Super-Bright 9 LED Heavy-Duty Compact Aluminum Flashlight - Jet Black
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Super-Bright 9 LED Heavy-Duty Compact Aluminum Flashlight - Jet Black
Customer Review: Several failures no problem, but then batteries overheated
Summary: 2 Stars
I purchased several of these units for my son who is a Boy Scout. He tends to be hard on them and goes through at least one a camping trip. Last camping trip he opened another new one (he likes the silver ones as they are easier to find than the black in the dark). I put batteries in it, turned it on and it didn't go on. I started to fiddle with it, but received a phone call and left it on the table. About 10 mins went by and when I hung up and went back to the flashlight I grabbed it and burned my hand. It was burning hot. Realizing something was wrong I grabbed a hot mitt from the draw and threw it in a metal garbage can outside and closed the top concerned it would explode. It did not explode. When I opened it an removed the batteries, being an EE, I checked continuity from + to - and indeed as expeced there was continuity. Testing with a VOM meter on another unit from + to - using resistance showed the LED load in series.
Installing batteries indeed the unit worked fine. Performing the same measure of resistance on the one that overheated showed 0 resistance (e.g. a dead short). This would explain why the batteries overheated. It was like connecting the positive and negative terminates directly together.
The appearance of the defective unit verses another identical unit did not
show where the dead short was, hence it had to be in the head beyond where
I could see, and I didn't bother to go further. Had this been in my son's
bag, the heat could have easily started a fire. This goes to the quality of manufacture and Q/A. I am not so bothered by the event because it happened when first opening the unit and it didn't work properly from the
start. But what if the defect occurs shortly after use? If in his bag?
I am not certain the ones with more LED's are made any better. I sure could use an alternative.
Customer Review: Good value but not very reliable
Summary: 3 Stars
I bought these lights as a (very) cheap alternative to buying a real bicycle light. I basically took a rubber band and attached it at either end of the light, running the rubber band under the handlebars (if anyone has a similar use in mind, this didn't work too badly). However, out of the 4 lights I bought, about half of them are very flaky. It seems the spring at the back, the one that holds the batteries in place, isn't very strong, so it gets compressed over time and doesn't return to its original position. This means that, when the light gets shaken (such as going over a bump) the light goes out, and then comes back on after you hit it a few times. You can extend the spring just by pulling it, but this only fixes it for a day or so. However, you can also try things like sticking aluminum foil or some other conductor on top of the spring, which seems to help. You may have to get creative.
As for the light, when it works, I am pretty happy. They don't give lumen measurements or anything, so its hard to compare, but using 3 or 4 of them, I was able to see where I was going on an unlit path late at night, going a relatively slow 15mph or so. However, it was not exactly a 'safe' level of visibility, so for my particular use, I think I'd still recommend going for a $60+ safety headlight, as they use fewer batteries and probably produce a better beam. However, for use as an emergency flashlight, I'm sure these lights would be more than sufficient.
Customer Review: Super-dim 4 LED light-duty flashlight
Summary: 1 Stars
Just plain horrid. Only four of the nine LED's even made an effort of lighting up, and by light up I mean make a faint purple color that is barely visible when looking directly at the LED's. Cheap construction, paint chips out of the package, the batteries even seem fake.
Not the item pictured, not worth $4.50 or even the $.50 that I was apparently billed (plus $3.95 shipping)
Update:
I ordered this item with the Amazon suggested three pack, tis jet-black one (fulfilled by HDE) and the Silver and Blue fulfilled by another seller. The silver and blue models are spot on, high quality, and functioning. This jet-black model, as fulfilled by HDE, is nothing like the product advertised. They were kind enought to s end me a replacement, but it worked worse than the original, with only 2 LED's "functioning", by functioning I mean that you have to wrap your hand around the lens to block out all light and stare directly into the LED's to actually tell that they're "functioning". In addition, the batteries provided in the packaging feel incredibly fake as well, they seem to weigh half that of true AAA battery.
This product is a complete sham!
Customer Review: Nice little flashlight until it begins to flicker or falls apart
Summary: 1 Stars
I've purchased a number of these to keep handy in house and car. Their small size and decent brightness make them very useful.
However, as other customers have experienced, several of mine have begun to flicker. One, kept in a car, fell apart. It appears an adhesive of some sort holds the led / reflector assembly in the barrel. I'm going to guess the flickering begins when the battery pack dislodges the assembly from firm contact.
I now have close to half a dozen "blinkers" which aren't very useful when you need good steady illumination. There is no address for the manufacturer on the product display card nor could Amazon supply an address. There is no indication of any sort of warranty on or in the package.
While these are inexpensive compared to other small LED lights, you get what you pay for. I'd recommend paying a little more and getting a different make.
Update 6 March 2011: Virtually all of the ones I've purchased either no longer work or flicker. While there is supposed to be a warranty on these, there is no contact info on the package. Amazon customer service couldn't help either. I would strongly suggest avoiding these.
Customer Review: GREAT PRODUCT IF YOU BUY FROM THE RIGHT MERCHANT
Summary: 1 Stars
This flashlight is great, it offers really good lighting, and it only uses 3 AAA batteries, making it very efficient. However, beware who you buy it from. I've bought three of these flashlights overall. Two of them came from the merchant ETOOLSCITY, and they worked great. This merchant sells them with the batteries, and some of them with a little bag to hang from your belt. The packaging is great and you can tell they are new. However, the merchant **seller_atl** sold me a poor flashlight. It was supposed to be a 9-LED light flashlight but instead I received a 8 light flashlight (since one of the 9 small bulbs did not work). This seller does not include the batteries with the order, and on top of that, the packaging is very poor. It seems to me that seller_atl sold me a used flashlight when it was supposed to have been new. I strongly recommend the products from eToolscity, but caution against those from seller_atl. Although the products might seem the same THEY ARE NOT! Spend your money wisely on good products that will last a long time, not on cheap, and possibly used products that come defective as it is.