Updated one of my EDC flashlight

Have finally retired my trustworthy MagLite Solitaire with the custom LED upgrade, as I have finally found the ideal AA powered flashlight. http://www.banggood.com/Cree-XP-G-R5-300...t-p-947405.html
Would highly recommend it for the fantastic craftsmanship as well (could not find how to open the battery compartment as the crack between parts you want to unscrew is machined so perfectly). I can tell you with confidence - that is the smallest in diameter AA Cree LED flashlight on the market at the moment (16.5mm), which will snugly fit into the side flex loop of the stock Leatherman Wave ballistic nylon pouch. 3 easy switch (half-press) brightness modes. Very bright. 2 color temperatures available to get (the 3000K, I've got, is almost incandescent like colored). Watertight, comes with 5 spare O-rings. Trustable attach point. Smooth cylindrical shape. Reliable tail button construction (had disassembled mine to check, it's serviceable in the field using LM Wave). Just ordered a second one.



The last thing I need to replace is my green laser, and I can finally forget about stocking on AAA cells. Everything else is AA based.

UPD: For Amazon lovers: http://www.amazon.com/3000K-4000K-2-Mode-Stainless-Flashlight/dp/B010EZED8A

Nice find...

What are the color differences between 3000K and 4000K?

I currently have a Fenix LD15 on my keychain. Can you (or anybody) compare these two flashlights?

I don't have LD15 to compare, but remember rejecting it at the store because of all these "tactical features" on it's surface and the twist action. Also, I have a doubt in Aluminum durability for such a thin walled case.

3000K one emits a reddish light very similar to powerful incandescent light bulb light or a day light. I have ordered the 4000K now. It should be more bluish, typical to LED lights. The 3000K must reveal more life like colors in the dark, compared to 4000K. But 4000K must be a bit more powerful revealing things in a distance.

Cool, please compare the 3000k and the 4000k when you have them both. Thanks.

3000K is "warmer" than 4000k. Think the difference between a lower wattage incandescent light compared to a cool white or daylight fluorescent bulb. A light that is 3000K will appear yellow compared to a higher temperature bulb. True daylight is in the 5000-6000 range. To see the different light temperatures, try the local Lowe's or Home Depot. Our local Lowe's has a display with the different temperatures side by side.

To me, "warm" LEDs look natural like daylight. I suspect something in addition to temperature is causing the "warm" color of the sun. Maybe it's the massive wattage of the sun?

"Cool" LEDs look unnatural to me. I'm just wondering if the 4000k in this flashlight is the annoying type of cool that I don't like. For example, I don't like the color of the low wattage light bulbs in Walmart that are advertised as "cool white".

Here is the chart:


3K - is like bright (halogen lamp) incandescent.
4K - shuld be like a natural daylight.

We'll see soon.

Warmer is better to a point; I have an old Surefire 6P incan that's very bright but actually a bit too yellow. I have two different Malkoff M61 LED dropins that I alternate in it. One is around 4000k and is very bright. The other uses the fabled Nichia 219b and is extremely close to daylight in color but only 150 lumens or so.

Is that warmer by degree kelvin temperature or warmer by lightbulb manufacturer description? I've always had better results with whiter lights. I first noticed this when I upgraded the standard OEM halogen bulbs in a pick-up (about 2700K) to 4000-5000k bulbs. The effective amount of light was comparable to what the original bulbs would do on high beam for the same wattage bulb.

Higher Kelvin temperature = "cooler" color appearance
Lower Kelvin temperature = "warmer" color appearance

I'm trying to figure out the temperature on my Fenix LD15, but it's not in the specs. Does anybody know how to calculate it from other specs?

Do you have the full code that describes what kind of LED it has? (In the specs, on some receit, or packaging or whatever...) Given enough digits in the code, you may or may not find enough details to dig out color temp for that particular diode. Google is your friend here...

Example: A led of type "Cree XR-E" doesn't really tell you anything, those come in all kinds of color temperatures. But if there's additional digits you may have enough information.

Another source of information could be reviews for LD15, written about the same time as your purchase. They may have written something about color temp.

Fenix -- like most LED lights -- tend to be somewhere in the "colder part of the range "cold" to "neutral".

I received the 4000k version of this flashlight. The diagram above provided by Alex is fairly accurate. Compared to the Fenix LD15, this 4000k flashlight has a "warmer" color appearance. (So, the 3000k has an even warmer color appearance.) The LD15 looks to be about 5000k. I don't think I want a beam that's less than 4000k. The high settings have roughly the same brightness, and roughly the same size spotlight, to my eyes.

This stainless steel flashlight is smaller (thinner and shorter) compared to the LD15. The shorter length surprised me because the paper specifications of the LD15 show less length, but that is not actually the case.

Downsides... A downside to the LD15 is the twist switch. I prefer a button switch. Also, the LD15 is slightly bigger. A downside to this 4000k flashlight is the way it heats up if you run the flashlight on high for awhile. Aluminum (LD15) is better at dissipating heat than stainless steel (this 4000k). Another downside of this 4000k is my switch doesn't lock to the last setting when I turn it off. It cycles to the next intensity (high, medium, or low). Yes, my flashlight came with 3 levels, not 2.

I haven't yet decided which one I like better. It's roughly a draw at this point.

Missed this one. Nice comparison review. I've got mine as well. The 3000K is definitely more reddish tinted, but I love that incandescent feel, it seems adding some contrast in a total darkness scene.

I would not be concerned much with the overheating. Modern LEDs are constructed with the account for that, and this particular one is not really an ultra powerful model. Quite contrary the steel shell's heat propagation resistance should reduce the overheating chance for the battery.

Alex, my 4000k is the most incandescent-looking color of all my LED flashlights. Is your 4000k also incandescent-looking relative to other flashlights? Maybe I actually received the 3000k, but I'm not going to order a 3000k to find out.

The 4000K one is close to an incandescent too, but more like a bright halogen lamp to me. 3000K feels like a 25 W ceiling bulb light or halogen on minimum settings, noticeably more reddish. The color chart above interprets it quite realistically. My older LED lights are definitely something bluish between 5-7kK.