surefire stiletto pro 2

[umc]

That's probably because those selling it at $341 are gone.

Random thoughts I know but this is what I have now.

I don't have any of the previous versions but I did look at and compare the previous versions in regards to specs and what I could find on YouTube. The main reasons I chose to pay more was because this one is USBC, and of course it's higher output. Because it is USBC I can charge it much faster. Not sure how good that is in the long run but I am using the same charger I use on my IPad and I've never had an issue on IPad charging it with a faster charger. So even though I thought about getting the Pro those are the two things that made my mind up. I was fortunate that at the time I was looking for a flat flashlight this one was just about to be released. The only one I would even seriously consider would be the SureFire Stiletto Pro. The Stiletto with it's lowest of three output, polymer body, isn't something I would even seriously consider not when the other two are possible.

I've only played with it a bit so I haven't completely looked at everything. I don't think I will ever need to take advantage of its programming capabilities but I think I want to revisit this just to make sure. I think if you're taking a look at how much this cost if this isn't necessary to you then you may want to consider something cheaper. The Olight Arkfeld Pro for example from a YouTube I saw was comparable to the SureFire Stiletto Pro with regards to output, not as good but comparable. Point being you are paying a premium for the SureFire Stiletto Pro 2. For me personally I have no problem paying a bit more for something like this without using that, but that's not the case for everybody. I don't like the rubber cover over the charging port and I have seen reviews where someone tested its ability to go underwater and that never works well. Not that that's something I need, but I don't like the rubber cover and I would prefer something different. I'm not going to remove it because I don't roll that way and besides I don't need dust and dirt getting in there, but I would prefer something else.

I do kind of like the form factor although I was surprised by it's size in person. I thought it might be longer but I never actually paid enough attention to the specs. It works especially for an EDC pocket flashlight, I'm just used to something a smidge longer. I don't think I will have a problem getting used to that. I personally like that this one has two lights where the other two only have one. I'm sure it increases the spill and I consider that a good thing. As well I think it simply just look better than the other two with only one light. It seemed to run out of power very quickly, but then again I have no way to know how much charge it had exactly when I got it. It was on green but maybe it was on low green??? Anyway I charged it last night and this is part of the thing I am looking at. I'm used to my Fenix with a 18650 so we will see.

At this point I have no regrets with my choice. I don't think I would mind getting the Olight Arkfeld Pro as well just because of the three different lights you get. But that would never be my first choice because you simply don't get as much light with that one and that's the main reason for me getting a flashlight. It has different modes which I will use but I want something with the most light I can get as well when needed. The SureFire Stiletto Pro 2 would have always been my first choice based on the flat Flashlights I have seen. They do have a Nite Core with more light but I am hearing that it gets hot and there was one review where they said the buttons didn't always function that easily. It has a nice OLED screen with various statuses which would be nice to have but if it gets hot and the buttons aren't easy to use I'll just pass. I could be wrong but this is stuff I was hearing so far. The Stream light Wedge for the fact you have to keep pressing the switch to get full light isn't something I would want to use.

I'm convinced at this point I made the right choice for me.

Any updated thoughts on battery life?

I got my Stiletto Pro 2 yesterday and charged it up all the way and played around with it on and off in the afternoon and evening. I can't imagine that I put more than 6-10 minutes of total run time on it across all light levels. This morning I turned it on and noticed that the battery indicator was on yellow 35-69% capacity so I'm guessing it just hit 69%. I'm extremely disappointed in that because if you do the math it is nowhere near possible to get 1 hour of runtime on high as advertised. I have it charged up again and will continue to keep an eye on things.

As far as the light itself, I like the form factor, love the clip and am keeping it lens up for now and the UI is nice. The output is excellent. I'm really impressed with high and the amount of light and throw that it has especially compared to my EDC1-DFT. I only wish there was more spill as what it currently has doesn't touch your feet to make it easier to see when walking at night, especially on low. I realize there is a trade off when it comes to spill/flood and throw so I want to keep using it and see how it really is.

I've been carrying the EDC1-DFT for a month or more now and I like that but starting on high for most things is a pain but doable. Prior to that I was carrying an Olight which was all flood and a lot of it. I think I kind of got used to that. I wanted something with more throw and got the EDC1-DFT for fun more than anything knowing that the Stiletto Pro 2 was coming out and that it would probably be the perfect EDC for me. So one day of testing down and so far so good but need to spend more time and real world test with the spill and really concerned about the battery life. Sure, I can charge it but I don't want to have to do that multiple times a week especially with the limited use I gave it yesterday.

I'll keep an eye on it and maybe do a more formal test like turn it on high for 5 minutes at a time and see how long it takes to get to 70% and then 35% (the next level down for the battery indicator of "red")

Looking forward to others input

 

[dddrees]

Any updated thoughts on battery life?

I got my Stiletto Pro 2 yesterday and charged it up all the way and played around with it on and off in the afternoon and evening. I can't imagine that I put more than 6-10 minutes of total run time on it across all light levels. This morning I turned it on and noticed that the battery indicator was on yellow 35-69% capacity so I'm guessing it just hit 69%. I'm extremely disappointed in that because if you do the math it is nowhere near possible to get 1 hour of runtime on high as advertised. I have it charged up again and will continue to keep an eye on things.

As far as the light itself, I like the form factor, love the clip and am keeping it lens up for now and the UI is nice. The output is excellent. I'm really impressed with high and the amount of light and throw that it has especially compared to my EDC1-DFT. I only wish there was more spill as what it currently has doesn't touch your feet to make it easier to see when walking at night, especially on low. I realize there is a trade off when it comes to spill/flood and throw so I want to keep using it and see how it really is.

I've been carrying the EDC1-DFT for a month or more now and I like that but starting on high for most things is a pain but doable. Prior to that I was carrying an Olight which was all flood and a lot of it. I think I kind of got used to that. I wanted something with more throw and got the EDC1-DFT for fun more than anything knowing that the Stiletto Pro 2 was coming out and that it would probably be the perfect EDC for me. So one day of testing down and so far so good but need to spend more time and real world test with the spill and really concerned about the battery life. Sure, I can charge it but I don't want to have to do that multiple times a week especially with the limited use I gave it yesterday.

I'll keep an eye on it and maybe do a more formal test like turn it on high for 5 minutes at a time and see how long it takes to get to 70% and then 35% (the next level down for the battery indicator of "red")

Looking forward to others input

No, I've been distracted with other things but I really need to get back to it and check it out. Thanks for sharing.

 

[umc]

So I just tested it and with the Stiletto Pro 2 fully charged and on high it dropped down to 70% in 6 minutes. I let it sit off for a few minutes and turned it back on to high again and it dropped to red on the battery indicator in 1 minutes. Something isn't right. I called Surefire and they're going to send me info to send this in and have it looked at. I'm pretty bummed to say the least....

 

[dddrees]

So I just tested it and with the Stiletto Pro 2 fully charged and on high it dropped down to 70% in 6 minutes. I let it sit off for a few minutes and turned it back on to high again and it dropped to red on the battery indicator in 1 minutes. Something isn't right. I called Surefire and they're going to send me info to send this in and have it looked at. I'm pretty bummed to say the least....

Sorry to hear that. Yeah, that doesn't sound right. Did he give you an idea how long it would take? I guess I need to test mine.

 

[dddrees]

So I just tested it and with the Stiletto Pro 2 fully charged and on high it dropped down to 70% in 6 minutes. I let it sit off for a few minutes and turned it back on to high again and it dropped to red on the battery indicator in 1 minutes. Something isn't right. I called Surefire and they're going to send me info to send this in and have it looked at. I'm pretty bummed to say the least....

By the way I got my SureFire Fury Intellibeam shortly before my Stiletto Pro 2 and I had to send that in because it didn't work with their 18650 Batteries. So I know how you feel. They did fix that one within a day however and I get that one back today.

 

[dddrees]

So I just tested it and with the Stiletto Pro 2 fully charged and on high it dropped down to 70% in 6 minutes. I let it sit off for a few minutes and turned it back on to high again and it dropped to red on the battery indicator in 1 minutes. Something isn't right. I called Surefire and they're going to send me info to send this in and have it looked at. I'm pretty bummed to say the least....

I just ran a test on mine. It wasn't completely charged because I had ran it a couple of times and sometimes on high over the last couple of days. Tonight I ran it on high for about ten minutes before I changed it to medium and it ran for about an hour and started blinking red. I then ran it on high for another couple of minutes and it ended up running for about an hour and five minutes. I can't say for certain it meets the advertised runtime but if it's doesn't it sure would be close. I might try this again after recharging it.

It can get rather warm. I put mine down because I had other things to do but I did want to do a runtime test after hearing what you had experienced.

By the way I did receive my Stiletto Pro 2 this afternoon and that issue was fixed. Here's hoping you get your flashlight back as soon as possible.

 

[umc]

So are you saying an hour and five minutes total time? About 12 minutes on high and about an hour on medium?

Run it on high, 5-10 minute increments and see when the battery indicator changes and what total run time is on high. I'm curious.

Surefire sent me an ups label so I'm hoping I can get to the ups store tomorrow to have them ship it off. They told me that once they receive it they would send a replacement so hopefully I'm not without for too long. I was super stoked to get this light to I'm pretty bummed with this result. Hopefully it's just a one off issue and the next one is good to go.

Please let me know if you can test more just on high and thank you.

 

[dddrees]

So are you saying an hour and five minutes total time? About 12 minutes on high and about an hour on medium?

Run it on high, 5-10 minute increments and see when the battery indicator changes and what total run time is on high. I'm curious.

Surefire sent me an ups label so I'm hoping I can get to the ups store tomorrow to have them ship it off. They told me that once they receive it they would send a replacement so hopefully I'm not without for too long. I was super stoked to get this light to I'm pretty bummed with this result. Hopefully it's just a one off issue and the next one is good to go.

Please let me know if you can test more just on high and thank you.

Great, glad to hear it won't take long. I kind of figured they might give you a new one considering it's an internal battery. I do wonder what happens when my internal battery eventually goes bad on mine. If you don't mind could you ask them when talking to them later what they will be willing to do when this eventually happens to us. Is it something they would be willing to replace, fix, or are we screwed after so many years? I probably could have asked today but forgot too.

By the way for whatever reason they didn't automatically notify me when sending my flashlight back to me. They did send an email the next day after UPS said it was delivered to acknowledge they received it. They just never emailed me that it was repaired and they were sending it back. I called them back a few days later just to check on it and that's when he sent the tracking information and said it was on the way back. I thought that odd as most companies will do that automatically.

An hour and five minutes but as I mentioned I had run it a few times before then previously. So it wasn't completely charged when I started this test today.

I'll make you a deal. You ask about their policy on the internal battery going bad and I'll run the test.

 

[Monocrom]

So I just tested it and with the Stiletto Pro 2 fully charged and on high it dropped down to 70% in 6 minutes. I let it sit off for a few minutes and turned it back on to high again and it dropped to red on the battery indicator in 1 minutes. Something isn't right. I called Surefire and they're going to send me info to send this in and have it looked at. I'm pretty bummed to say the least....

Definitely sounds like you got a rare lemon that snuck by Quality Control. Look on the bright side. At least SureFire didn't claim that it was normal.

 

[Monocrom]

Great, glad to hear it won't take long. I kind of figured they might give you a new one considering it's an internal battery. I do wonder what happens when my internal battery eventually goes bad on mine. If you don't mind could you ask them when talking to them later what they will be willing to do when this eventually happens to us. Is it something they would be willing to replace, fix, or are we screwed after so many years? I probably could have asked today but forgot too.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. It's clearly one thing to buy such a light and it immediately has battery issues (like what umc is experiencing). Quite another to use such a light for a few years with no issues, but then the battery starts acting up due to age or the number of times it has been recharged. In that type of situation it's just expected that you'd buy a brand new flashlight to replace the old one. It's why I refuse to buy anymore lights that use a captive proprietary battery. Those lights have a very limited lifespan.

Even with non-captive proprietary battery lights, if the specific replacement battery needed to keep powering your light becomes discontinued itself; well you're screwed. Favorite flashlight? Use it all the time? Perhaps a gift from someone special? Yeah, sorry; use it as a paperweight, I guess. The non-captive proprietary ones do have a longer lifespan. But honestly, not to a huge amount.

I'll never forget back when I worked at Colorado Pen Company almost 30 years ago. Had a woman come into the store who wanted to buy a replacement Waterman ballpoint pen refill. I'd very soon learn from her that the pen itself was a gift from close friends (likely a married couple) who put a great deal of thought into buying it for her. It wasn't engraved. But she loved it! Carried it around for several years. Used it all the time when she needed to jot something down. I figured no problem. Waterman ballpoint pen refills are proprietary but common as dirt. We certainly had them in the store. Taking my job seriously, I unscrewed the barrel on her pen just to verify everything was good.

No, it was not! Pen companies almost never discontinue their ballpoint or roller-ball refills. Waterman did! At least back then. Now, they stick with their current proprietary refill going back decades. But hers was discontinued. Oh, you would not believe the sheer level of shock, anger, outrage and genuine hatred that I saw her experience when I explained the issue to her. (Some of it directed at me.) Her beloved pen was now a worthless shell. And, forever would be. Couldn't even use it as an improvised paper-weight. Thankfully I did manage to calm her down a bit, before she stormed out of the store.

With some things, it's just expected that there's an understanding between consumer and the company selling the product that use will be limited to only a few years. I have a SureFire Stiletto, I have an SF Stiletto Pro. Yeah, although I'm curious about the Pro 2, I won't be buying one. Captive proprietary battery, plus fish wanting to squirt out of your hand if you bear down on it grip; being the two absolute biggest reasons why. Seriously, am amazed that SureFire kept the very same grip from the Pro; and put it on the Pro 2.

 

[dddrees]

Definitely sounds like you got a rare lemon that snuck by Quality Control. Look on the bright side. At least SureFire didn't claim that it was normal.

Unless you know something I don't they aren't known to be like that. Not based on the little I have heard about them. It certainly wasn't anything like the experience I had with my other flashlight I just got back from them. I am seeing more incidents where you might get a problem but it appears they are very good about taking care of them when they occur.

 

[dddrees]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. It's clearly one thing to buy such a light and it immediately has battery issues (like what umc is experiencing). Quite another to use such a light for a few years with no issues, but then the battery starts acting up due to age or the number of times it has been recharged. In that type of situation it's just expected that you'd buy a brand new flashlight to replace the old one. It's why I refuse to buy anymore lights that use a captive proprietary battery. Those lights have a very limited lifespan.

Even with non-captive proprietary battery lights, if the specific replacement battery needed to keep powering your light becomes discontinued itself; well you're screwed. Favorite flashlight? Use it all the time? Perhaps a gift from someone special? Yeah, sorry; use it as a paperweight, I guess. The non-captive proprietary ones do have a longer lifespan. But honestly, not to a huge amount.

I'll never forget back when I worked at Colorado Pen Company almost 30 years ago. Had a woman come into the store who wanted to buy a replacement Waterman ballpoint pen refill. I'd very soon learn from her that the pen itself was a gift from close friends (likely a married couple) who put a great deal of thought into buying it for her. It wasn't engraved. But she loved it! Carried it around for several years. Used it all the time when she needed to jot something down. I figured no problem. Waterman ballpoint pen refills are proprietary but common as dirt. We certainly had them in the store. Taking my job seriously, I unscrewed the barrel on her pen just to verify everything was good.

No, it was not! Pen companies almost never discontinue their ballpoint or roller-ball refills. Waterman did! At least back then. Now, they stick with their current proprietary refill going back decades. But hers was discontinued. Oh, you would not believe the sheer level of shock, anger, outrage and genuine hatred that I saw her experience when I explained the issue to her. (Some of it directed at me.) Her beloved pen was now a worthless shell. And, forever would be. Couldn't even use it as an improvised paper-weight. Thankfully I did manage to calm her down a bit, before she stormed out of the store.

With some things, it's just expected that there's an understanding between consumer and the company selling the product that use will be limited to only a few years. I have a SureFire Stiletto, I have an SF Stiletto Pro. Yeah, although I'm curious about the Pro 2, I won't be buying one. Captive proprietary battery, plus fish wanting to squirt out of your hand if you bear down on it grip; being the two absolute biggest reasons why. Seriously, am amazed that SureFire kept the very same grip from the Pro; and put it on the Pro 2.

Yes realistically I think I know the answer, however I see nothing wrong for asking SureFire for clarification if he doesn't mind.

 

[Schuey2002]

Still holding out hope for some beam shots....

 

[umc]

Great, glad to hear it won't take long. I kind of figured they might give you a new one considering it's an internal battery. I do wonder what happens when my internal battery eventually goes bad on mine. If you don't mind could you ask them when talking to them later what they will be willing to do when this eventually happens to us. Is it something they would be willing to replace, fix, or are we screwed after so many years? I probably could have asked today but forgot too.

By the way for whatever reason they didn't automatically notify me when sending my flashlight back to me. They did send an email the next day after UPS said it was delivered to acknowledge they received it. They just never emailed me that it was repaired and they were sending it back. I called them back a few days later just to check on it and that's when he sent the tracking information and said it was on the way back. I thought that odd as most companies will do that automatically.

An hour and five minutes but as I mentioned I had run it a few times before then previously. So it wasn't completely charged when I started this test today.

I'll make you a deal. You ask about their policy on the internal battery going bad and I'll run the test.

I'll ask and let you know. I agree with Monocrom but can also see them replacing the battery if the light is still in production like their Stiletto and Stiletto pro are so I think that's the angle I'll take, I'll ask what they do with those as the batteries start failing from age and use.

 

[Monocrom]

Unless you know something I don't they aren't known to be like that. Not based on the little I have heard about them. It certainly wasn't anything like the experience I had with my other flashlight I just got back from them. I am seeing more incidents where you might get a problem but it appears they are very good about taking care of them when they occur.

Thing is, over the last few years, that has been happening a lot lately. I can remember late 1990s to the early 2000s, you bought a SureFire; and it just worked. While it's still mostly a rare thing nowadays, it used to be even rarer back in the day. A great warranty is one thing. Not ever having to use it, a far better thing.

 

[Monocrom]

I'll ask and let you know. I agree with Monocrom but can also see them replacing the battery if the light is still in production like their Stiletto and Stiletto pro are so I think that's the angle I'll take, I'll ask what they do with those as the batteries start failing from age and use.

Looking at the two I own, I can't see a spot on either one where SureFire would be able to open them up without breaking the body; in order to pop in a new battery.

 

[desert.snake]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. It's clearly one thing to buy such a light and it immediately has battery issues (like what umc is experiencing). Quite another to use such a light for a few years with no issues, but then the battery starts acting up due to age or the number of times it has been recharged. In that type of situation it's just expected that you'd buy a brand new flashlight to replace the old one. It's why I refuse to buy anymore lights that use a captive proprietary battery. Those lights have a very limited lifespan.

Even with non-captive proprietary battery lights, if the specific replacement battery needed to keep powering your light becomes discontinued itself; well you're screwed. Favorite flashlight? Use it all the time? Perhaps a gift from someone special? Yeah, sorry; use it as a paperweight, I guess. The non-captive proprietary ones do have a longer lifespan. But honestly, not to a huge amount.

I'll never forget back when I worked at Colorado Pen Company almost 30 years ago. Had a woman come into the store who wanted to buy a replacement Waterman ballpoint pen refill. I'd very soon learn from her that the pen itself was a gift from close friends (likely a married couple) who put a great deal of thought into buying it for her. It wasn't engraved. But she loved it! Carried it around for several years. Used it all the time when she needed to jot something down. I figured no problem. Waterman ballpoint pen refills are proprietary but common as dirt. We certainly had them in the store. Taking my job seriously, I unscrewed the barrel on her pen just to verify everything was good.

No, it was not! Pen companies almost never discontinue their ballpoint or roller-ball refills. Waterman did! At least back then. Now, they stick with their current proprietary refill going back decades. But hers was discontinued. Oh, you would not believe the sheer level of shock, anger, outrage and genuine hatred that I saw her experience when I explained the issue to her. (Some of it directed at me.) Her beloved pen was now a worthless shell. And, forever would be. Couldn't even use it as an improvised paper-weight. Thankfully I did manage to calm her down a bit, before she stormed out of the store.

With some things, it's just expected that there's an understanding between consumer and the company selling the product that use will be limited to only a few years. I have a SureFire Stiletto, I have an SF Stiletto Pro. Yeah, although I'm curious about the Pro 2, I won't be buying one. Captive proprietary battery, plus fish wanting to squirt out of your hand if you bear down on it grip; being the two absolute biggest reasons why. Seriously, am amazed that SureFire kept the very same grip from the Pro; and put it on the Pro 2.

I remember how I bought micro-earphones for one thing. Their radio base had a built-in battery that lasted for a very short time. I unscrewed this box and there was a small lithium polymer battery and there was a lot of free space. I went to the store, bought a large battery and soldered it instead of a small one, it has been working perfectly for 6 years.

On YouTube there is a video of the Stiletto being disassembled, it shows that a regular polymer battery is used, which can now be bought everywhere and replaced. I mean that in 5-10 years, when the current battery wears out, you can replace it yourself



In Europe, manufacturers were forced to make removable batteries, for example Lupine for Penta sells them and you can replace them yourself. I hope the SF will do the same over time. That is, a battery with a connector that will be easy to change, although this is extremely unlikely

 

[dddrees]

Thing is, over the last few years, that has been happening a lot lately. I can remember late 1990s to the early 2000s, you bought a SureFire; and it just worked. While it's still mostly a rare thing nowadays, it used to be even rarer back in the day. A great warranty is one thing. Not ever having to use it, a far better thing.

Well and that's the main reason I posted my reply. I get it, and I was looking for feedback on this. Thanks. Based on what I've seen so far which is just a small example I'm not surprised.
That sucks.

 

[dddrees]

I'll ask and let you know. I agree with Monocrom but can also see them replacing the battery if the light is still in production like their Stiletto and Stiletto pro are so I think that's the angle I'll take, I'll ask what they do with those as the batteries start failing from age and use.

Thank you, I would appreciate it. I'll try to run that test here in the next couple of days. I'll shoot for by the end of the weekend.

 

[scalpel_ninja]

Beam shots?