Wednesday, January 20, 2016

NITECORE MH27,1x18650, XP-L Hi LED,additional Red/Green/Blue LEDs

The MH27 is a new 18650 powered flashlight from Nitecore.
It has a great looking tactical design and various nice to have features-like additional color LEDs and an option very appreciated by many users
in the last years-a micro USB charging port with built-in charging electronics.
The model is also equipped with the specific for the latest Nitecore flashlights,back-lit button.
For a great results in terms of beam performance,the MH27 is equipped with a latest Cree LED,the XP-L HI V3,high intensity LED.
Regarding machine work done on the flashlight,build quality and anodized finish,my sample of the MH27 is on a very high level.It is hard to criticize it.

I found the form factor quite convenient for my hands.The conventional rear switch and the side dual-switch can be accessed with no problems.

Matte black finish.Excellent knurling without scratches or dents,on my sample.
Good design,which provides comfortable grip.
The grip ring is now better than ever.Made of metal,threaded for optimal stability,with no rattling,wobbling.
Big double side switch for mode selecting.

This is one of the most well designed flashlights,I have tested. Lots of good options are integrated into this flashlight,
which has the size of a regular tactical flashlight working on a single 18650 battery.

To charge the battery without taking it out of the flashlight,you just need to connect the supplied MicroUSB cable to your computer,power bank,or а wall charger.
I measured the maximum current draw during charge 540mA. This means,the MH27 can be charged from any USB power supply,even from not so powerful sources that support only 500mA charging.

The semi-transparent side button is blinking to indicate the charging status.
The charging port is covered by tick silicone cover/pad,which should keep the water and dust away from the MicroUSB port.
According to the specifications,the MH27 is IPX8,up to 2 meters waterproof and submersible.
I don't have a way to test it,so have in mind the port if you plan to use the flashlight for deep diving.

The stainless steel bezel is also matte and does not cause visible parasitic reflections.
The exterior machining and anodizing quality are on a very high level on my sample.
Total 6 cooling fins help the heat transfer,and keep the LED temperature in an acceptable range.

As almost any other side switch the MH27's switch takes some time to find it by touch.
Once you find it,it 's easy to operate and does not take much effort to press the needed side-left or right.
Here the button has a shape that helps a little to find it by touch and of course the side switch is a secondary switch-for mode selecting.
It is quite large in size,so pressing it with big fingers should not be a problem.

The side switch cover is made of soft silicone(or rubber),as it is partially transparent,allowing the blue light from the indicator underneath to be displayed.
Easy access to both switches from any position.
Forward clicky switch with momentary On possible at the tail.
All edges around the switch are well rounded-no sharp uncomfortable edges.
The tailcap design allows also tail-standing,but not stable enough for frequent use.

Nitecore EC4S, Nitecore MH27, Nitecore SRT6, Olight M23 Javelot

Pictures from the user manual: Specifications,features and User interface.

Here is the user interface well explained in the user guide.
The user interface is very well implemented and completes the overall idea of the MH27.
You can also check the battery voltage-indicated by the blue light under the side button.
Press and hold both buttons of the dual side switch and Turn the light ON. The blue light is flashing,indicating the voltage-4 times plus 2 times indicate 4,2V.
After showing the voltage,the blue light goes in to location flashing state,as the main white light stays OFF(during the voltage indication,too).
If you want to start the light,you have to restart the light by the rear switch.
The MH27 has a lot of options in the user interface,still for the regular user,operating the flashlight is easy and does not take much effort,even to a new user.
(I say this mostly because of the last tendency for different ways of turning the light ON and OFF-press and hold is hard to remember for new users).
The MH27 is quite intuitive if you use it without too much clicking-just leave it on the desired mode and turn it ON/OFF by the tail switch.
The more advanced users will also be satisfied with couple of useful features.


Below is the MH27 disassembled on three main parts.
You can see the typical for most Nitecore flashlights,physical reverse polarity protection.It requires the use of button top batteries.
All individual parts fit well without gaps.The overall construction of the flashlight seems very stable.
Rectangular cut threads at the head part of the battery tube,triangular cut at the tail end.Both threads anodized,for better wear resistance.
All parts feel solid,with sufficient thickness of the tube walls.

Standard Nitecore packaging.
Micro USB cable is included.


The MH27 comes with a holster,lanyard,pocket clip,spare switch cap,spare charging port cover,two spare O-rings.


Here is a GIF showing the holster.

Below is a picture of the MH27 with the pocket clip attached.The clip that came with my sample needs some bending to give it a better form and more tight sitting.
The grip ring is close to the attaching point of the clip,but does not lock it,as seen in other flashlights.

A comparison showing the different way of attaching the clip of the Olight M23.
The M23's clip is locked under the grip ring and also wider and more stable.

The most important part of a flashlight-the light emitting zone. Deep reflector with a Cree XP-L Hi V3 main white LED with integrated holes for three 5mm,rounded color LEDs-RED,GREEN and BLUE.
The 5mm LEDs are not the best choice for a good beam,but their form and size save a lot of space and this allows mounting them into the same reflector with the main white Cree LED.

There is what more to be desired from these beams,but I am sure many will find the extra option for using RED,Green,or Blue light quite useful.
Beam distance of the three LEDs is good.I don't think it could be used for distance illumination,most likely for close to mid distance operating.Reading maps,trace finding,etc.
Color light may be used also on camping,or even indoor as a night light.

The main reflector has a smooth reflecting surface(not orange peel),but still has some texture for better mixing the beam,which is recommended for LEDs with very small emitting area.


Below is a very close picture of the RED LED.

Close up picture of the Blue LED.(below)

Close up picture of the Green LED.(below)

Cree XP-L Hi LED (below)
The best choice for good throw from a compact reflector,without sacrificing quality of the beam.
My impressions of all flashlights with a Cree XP-L HI, I've tested so far,are only good. Quality beam profile with no tint change.

Run-time performance.
Below is a run-time test on Turbo mode done twice,once using a cooling fan for keeping the flashlight temperature low and relatively constant,once without cooling,just static flashlight.
Testing the flashlight with a cooling fan demonstrates its optimal performance and how it will work outdoor in the cold weather.
Indoor ambient temperature was ~20C during the tests.

I am pleased to see that the Nitecore's Advanced Temperature Regulation is functioning really well in the MH27.
The electronic driver is maintaining optimal working temperature,without leaving it to reach uncomfortable or dangerous levels.
Great work from the Nitecore engineers on this driver!

As expected,without a boosting circuit and using single Li-Ion power source the MH27 is not able to keep the advertised 1000 lumens for long.
Once the voltage drops,the output starts to decrease.Yet,the MH27 does quite well in the first 15 minutes.Just 100 lumens drop,which is hardly noticeable by eyes,especially if it's gradual.
After about 15 minutes comes the difference in output regulation.The driver is registering high temperature and start to decrease the output,until the temperature comes again to the triggering point.
Then it is raising the output back to its maximum possible level,as this time it is lower due to the lower battery voltage.
On the left side in the graph is the output in lumens measured by me in an amateur integrated sphere.
I can't guarantee full accuracy of the values taken by me.

My lumen measurements-
Battery-Keeppower 3400mAh
High mode= ~970 initial output,920Lm 30sec after activation
Mid mode= 297Lm
Low mode= 100 Lm
UltraLow= ~1Lm

I measured also the color beams-but I have no information about the wave length sensitivity of the photodiode I use.
Red=33Lm, Green=19Lm, Blue=19Lm


Beamshots

The MH27 produces a Cool white beam.Clean White on my sample.No bluish or greenish tint.
No visible distracting artifacts. Very well focused beam.Smooth transition from hotspot to spill.
The beam is not just a dot,good only for outdoor use. There is a quite good spill,too.
Significantly better throw distance than the beam from a flashlight with a Cree XM-L2 LED.
53,500cd maximum peak beam intensity,according to Nitecore's data.

The three additional LEDs do not affect the beam quality. I have nothing to criticize here.
A point in the MH27 that many would criticize,is the shape of the Red-Green-Blue color beams.
The 5mm LEDs sit in holes that have part of the reflector on one of its sides.This part of the reflector reflects part of the light and distort the beam shape.
Depending on the way you would use these beams,their shape might be very distracting/annoying,but in my opinion for regular use without hunting on a white wall,
the option to have color beams,together with the long throw white beam is still a big advantage.

Blue-Green-Red-Low-Mid-High-Turbo

Beam very close to the wall.


1 meter,1/20sec

1 meter,1/250sec

1 meter,1/500sec

1 meter,1/1600sec

5 meters, 1/6sec

5 meters, 1/50sec

5 meters, 1/250sec

5 meters,1 sec exposure time

After testing the Nitecore MH27,my impressions are only good.There were no flaws and using the flashlight was pleasure.
The MH27 covered all my expectations and even more-the beam profile is much better than I expected.
This is one of the better flashlights I have tested recently and is not hard to recommend it to anyone searching for a good 18650 flashlight.

Strong points:
Good build quality; Great design; Comfortable,stable grip; Metal grip ring with threads; Physical tail switch is usually a plus-real disconnecting the power,no parasitic stand by drain,easy for new to modern flashlights users; Convenient double side button with well thought out interface; Good modes; Great user interface; Actually working Temperature Regulation; Good heat transfer design,plus latest XP-L Hi V3 LED keep high lumen output,maintaining the temperature in acceptable range,at the same time; Great beam in terms of color temperature and shape;High peak beam intensity,thanks to the XP-L Hi LED; Great distance of throw for this size reflector;
Even the three holes for color LEDs,the main white beam is not affected; Charging port;

Weak points:
No low voltage warning,no low voltage protection; Basic pocket clip; Color beams not symmetrical in shape; Not so stable tail-standing;



Thanks for Reading!

Big thanks to Nitecore for providing the MH27 for test and review and for producing a really well thought out flashlight!

OLIGHT S1 Baton /1x16340(CR123A) battery REVIEW

Hello
I am happy to review for you one of the most pocket-able 16340 flashlights.This is the Olight S1.
It is a flashlight from Olight's Baton series lights and shares the same well known design of this series.
The S1 is almost identical with the S10,which is a preferred EDC flashlight by many people.
Very short body,easy user interface,good beam useful for every day use,tailcap magnet.
These were the main advantages of the S10. The new S1 features all of the good points,but now in even shorter body.
I was "testing" it for quite long time and it became my first choice for an EDC pocket flashlight.
It even displaced my MecArmy 10180 miniature light,just because the side switch allows me much faster and comfortable operation. 

The S1 is much shorter than many AAA flashlights,which makes it a perfect choice for everyday carrying.
Shortening the length is possible thanks to the redesigned battery tube and changes in the reflector.
The aluminum reflector is now replaced with a smaller TIR(total internal reflecting) acrylic reflector,which is the main part allowing less length of the head.
The other main update is the position of the battery,which have to be inserted in reverse position,with the negative pole going to the head. The plus pole contacts the tailcap. This is probably a result of redesigned driver board.
The side switch is also redesigned. It is now much less protruding compared to the S10L2 in its first design.The new switch cover is made of rubber(maybe silicone).
The diameter of the switch cover is a little larger than the S10's plastic button(my version is S10 L2,it was updated with a different switch later).
The new rubber button is a little uncomfortable at first touch.It is almost not protruding and feeling soft.These two characteristics of the switch have the purpose to prevent or at least to reduce the possibility of accidental activation. I was carrying the flashlight for quite a long time and in my opinion the design of the switch is successful. Yes,a 100% protection is hard to be promised,but after testing it by carrying in a pocket,I did not feel worried that the flashlight will start accidentally in my pocket.
The switch is hard to find in the darkness and requires a lot of touching to find it. But here comes the pocket clip,which will guide you with the position of the switch and will help finding it more quickly.
Pressing the switch with my thin fingers is relatively easy.I can't confirm it will be the same with bigger fingers than mine.



This is a picture from the user manual,explaining the UI.
It is very convenient and easy to operate. 
Great news is that the direct access to High and Moonlight mode is still available.

As any other flashlight with an electronic side switch,the S1 draws some current in Off state,which is actually Standby. I am happy to see that Olight is keeping this current at very low value.It is just 1,1uA (according to my measurements).

This is a run-time graph showing the performance of the S1 on its highest mode,powered by Olight RCR123A battery.
Pretty good performance for such a small flashlight. As expected for a small flashlight,there is a timed step down to prevent overheating. It comes about 1,5 minutes after activation and does decrease the brightness gradually.

My lumen measurements with freshly charged RCR123A battery:
High mode 600Lm,320Lm after step down
Mid mode 100Lm
Low mode 12Lm
UltraLow mode-I can't measure it with my equipment.

In my test,the discharge was terminated by the low voltage protection of the battery.
I am not impressed to see that the S1 has no low voltage protection,or it is not programmed correctly.
I prefer flashlights that feature low voltage protection,no matter the battery I use.
I am not a CR123A user and have no much knowledge about using this type batteries,but I suspect that many 16340 flashlights do not feature low voltage protection,because of their compatibility with the 3V CR123A batteries.Talking for CR123A batteries,I can only test Olight S1 with a 16340(RCR123A) battery. 

Below is a comparison of the reflectors of Olight S10 L2(left) and Olight S1 (right)

I have used TIR optics in flashlights many years ago and what I know is that most of them produce a beam with well defined hotspot(wide or tight) and the beam angle is usually limited in a defined circle.
It is hard to get the well flooded spill as with the conventional aluminum reflector.
The beam of the S1 can be defined as a big hotspot with not much spill around it-smaller angle of the beam with less bright spill compared to the S10L2.
I personally prefer the old beam from the conventional reflector,but looking at the difference in the length,I am thinking much less for the beam. The S1 is very comfortable for carrying and this dominates any other point of the flashlight.

Below is a beam angle comparison Olight S1- Olight S10L2
1 meter, 1/20sec
Beam color is clean Cool White. No visible tint.
As you can see from the picture below,there is a huge difference from the S10L2's greenish beam.
1 meter, 1/250sec

The S1 performs well on close to medium distance.
5 meters, 1/6sec
Olight S1- Olight S10L2- Olight S30

5 meters,1/50sec
Olight S1- Olight S10L2- Olight S30
The pocket clip has the same form,as only the length is slightly reduced.
Generally,I don't like the position of the lanyard loop.It is limiting the width of the clip and its main function,to fit on various objects as a thick belt or a backpack shoulder strap.

Below is the S1 disassembled. Only the tailcap is removable. You can see also the correct direction for inserting the battery.
The strong tailcap magnet can be removed,if you don't want to risk damaging electronic devices.

Battery tube length is very limited. It is recommend to use the shortest protected 16340.
Olight recommends using only protected batteries in the S1.
After testing the 16340's from Olight,with no doubt I highly recommend these batteries.They are specially designed for flashlights. Build quality is very high,as unlike all other protected Li-Ion batteries,the protection board is on the top end,allowing as compact dimension as possible. I like to see that the very controversial external connection between the plus and minus poles is not needed here,thanks to the smart work by Olight.

There is easily visible form difference between Keeppower's protected 16340 and Olight's 16340 batteries.

Using the flashlight is easy,thanks to the side switch.
Absolutely sufficient hand grip.
Other flashlights that operate by twisting the head are hard to use in many scenarios.

Here is the plastic packaging,standard for Olight.
The S1 is a great choice for people that prefer CR123A and 16340 batteries over the AAA/10440.
As advertised,the S1 is very compact and easy for pocket carrying.
I used it for quite long time after receiving it for review. I was a little reserved about the short,hard to find/press switch,but after some time using it,I don't meet any trouble using it.
Good user interface.I don't feel need of  different modes-the programmed ones are well selected.
I carry the flashlight in a pocket. Depending on the clothes,I would choose the S1 or a single AAA flashlight.
But in many cases,I found twisting the head of an AAA flashlight by only one hand,rather hard(especially if the flashlight has a thick O-ring for proper sealing). I have to have my both hands free,to be able to turn On and cycle the modes. So the S1's side switch in many cases is much more convenient.
Thanks to the high voltage of the Li-Ion battery,Olight S1 is able to provide very high lumen output.
It is always impressive to see that small flashlight to produce so bright beam,which could be very helpful sometimes.
My only concern is about the switch cover,which seems very thin and soft and I would not recommend to press it with a nail.

Thanks for reading! I hope you found some helpful information.

Thanks to Olight for providing the test sample and patiently waiting for the review!