Sofirn C01 Potted AAA w High CRI

[Timothybil]

I don't have Eneloops, but I have a bunch of AA and AAA Amazon Basics LSD cells. I have a couple AAA lights I use regularly, and a couple AAA COB stick-ups as well. While the AAAs especially don't have a lot of capacity, I have cycled them enough to see that they have not yet begun to degrade. I usually wait until there is significant dimming before swapping them. My Xtar VC4 usually shows right around 1v when I pop them in to recharge. And as you say, I have already saved more than the cost of the cells, including my 10440s, 14500s, 16650s, and 18650s, and the charger, so the rest is just gravy. With my current usage patterns I expect to be able to coast along for at least a couple more years before having to worry about replacing any cells.

 

[18650]

Unless you're referring to something more significant than the data from AA Cycler, Power Me Up, or others showing they're less robust to conditions outside the IEC 61951 test standard compared to the regular Eneloops than the lower cycle rating suggests, "sketchy" seems like an exaggeration. I'd be willing to bet that even if you let a C01 drain an Eneloop Pro as far as it will go, you'll kill them in relatively few cycles, but still save money versus alkalines.

I've had Eneloop Pro's AA develop very high internal resistance after use in some of the soda can lights in less than 15 cycles. High enough that my C9000 won't even touch them. The regular AAA is much less robust than the AA kind and I would think that applies to the Pro types too.

Note I've killed regular Eneloops too. Accident pocket turn ons with twisty lights drained the batteries too far and they developed high internal resistance which the maha won't touch either.

 

[iamlucky13]

I've had Eneloop Pro's AA develop very high internal resistance after use in some of the soda can lights in less than 15 cycles. High enough that my C9000 won't even touch them. The regular AAA is much less robust than the AA kind and I would think that applies to the Pro types too.

Note I've killed regular Eneloops too. Accident pocket turn ons with twisty lights drained the batteries too far and they developed high internal resistance which the maha won't touch either.

I appreciate you adding this info. That's worse performance than I would have expected, but it also does sound like we're talking about significantly harder use than the IEC test cycle, which to be honest, is relatively gentle - 60% depth of discharge at C/4, which would be roughly 500mA for an AA. Many lights pull over 1C from an Eneloop in their max mode. The IEC test also doesn't address internal resistance, unfortunately.

But saving the cost 15 alkalines by killing one Eneloop pro would be a fine trade in my book. Granted, I can't rule out a worse experience with very deep discharges that a C01 may cause, but those discharge cycles would also be at a much lower rate due to the C01's low output - around C/10.

 

[lampeDépêche]

It's one of the ironies of vampire-worship:

I love vampire lights that suck out the last drop.
Because they let me use up my old alkaline cells before I toss them out.
But they are also more likely to cause alkalines to leak.
And I don't want any batteries to leak in this light.
Because I love this light, because it's a good vampire.
And around we go again.

On another thread I was playing around with getting a month or more from a single D-cell using a cheap Eveready LED light and a 39-ohm resistor to throttle it down. I am routinely sucking these things down to below 0.2v when I take them out. None have burst yet.

That's a better model for a vampire, in some ways--if the cell does leak, then I can buy another plastic Eveready for another $3.00 or so.

This Sofirn is a much prettier beast, and I may want to keep it for higher purposes. (Plus, it would be harder to get a burst cell out of the aluminum shell).

 

[lampeDépêche]

Oh, and:

I have been refreshing the aliexpress link repeatedly throughout the day, and now it is down altogether.

But I *think* I was able to order one Sofirn in 5600k, and got an email confirming as much, before the link stopped responding.

I hope they get that next batch up and available soon!

 

[defloyd77]

Oh, and:

I have been refreshing the aliexpress link repeatedly throughout the day, and now it is down altogether.

But I *think* I was able to order one Sofirn in 5600k, and got an email confirming as much, before the link stopped responding.

I hope they get that next batch up and available soon!

The whole thing with Ali has been a fustercluck to say the least, especially with trying to get the BLF discounted price, but I managed to order a warm white version and it says it shipped.

Hopefully this light lives up to expectations and is worth the frustrations.

 

[bigburly912]

I had them send me another invoice after my first order requesting that I pay with my debit card for a cheaper price after I already paid for my first order. I told them no thanks. Kind of odd

 

[elzilcho]

Is there usually this much friction in the sales process? I'm interested to try this light but not that interested. I'll wait for them to hit the secondary market or will get a modded E01 straight from Vinh. Keeping my eye on this thread for reviews, out of curiosity.

 

[bigburly912]

I had them send me another invoice after my first order requesting that I pay with my debit card for a cheaper price after I already paid for my first order. I told them no thanks. Kind of odd

Let me rephrase that, I didn't ask them to do anything. Some random person from sofirn store sent me an invoice, told me not to cancel my first order that I paid with paypal, and then told me to pay for the second one with my debit card. I said "no thanks I already paid" them promptly canceled the second order even though it was a cheaper price. That just seemed really odd to me.

 

[iamlucky13]

Is there usually this much friction in the sales process? I'm interested to try this light but not that interested. I'll wait for them to hit the secondary market or will get a modded E01 straight from Vinh. Keeping my eye on this thread for reviews, out of curiosity.

I've never bought on Ali Express before, but as a platform, it clearly has issues with targeted promotions like this if Sofirn is having to manually adjust prices. There also seems to be a problem with their Paypal integration. Possibly some of this is due to rushing to get a listing up in time for the 11/11 sale.

Sofirn had troubles with the group buy for their version of the Q8, too.

However, they seem to be a growing player in the flashlight market, so I assume their regular listings are working ok, and I'm hoping things go more smoothly for the rest of the 2000 planned lights.

 

[Timothybil]

The interesting thing is that while the lights were available, there was only a $0.52 difference between the listed price and the discounted one. At that price point, unless one is ordering several lights, it almost isn't worth the hassle of trying to get the lower price.

 

[LeanBurn]

Is Ali the only way to get these?

...I don't even see them listed on the site...:thinking:

 

[tastewar1]

Yes, for now at least. No idea if that will change, but the light was *just* released.

Here is the URL for the light, though they're OOS ATM:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Sof...Yuji-LED-keychain-Flashlight/32952525303.html

 

[LeanBurn]

I show $8.88 USD on that link....$11.93 CAD...:ironic:

 

[lampeDépêche]

The price of $8.88 is what the page shows when the item is out of stock.

When it shows $7.02, then it has items in stock and available.

 

[jon_slider]

I compare it to halogen bulbs, but if you want a name analogous to "high noon", it would be a warm sunset.

Other descriptions I've heard include cream and caramel.

Carmel High sounds delicious

Sunset over the Pacific, seen from Carmel Highlands, Monterey California

2 Yujis, as seen on Skylumen.com


and for additional tint reference:


note all pics are links to more info
I will post photo comparison with N219b, when my 2 Yuji's arrive

 

[jon_slider]

Black Sofirn C01 are available again.

Happy ThanksGiving

 

[Modernflame]

Tracking shows that mine are still in China.

 

[bigburly912]

Mine too. Anxious to get them ib

 

[parametrek]

the high CRI versions of these lights will be limited to 2000 lights as the Yuji LEDs used in these lights are discontinued.

What a joke. Yuji has plenty of the 5mm BC series LEDs and anyone can buy them via Yuji's site. 5600K and 3200K are both in stock. $117 for a 1000 pack.