggie.

[Dan_S]

I’d look at these:

https://www.streamlight.com/products/product-types/rechargeable

[DonZ45]

I like stream light, very reliable


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[Stephanie B]

I buy the ones that come in multi-paks of five or ten for a buck per. I leave one everywhere in the house where I might possibly want a flashlight.

[rob_s]

I buy the ones that come in multi-paks of five or ten for a buck per. I leave one everywhere in the house where I might possibly want a flashlight.

My storage habits are the same, but I don't buy the same lights since I kept finding that the one or two times a year I wanted some of the lights they had just decided to stop working, and generally if I'm reaching for that once-or-twice-a-year light I really want or need it to work. Now I use the Streamlight Propolymer line of lights. Number of batteries dependent on location and use, with the (4)AA lights (https://www.amazon.com/Streamlight-68201-ProPolymer-Flashlight-Yellow/dp/B00069PJLA) by the front and back doors (most likely to be used outside where the longer throw is appreciated) and (2)AA models (https://www.amazon.com/Streamlight-67101-ProPolymer-Battery-Powered-Flashlight/dp/B0012S62JC) pretty much everywhere else..

Oddly, in going to get those links I see that the (2)AA and the (4)AA lights have almost the same number of lumens (65 and 67, respectively) but the runtime of the (4)AA is >6x as long. Makes me think maybe I have the incan version of the (2)AA lights in most of the places I have them stashed...

[Jay585]

I've come to appreciate the ones with the elastic band you can wear and keep your hands free for that sort of thing. It's much easier to get the generator going, use tools (including a can opener...), etc. with both hands. The little pop up lanterns also work well and the battery life is great.

I prefer headlamps too, as does my father, but for some reason my mom has an aversion to wearing anything on her head.

Thank you all for the recommendations!

[Jared]

This really really depends on the intended use, but I'll play.

For "defensive" use, I want as bright of a stream light or surefire as I can get away with. But if it's just around the house for use in outages or for a work light, things change. So, for those roles:

House use in event of outage: Mini Mag light. You can take the end off and set the light up as a candle. runs on 2 AA batteries. I love that. They're about $20 at Walmart. Plenty bright for taking the dog out at night too. I live in the sticks, so this is a pretty low risk affair.

Working lights: stream light microstream or stylus pro. I actually prefer the microstream as the clip let's it clip to the bill of a cap where I have the benefits of a head lamp and also a hand held. It's not bright enough for me to use as a carry light, but at work to illuminate what I'm working on, it's good enough. The stylus pro gives a bit more brightness, but I can't clip it on a hat. Both use AAA batteries that I can source from the stock room at work. This is important because I use a light at work a lot.

[Gater]

Jay-- Some good advice here and in current related threads. My own $.02: I have many Surefires, but for "non-gear" oriented folks, I'd recommend staying away from the CR123 platform--there's something to be said for "I can get a battery at the 7-11."

I have been a fan of the Streamlight Microstream for a while, in its AAA form. Some recent posts here and elsewhere have prompted me to buy a USB version, since it is a similar form factor and (hopefully) will also be compatible with the wall and car phone chargers I already have. I don't have it yet, so no personal experience, but I do recall my mother in law (while she was helping me install some light switches at her house) commenting on how stiff the switch was in my AAA model, so it might not be the ideal solution for your mother. I also recently became aware of the Streamlight Bandit headlamp. Again, no experience with it, but the form factor looks small, the interface simple, the price (really!) low, and the charging cable (probably) the same as the USB Microstream, so I added one as a pairing. Will advise if I have any observations worth passing along.

https://www.amazon.com/Streamlight-61702-Bandit-headstrap-Lumens/dp/B06W2HTG1T/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1543887996&sr=8-3&keywords=streamlight+bandit+headlamp