The manufacturers specification for the Aurora is listed as follows on the Deal Extreme Website;

Quote:
- Mode: Aurora AK-P7-3
- Features a Seoul Semiconductors SSC P7 (C-bin) high powered LED emitter
- Accepted input voltage: 7.4V ~ 17V
- Powered by 2 x 18650 (8.4V), or 4 x CR123A (16.8V) lithium batteries
- 900 lumens brightness (manufacturer rated)
- 5-mode tailcap switch: Hi > Mid > Lo > Strobe > SOS
- 2.5~3 hours total runtime (manufacturer rated)
- Regulated driver circuitry
- Manufacturer's rated current output measured at LED (tested using 2 x 18650):
.
High: 2960mA
Medium: 400mA
Low: 80mA
Strobe/SOS: 2960mA


The emitter is definitely an SSC P7, although whether it is a C-bin or not is difficult to determine.

I have only used 18650 cells so far so the input voltage hot of the charger has only been 8.2 volts. I don't think I would use RCR123s as this would probaly be near the limit for the input voltage. Ordinary CR123As would be probably be OK but the cells would most likely rattle around inside. The 18650 cells are already somewhat loose inside the battery compartment of the Aurora flashlight. With some 18650 flashlights the fit can be somewhat tight depending on the the make of the 18650 cell.
The rated current passing through the P7 has been rated at 2.96 A. This is difficult to determine but the current drawn from the cells was measured by myself at a maximum of 1.45A at 8.2 volts, so I guess after stepping down to the LED voltage the 2.96A claim is not over exaggerated. If the emitter is a C-bin then the power dissapated would be around 3.6V*2.9A = 10.5 W which, at around 60-80 lumen/watt, would give around 600-800 Lumen.

The 5 mode switching order is correct. There does seem to be an issue with the Aurora remembering the last mode. The Aurora needs to be turned of for quite a period of time for it to remember the last mode otherwise it will proceed on to the next mode.

The runtime using 2 18650 cells at 2200 mA would be probably be around 1.5 to 2.0 hrs on High mode. About 10-11 hrs on Medium mode and more than 50hrs on Low mode.

The beam is very wide with lots of spill. The centre hot spot would be about as intense as a Fenix T1 on turbo mode but slightly wider and less well defined as it diffuses into the spill region. The overall spill of the Aurora has about 1/3 larger diameter compared to the Fenix T1 at a slightly lower intensity. The Aurora isn't a thrower but the beam is very satifactory and a good colour being a slightly yellowish white i.e. similar to the Lumileds Rebel output. I would say that the range of the Aurora would be comparable to the Fenix T1 (claimed 200 metres) but illuminates a wider scene especially nearby. The wider spill will be due to the design of the SSC P7 emitter and design of the optics and will mostly likely effect all flashlights that use this emitter especially if the optics of the flashlight are not to become extremely oversized.


Overall construction is reasonably good. All the sub parts use rubber seals and the surface finish anodising is smooth and uniform. The tailcap threads appear to be precise and smooth. It should be reasonably waterproof although there is no IPX rating. Anodising is probably Type II rather than Type III. The reflector is an solid aluminium orange peel reflector and the lens is glass. It even has some nice touches such as a flat headed rivet over the tail and head contact springs to ensure a good electrical contact with the cells. The Aurora Weighs 378 grams with 2 18650 lithium Cells and is 23.5 cm tall.

The Aurora would make quiet a nice general purpose flashlight for the home and for vehicle use. Overall I am quite pleased with the performance of the Aurora. The only downsides so far is the slight rattle of the 18650 cells inside the flashlight when shaken and no point to attach a lanyard.




Edited by Am_Fear_Liath_Mor (07/30/08 12:21 PM)