EternaLight

[Oni]

Does anyone have an EternaLight. Looks kind of like a deck of cards with 4 LED's sticking out the end. Saw it at LED museum link from candlepower forum.

Looks kind of neat, has some good features and long battery life. Just wondering if anyone around here has one, and what they think of it.

Looks like it might be good for an emergency kit. Looks kind of awkward for EDC though. Thinking it might be perfect to stuff in the pack I take dirtbiking.

 

[Joe Talmadge]

I have one of the newer models, the EternaLight Xray. It doesn't look as much like a science project as that old square model did, and has some really nice features.

The EternaLight has positives and negatives that make it awesome for some applications, less awesome for others.

The best thing about EternaLight, to me, is that fact that it is dimmable. Along with being dimmable, comes the fact that the dimmer you make it, the longer the runtime. In the dimmer settings, it lasts hundreds to thousands of hours on a single battery change. It's very convenient to take this light as my regular non-tactical light when I go places. I can use it as a night light, dim reading light, all the way up to regular utility use, knowing the whole time that I don't have to bring a change of batteries. This also makes it very useful as an emergency light (if we lose power for two days after the next earthquake, I know I can burn my ET Xray the entire time and still not worry about a battery change). Another nice feature is that on the Xray, there's a fifth, dimmer LED inside the translucent case, that you can set to turn on when the unit is off, so you can always find the light in the dark. All in all, these features make it a great fit for many many uses. And there really is no other competitor to EternaLight when it comes to its coolest features.

The downside is, of course, the form-factor. If you're carrying it in a coat pocket, it's no problem. But it's more awkward to carry in your pants pocket than, say, a Mag 2AA or an Arc LS or an Inova X5, for sure. On its brightest setting, the EL Xray is not quite as bright as the Inova X5, based on pictures I've seen on candlepowerforums. That makes it bright enough for most any utility use for me, but like the Inova X5 and Arc LS, not bright enough for tactical use.

So, if being dimmable and having very long life are appealing to you, and you're willing to forgo pants-pocket carry, it's an excellent light. I suggest you check out the newer models, particularly the Xray Elite, which I believe is slightly brighter than the Xray. I'm glad I bought the Xray, which I got for $35 on the web.

Joe

 

[Oni]

Thanks for the nice review.

Might have to try one out!

 

[tarsier]

Joe hit the nail on the head with his review. This light is good for some, but not all, applications. It is not a substitute for a tactical incandescent light.

I have the EternaLight Ergo Marine. This model is bright yellow in color and, if used with lithium batteries, will float. I have never dropped it in the water, but it has gotten wet and muddy, with no problems yet.

The dimmer can be used to select one of ten stages of varying light levels with all four LEDs on. It then rotates through each individual LED. It also has several other settings that are useful, such as a blinking signal and momentary on/off mode. The light that it produces on the highest level is excellent. It is much less diffuse than some LED lights, like my NightBuster 8x. It has a bright, focused ring in the middle with enough light around the periphery to be useful when walking in open areas. The pattern is similar to an Arc light, but brighter of course. On the lowest level, it could be used for reading a map, fixing gear, or some other close up work, but not much else.

This is the flashlight that I take when hiking, because it is light, compact, has shown good water resistance, and should have long battery life. I say "should" because I did not do a battery test on this light like I usually do. I keep it in the outermost pocket of my knapsack, and I have never noticed it getting turned on by accident, even though the power switch is exposed. The default mode is to turn off after two minutes, so even if that did happen, I would not lose much battery power.

On the downside, lithium batteries are harder to find and more expensive than alkalines. You could just use alkalines and add a bit more weight. Also, in order to change batteries, you have to remove four tiny phillips head screws. This would be annoying to do in the woods. With the expected battery life, this should not be an issue though. The only other comment is a minor one - some of the modes are a little silly and gimmicky.

 

[Oni]

Thanks for the review guys!

Lots of great info. I ordered a couple of Xrays.

They are going into the packs I take Mt. biking and dirt biking. As I occasionally do some unscheduled soil sampling I figured the S.O.S. feature might be a good idea.