Nitecore P15 too good to be true?

[King Mustard]

I am looking for a cheap (roughly £30), rechargeable flashlight with a battery indicator.

There isn't as much choice in the UK as there is in the USA but the following are the cheapest on Flashaholic's website.

Nitecore TIP CRI Neutral white (£20 delivered)
Nichia NVSL219B
240lm for 30 minutes
74 meters

Nitecore P15 (£28 delivered)
Cree XP-G2
430lm for 2.25 hours
278 meters

Nitecore TIP XP-G2 (£30 delivered)
Cree XP-G2 S3
360lm for 30 minutes
74 meters

Nitecore TIP 2017 (£32 delivered)
Cree XP-G2
360lm for 30 minutes
Unknown distance

Nitecore TINI (£33 delivered)
Cree XP-G2 S3
380lm for 15 minutes
64 meters

RovyVon Aurora A1(£33 delivered)
Cree XP-G3
550lm for 38 minutes
80 meters

I will only be using the flashlight at maximum brightness, so I've only listed those running times above.

As you can see, specification-wise, the Nitecore P15 appears to blow the others out of the water.

Am I missing something obvious?

 

[scout24]

King Mustard- I approved your post after editing out the links. Most here who will reply are familiar with most if not all of the lights you mention above. Shilling and advertising links are frowned upon here in accordance with CPF's policies. Thanks for your understanding, and welcome to CPF!

 

[Fireclaw18]

...As you can see, specification-wise, the Nitecore P15 appears to blow the others out of the water.

Am I missing something obvious?

Yes, you are missing something very obvious.

ALL of the lights you linked are ultra-compact keychain lights, except the Nitecore P15.

The primary selling point of a keychain light is compactness so it can fit on a keychain.

In contrast, the P15 is a MUCH larger single-18650 light. It's far too big for a keychain or even for pocket EDC. It's an entirely different class of flashlight made for an entirely different purpose.

Bottom line is the lights you linked don't provide a useful or fair comparison at all. There are lots of single-18650 lights with battery chargers. If you want a useful comparison, you should compare some of them to the Nitecore P15.

 

[john1230]

Just wanted to say that the maximum brightness is very short (roughly 2 minutes) for most touches before it will step down the brightness, so if you are assuming you'll get 2 hours at 500lm, you'll be disappointed. I think it would be better if you state what your usage/need is and people can give you a better recommendation. Personal I think the jetbeam jet-1 mk is pretty good value for the build quality and output.

 

[majid]

I'd get a BLF GT Mini instead. Twice the brightness, 6 times the range, very good UI.