Peak Matterhorn AAA vs Photon Freedom Micro

This has probably been covered, but which one???? I was looking at getting either one of these for my PSK. I like the the toughness and easy function of the Peak (I carry a mag AAA in my EDC), plus batteries are very easy to get. On the flip side the size of the Micro is nice, just something about the exposed bulb breaking on a drop (Murphy loves me) and the push button on/off that might come on and drain the light. Sort of on the fence with the multi function button to. My PSK will be in the mini mess tin from BCB (Brian hurry up and get those, suspense is killing me <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> ) so size is an issue, but not as big as reliability and durability. Thanks.

Get both. Replace the Mag with the Peak LED AAA for your EDC and put the Photon in your PSK. If you use your EDC at all and if the Peak is as good as the ARCs were, you will like the improvement in your EDC a lot. If you want to try out a AAA 5mm LED as EDC without spending much, get a Dorcy AAA LED - right at $6 US off-the-shelf. The ARC/PEAK AAAs are a vast improvement over the solitaire.

One of my EDC items is an ARC AAA Premium and my PSKs have Photon II - that all works out extremely well. I have not used a Freedom because my Photon IIs all continue to work just fine, including after battery replacements on the ones that get used frequently.

There is no bulb on a Photon. You are seeing the solid bit of plastic that protects the LED junction. It will not break off, trust me. LEDs are at least 2 orders of magnitude more robust than bulbs.

HTH,

Tom

I don't have the Peak light, so no idea about it.
I do have A LOT OF Photon III's, either as EDC or in various kits.
The size is a BIG advantage (no excuse not to have a light).
BUT .....
If you don't EDC a Photon III or a Freedom Photon, my main concern for stashing some in kits would be the complexity of use under stress.

Not a problem if you use them every day.

Might be a problem if you don't or if someone else has to use the light in the kit. You want to make sure you leave it in the mode you will want to use it in an emergency. If not, I'm not sure you (or s.o. else) will be able to remember how to set in into the correct mode, under stress.

Another point about Photon lights : I had quite a few PIII with a battery drainage problem (after a few months in the kit, the battery was empty, due to a pb with the microchip).
Be sure to test the lights before putting them into your kits. And check them periodically, to be on the safe side.

I carry an ARC AAA and Photon II. I do not count the Photon II toward my flashlight carry count: it's for emergencies - always there for when I need it. If you insist on carrying only one, I'd get the Photon Freedom for it's miniscule size, and keep the battery fresh.

"You want to make sure you leave it in the mode you will want to use it in an emergency." - what mode is that?

I keep mine in "morse" mode: push-on, release off. This is to mimimise the chances of the light getting switched on accidentally and then staying on until the batter runs down, which is what happened with my previous (other brand) LED. The other mode I find useful is the normal push-on, push-off. The Freedom reverts to that automatically so there's nothing to learn.

Those are the modes I'd want available first in an emergency. The "auto-SOS" I see as a worthless gimmick, and the strobe modes possibly useful for maximising battery life but not important when the emergency starts.

It's nice to have some real world experiences to look at when it comes to electronic gizmos. Frenchy said it best when stating that in an emergency the modes might be difficult to figure out unless you have experience with it. I am a k.i.s.s. sort of guy and the Peak looked really good just for that reason. Hardy, waterproof (I live in a damp climate and constatly walking through water) and simple to operate. Multiple functions means multiple things to go wrong at that one time it needs to work. Now if they made a waterproof, switch on and off (not pressure) Photon that would be great, till then..... I wonder though, if they can make one that small with all those bells and whistles, how small could they make it without them???

Don't get me wrong : Photon III are great little lights. Just be aware of the mode issue and it should work OK.
And I don't think removing a few circuits on the micro-chip would gain a lot of space !
Anyway, you want a light with a switch you can manipulate without a microscope .... <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />