I want a photon III, which is the "best" color?

shootist16

shootist16

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Which is the best color to get. Preferably one that is bright and lasts for quite awhile.
 
Hi Dennis,

At the moment I only have Photon II's but the Green one that I have throws out a very bright beam (use 2 Cr2016 3V lithium cells)

I heard nice things about the Turquoise ones also.

White is a little less bright but has a much smoother beam.

Best Scouting wishes from Holland,

Bagheera
 
Of the 3 Photon II's I have, the turquoise is brighter than the white and much brighter than the red. As you may be expecting, your question about the "best" must be answered by another question, "best for what?" For finding the right key on my keychain and finding the keyhole to put it in, without alerting the world to what I'm doing, red might be best. I've seen breakdowns somewhere on the web explaining the strengths, weaknesses, and uses of each color, but I don't remember where. A search of the forums for "Photon" will turn up a lot of information. Also check www.candlepowerforums.com for way more flashlight info than you will ever want to read.
 
I believe the blue is the brightest, having the shortest wavelength of light and all that. The only thing is that blue may be bright but it doesn't allow for the best ID of anything you shine your photon at. White is 'natural' light and so one can ID whether something moving is a bad guy or just a cat on its nightly stroll.
 
CMG Colors

This place explanes the colors some, I have a Mini-Task light
in Green, but It's main purpose is for being unnoticed
(I.E. in the tent in the middle on the night, Etc.)
Also just a side note when I got my Task-light they only came in
Red, Green, White, and Yellow.

My Photon 1 is / was a Yellow, and it served the
"Just need a quick light" times just fine.

It's been replaced (but still used some times) by a
Photon 2 which is the "white"
(In the 2's it's really only Blue/Green) The light is
alittle dimmer I think but you can spend ALOT of time trying
to deside what color something is with anything other then
"white".

If you really want a Photon 3 that's fine, but I'm not sure,
I like the design over my Photon 2's BUT I don't have a 3 to judge.

<IXOYE><
 
If you're looking for good bright light, the choices come down, to me, to turquoise or white. To narrow it down this far, I first looked at the brightest colored lights, which are green, blue, and turquoise. Turquoise is brighter than green. Blue and turquoise are similar in brightness, but turquoise is much whiter than blue, so it's much eaasier to see by turquoise light.

Now, turquoise versus white. If I absolutely must have as close to true-color visibility as possible, choose white. I personally fine that I want some balance between brightness and whiteness. Turquoise provides exactly what I want -- it's very bright, but still fairly white. Blue and green are more off-white than I'd like, and white just doesn't have the punch that turquoise does.

Joe
 
I agree with Joe on this. I use a blue light ASP. It has lasted forever.

But in the dark of the night, everything kind of looks the same. That is okay for general shape identification, but not very specific.
 
I have to have white. When looking at small wires that are color coded white is the only way to go. I have been using the Photon 3 covert, very nice. I have it set to go to medium with the on/off and then I can push the full momentary button if I need the extra light. I have all the colors and find white is the easiest to use for reading and color recognition.
 
I am colorblind anyway so identifying colors isn't a priority with me. I am looking for something that is bright but lasts awhile. I understand that the white ones have a fairly low battery life. Maybe turqouise is the way to go.
 
None of the 6V models (read: none of the bright models) have particularly long battery life. But if you don't care about seeing true colors but want brightness, turquoise is definitely the way to go.
 
Originally posted by Brock
I have to have white. When looking at small wires that are color coded white is the only way to go.
Click to expand...

Right on the money, once again. I also have to agree with Joe's comments regarding the blue photons; bright but vague images. I stick to the turquiose and white models.
 
Good points, all. I'll add my 2 cents worth. For my old eyes, white is best for brightness AND identification. Blue is prettiest. Turquoise didn't do much for me, red is best for preserving night vision and checking on my kids in their cribs at night without disturbing them - VERY important!

I really like the Photon 3 red for being able to use half and full intensity on the button. I have, unfortunately, found it turned on and burning accidentally in my pockets, I have no idea how many times. I wonder how much battery I have left. Not a problem with the Photon 1's and 2's, although Bagheera reported a different outcome while on holiday.

I really wish I could get a red Photon 2 covert for reading on buses, in bed, etc. Guess I'll have to order the covert in Photon 3.
 
If you are going to be reading with the light, I've found that the white gives better contrast between print and paper---especially if the paper is a little off-white (like newspapers).
 
Photon's come in two or three significantly different categories of battery life. I don't remember how they all break down, but I do know the values for the two I carry:

Photon II white: 12-14 hours
Photon II red: 120 hours

I use white almost all of the time. I keep the red around for the times I want to preserve my night vision and in case I need a longer lasting light source.

--Bob Q
 
I am a big fan of the white. I stopped carrying the red when I was trying once to read directions written in red ink with only it for light. I think I have a blue currently on my keychain, but I don't use it much since I got my E2.
 
white's the best general purpose, but red will not affect your night vision (while driving or otherwise)

but my favorite color has to be the UV :D hehe.

actually, that one is pretty friggin cool. shows up the strip in dollar bills, blind your friends (permanently), give yourself a tan. the beam is bright on that thing too....

toast
 
Originally posted by toast
blind your friends (permanently)
Click to expand...

How dangerous IS the UV? Are there any safety precautions (other than the obvious) that we need to know about?
 
hey,

it was more in jest, but UV light is very bad to look at no matter what the source. as an aside, uv light is different than those dark light lamps you can get. uv radiation is extrememly bad for the retina and damages rods and cones directly under prolonged procedure. in general, not a good idea to stare into the source, like it's a bad idea to look at the sun too long. the packaging does come with a nice warning just in case.

toast
 
This may be a stupid question, but I guess the UV one is visible to the human eye? I thought it was for use with nightvision goggles and stuff. Is this the same type of light emitted from "blacklight" bulbs?

--Matt
 
I currently have a turquoise Photon, but I'm probably going to switch it in for a white LED. Sure it is brighter, but it is difficult to see/read fine details. Good for walking through a dark area, but there have been a few times where it has been completely useless, such as reading a map in darkness. I do have poor eyesight (I wear glasses, but for most things I don't need to wear them) and poorer night vision, but I could not believe how difficult it was at the time.

White will solve that problem, and I'll just walk a little slower in the dark.
 
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