Favorite budget light 2020

[hsa]

I've spent all this money on flashlights and it turns out the free one is a cult classic. What a great hobby.

 

[Burgess]

Great Respect for my Sofirn C01S
(1xAAA) two-mode twisty lights.

Luminus SST20 high CRI 4000°K
emitter is beautiful.

TIR reflector gives a (for me) *PERFECT* beam !

3 Lumen low (comes on first)
and
90 Lumen high
are both *very* useful modes for me.

10 Bucks on Amazon,
in several lovely colors.

:twothumbs
_

 

[bykfixer]

In many cases these days you can get a lot of value with a $10 flashlight.
Great respect for the 1x aaa sofirn.
And that SST has an old school way with a modern output.

I lucked up and caught a C01 yuji in the second hand market and use it whenever manuvering through the house when the lights are out. I may have to try that C01S. I'm intrigued by the TIR idea.

 

[gurdygurds]

Favorite budget light of the year for me is the good Ol' Photon Freedom. Love the instant high,instant low, and ramping UI on this tiny and inexpensive light. I always switch to a single 2032 battery for the longer runtime.

 

[Burgess]

Same here !

And I've always wished LRI would come out
with a "Magnum" model, using TWO 2032 cells ! ! !

Best of Both Worlds !

:twothumbs
_

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Enbrighten 650 lumen Rechargeable l.e.d. lantern and power bank ($20 at Costco). Has a 4400 mAh li-ion battery built in with the option of using 3Ds for extended runtimes or when the rechargeable battery dies. Has a 1 amp USB port for charging devices. Has a 4000K color temperature l.e.d. and the light has a dimmer. Has a nice carabiner type handle for easy hanging. Has a battery level and charge indicator. Seems like a great light for emergencies and regular use as well as long term campouts. You don't have to wait for it to charge if the battery is dead. Just pop in 3Ds (if they aren't already loaded in). On long trips, you could solar charge the battery and use the 3Ds when you need longer runtimes from night to night after the li-ion is drained (limiting the use of disposable batteries while maintaining long runtimes).

 

[Timothybil]

My favorite would have to be the Sofirn C01S, followed by the C01. Sofirnlight is currently selling the C01 for $3.99 USD. You can't get much more budget than that. I ordered some for my grandsons.

 

[Katherine Alicia]

My vote would have to be for the Manker E02II (warm white), I feel in love instantly with it and it`s been my EDC ever since

 

[bykfixer]

I want to say the Sophia C01 is my favorite 2020 model year budget light because it gets used so often. I wake before sunup and it lights my way to the coffee pot. But it being a niche light that only gets used in total darkness makes me prefer the E01v2 as the favorite because it can do that and scan my back yard or actually light up stuff the inside of pipes in daytime.

Yet I bought 10 Sophias and only one E01v2……

So I'll go with my BiC lighter again this year.

 

[J!m]

Well, I haven't posted here for the better part of a decade I think... I was researching rechargeable D cells, for my Sony D5M cassette player/recorder, and wound up here again. Some great battery reviews in here guys!

Anyway, to the topic: On page 2 (I think) the Husky light shown (2-AAA 80-Lumen model) is one I had for a few years. Being Husky, when the cell spring snapped off inside, I brought it to the local store for replacement. Yeah, no dice. It seems now, Husky tools are warranted via the website (direct from "husky") and not via the store. This goes for the hand tools as well. Big let down.

Anyway, I needed another light for work. So, I went to the tool section and found the same Husky light again. I forgot the price, but under $20 here. Next to it, was a nice looking penlight by Milwaukee. This is $20, uses 2-AAA batteries and is AWESOME. The light is (their words) "HD light", and I have to say, the color rendition is really excellent. Good mix of spot and flood, with no "obvious" hotspot; so the reflector is good. I use it all the time at work, to light up inside an enclosure, but it also throws to the roof of the building to check pipes or whatever. It does not alter the color of wires, which is important when there are a lot of them... Very solid feel to the case, which is a matte black anodize. Has a steel pocket clip with good spring.

Check it out!

 

[Lynx_Arc]

Well, I haven't posted here for the better part of a decade I think... I was researching rechargeable D cells, for my Sony D5M cassette player/recorder, and wound up here again. Some great battery reviews in here guys!

Anyway, to the topic: On page 2 (I think) the Husky light shown (2-AAA 80-Lumen model) is one I had for a few years. Being Husky, when the cell spring snapped off inside, I brought it to the local store for replacement. Yeah, no dice. It seems now, Husky tools are warranted via the website (direct from "husky") and not via the store. This goes for the hand tools as well. Big let down.

Anyway, I needed another light for work. So, I went to the tool section and found the same Husky light again. I forgot the price, but under $20 here. Next to it, was a nice looking penlight by Milwaukee. This is $20, uses 2-AAA batteries and is AWESOME. The light is (their words) "HD light", and I have to say, the color rendition is really excellent. Good mix of spot and flood, with no "obvious" hotspot; so the reflector is good. I use it all the time at work, to light up inside an enclosure, but it also throws to the roof of the building to check pipes or whatever. It does not alter the color of wires, which is important when there are a lot of them... Very solid feel to the case, which is a matte black anodize. Has a steel pocket clip with good spring.

Check it out!

You want to know what is funny? I had a Husky 2 inch pipe cutter and took it to Home Depot to get replaced and they told me (at that time) they no longer sold it and I had to contact Husky for replacement. I went online and found their phone number and called them up.
Guess who answered? Home Depot
I told them what my problem as and a week and a half or so later a brand new one showed up in the mail.

 

[Stress_Test]

Well, I didn't buy much of anything this year (just two). The first was that Energizer 6AA tri-led light; can't remember what it's called. I had decided that I needed a "blaster" light that used AA cells, but didn't want to break the bank. Surprise, found this light at the store for something like 20 bucks. I scoffed at the claimed "1200 lumens" or whatever it was, but I figured it'd still be pretty powerful.

Got home and compared it to an older SolarForce XM-L dropin, powered by 2 li-ion. The Energizer light CRUSHED the XM-L. I was shocked! All that for $20 and it's neutral white too!!

My only other light for 2020 is one I just ordered today: A Lumintop EDC01. I realized I don't have very much in the AAA format, so I've been looking around for a little while. Amazon had this light for $10 and I was already ordering something else, so I thought what the heck, I'll try it.

The Energizer light will probably still be my favorite of the two, however

 

[Buck91]

While the Sofirn twins, the c01 and c01s are all the rage (and rightly so) there is another that's using in plain sight. Thrunite has been closing out the xpg2 based Ti3 v2. Fantastic little light. Nice low moon mode, nice bright high and no memory! Plus it's super easy to swap on your choice of 3535 LED.

 

[jabe1]

I just purchased a Wowtac a2s headlamp and I can't believe what you can get for about $25 (sale, usually $30).
The silicone holder edges are a little sharp, but that can be cured. Besides that it's an amazing value, even without the sale.
I think Amazon is giving 20% off right now.

 

[Rod911]

Haven't bought a light for at least 5 years (with the exception of a cheap, COB-type, rechargeable light in the last year), but got an Astrolux FT03 using an XHP50.2 LED in neutral white (5700K) and (not so budget in my opinion), Astrolux MF01 Mini Copper with XPL-HI LEDs (5000K).

I wanted something that was bright, can be recharged and used a 26650 cell. These two seemed to fit the bill and were within my budget.

Nice to see that things have moved forward since I last looked at LED lights back in 2015.

 

[bpbpoo]

well hot dang. I had no idea there was a SST20 4000k equiped light to be found so inexpensive. Just grabbed one of those C01S's off of amazon!

 

[Stress_Test]

Same here. I like the Lumintop EDC01 as an indoor/car/closeup light, with the diffused TIR lens, but the mode memory is a bit bothersome on a twisty light.

I've got an orange C01s arriving soon; wanted to try out the throw-oriented TIR on that light, and the 4000k color temp was icing on the cake!

 

[Paul6ppca]

I bought a Lumintop tool AA in white on Black Friday sale for $15.
Very nice light bright on 14500 usb battery! Tail cap even glows using lion battery!
It's very light weight and slim, with four modes. I'm liking it with my Ti tool aaa.
Considering the Ti tool AA[emoji51]

 

[Jean-Luc Descarte]

Same here. I like the Lumintop EDC01 as an indoor/car/closeup light, with the diffused TIR lens, but the mode memory is a bit bothersome on a twisty light.

I've got an orange C01s arriving soon; wanted to try out the throw-oriented TIR on that light, and the 4000k color temp was icing on the cake!

The new version Tool AAA now comes with the same pebbled TIR and mode memory as the EDC01, if you can digest mode memory better on a clicky torch :thumbsup:

 

[boo5ted]

Considering the Ti tool AA[emoji51]

Do it! It's an awesome light, mine gets edc duty all the time.