# HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests and jokes!



## mhanlen (Jul 23, 2014)

*Review:* Rayus C01 Nichia 219 b11 AAA keychain Flashlight. 



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Ok, so here's my review of the new Rayus C01. Rayus is a brand new flashlight manufacturer, that as of this review, only has three lights. This is the first review anywhere of any of their lights. In a collaboration between shiningbeam and Rayus, they sent me this light to check out. I don't know the retail cost yet, so you'll have to contact the manufacturer. The light comes in one of two tints, the light they sent me is the Neutral White tint version of the light and it uses the Nichia 219 5000k, which is a high CRI (83+) LED. This review is primarily the video review, but I'll throw in a few pictures to make this post a little less boring looking. 



In the video, I go over a ton of stuff about the light. There are tint comparisons, beamshots on white walls. Plenty of shots of the light in action around the house, with the scene illuminated only by the flashlight. 


There's also a lot of bad jokes, a drop test from a two story window, and a I throw the light in my washing machine with a load of laundry. WILL IT SURVIVE????? You need to check out the video to see!


A few tech specs about the video. It is available in crisp 1080p High Def, but you'll probably need to set that up by clicking the little gear box on the youtube player. I recently acquired a professional microphone and mixing board, so the audio quality of the voiceover has improved dramatically. And I nixed the music because I hate trying to fight copyright issues, when someone tries to claim “public domain” music as their own. So sorry, but the music was terrible anyway. 











And here are some iphone "macros" of the light.






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And last but not least, a tint comparison. Can you guess all the lights? It's in the video as well, but here's a photo I also took of the tint comparison. 












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Thanks for looking!


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## RedForest UK (Jul 23, 2014)

Thanks for the review, I've been waiting to see some more info on Rayus. Btw, the LED in this one looks much more like a Nichia 119 than a 219 (due to the die size) to me.


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## mhanlen (Jul 23, 2014)

Well it's listed as a 219 in the manual. And on their website. I have no other Nichias, so I can't compare them. 

They have two other lights listed but I don't have any more review samples and I don't know who was given them. I'm looking forward to seeing how their other lights perform, as I'm more interested in 18650 lights anyway.


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## jruser (Jul 23, 2014)

Is there only one brightness mode? I think I saw you had it on a blinky mode in the video? If so what is the UI for it?


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## mhanlen (Jul 23, 2014)

jruser said:


> Is there only one brightness mode? I think I saw you had it on a blinky mode in the video? If so what is the UI for it?




1 mode twisty. That blinky thing is what it does instead of shutting completely down. I guess it means "needs a new battery."


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## jruser (Jul 23, 2014)

Thanks for the info. I'd love a Nichia keychain light, but a one mode light would be too big of a tradeoff.


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## moshow9 (Jul 23, 2014)

Very enjoyable review and loved the video (subscribed as well)! May have to pick one up.


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## ronniepudding (Jul 23, 2014)

How would you rate the build quality?


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## mhanlen (Jul 24, 2014)

ronniepudding said:


> How would you rate the build quality?



I own a Fenix LD15, which is a very similar style but larger light, and I'd say the build quality is nearly identical.



moshow9 said:


> Very enjoyable review and loved the video (subscribed as well)! May have to pick one up.



Thanks a lot!


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## shelm (Jul 24, 2014)

Is it really as dim as ~20 lumens??

OMG

That is so 90's retro :twothumbs


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## ronniepudding (Jul 24, 2014)

shelm said:


> Is it really as dim as ~20 lumens??



Their website shows 29 lumen output for the Nichia 219 model and 35 lumens for the XP-G2. http://www.rayuslight.com/detail.aspx?cid=191 

I think 30-35 lumens with a 4-hour run time is a good level for a single-mode keychain AAA light. I carried a Thrunite TiS on my keychain for a while and liked the simplicity, but I found the ~60 lumen output too high for many uses (reading a map for instance) and the the run time unacceptably short. Of course one of the most appealing things about the TiS is that it was ~$8 shipped... but based upon the sample I have, you got what you paid for with that light in terms of build quality.

If Rayus indeed has Fenix-like machining and anodizing (I have no reason to doubt mhanlen on that point), -- and considering that the Nichia 219B option is rare in a keychain light -- then $15 sounds OK in comparison to the TiS. If it was a few bucks cheaper it would probably sell better, but I think I'll try one.


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## mhanlen (Jul 24, 2014)

*HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*

It's a light er, um flashlight. I thought that the fenix ld15 was a tad thin walled, but it seems that these size keychain lights are all like it. But yeah if the word "fenix" was written on the side I wouldn't think twice about it.

I don't own a single thrunite so I can't make an apt comparison to the TiS, but the 30 lumens is perfect for close up stuff around the house at night. 

Rumor has it that it can run off a 10440, even though the manual forbids it. A guy on another forum said he tried it with no problem, and rayus customer service responded that they tried it as well with no problem. I won't try it because I don't really need it. But this light is a good simple balance between runtime and output. Plus the tint is nice.

EDIT: I tried a 10440 battery and I only have a flat top efest 350mah. It does not work with a flat top, and I was unable to try it with a button top. Other people have been successful with a button top and have had no issue. But do not use a flat top.


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## shelm (Jul 24, 2014)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*

I dig the name though.

R.A.Y.U.S


So much better than mikropluebear, supabeam, supfire, or a$$beam LMAO


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## RedForest UK (Jul 26, 2014)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*

If you look at their 'PT10' model listed on the website it looks more like they use the same OEM as Fenix do for at least some of their models, not just that they are similar in quality.


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## mhanlen (Jul 27, 2014)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*



RedForest UK said:


> If you look at their 'PT10' model listed on the website it looks more like they use the same OEM as Fenix do for at least some of their models, not just that they are similar in quality.



Yeah it looks a lot like the TK22... just a little bit of difference in the center knurling and that's it.


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## mhanlen (Aug 26, 2014)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*

One final thing to add to this thread. The LED is in fact a Nichia 219, but instead of the 4500k 92+ CRI, it's a 5000k 83+ CRI Nichia. A vendor did some digging, and although the emitters looks nearly identical, it's just a tad cooler than originally thought. Since it was a Neutral white, and a 219, I didn't realize the difference- but I figure I needed to address it.


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## Phaserburn (Sep 2, 2014)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*

Power draw/runtime?


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## mhanlen (Sep 3, 2014)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*

You must have not seen the time lapse section regarding runtime in the video, but it's 3 hours and 45 minutes of constant brightness before it tapers off. It's at about 2:45 in the video, FYI. My multimeter is on the fritz, so I can't give you a tailcap measurement sorry.


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## bodhran (Sep 3, 2014)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*

After seeing your review I broke down and ordered one. The tint alone had me sold.


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## Phaserburn (Sep 4, 2014)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*



bodhran said:


> After seeing your review I broke down and ordered one. The tint alone had me sold.



So did I!


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## bodhran (Sep 6, 2014)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*

I got mine today and mhanlen's review is spot on. Love the tint.


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## maukka (Jan 5, 2016)

*Re: HD Video Review: Rayus C01 AAA Nichia 219 b11 keychain light. Stress tests an...*

Got mine today from Illumn. Nice neutral tint but a bit disappointed with the spiky spectrum. Expected more from the Nichia. CRI doesn't match the manufacturer's specification of 83.


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## mhanlen (Jan 5, 2016)

How do you measure that?


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## maukka (Jan 6, 2016)

With i1pro and hcfr. CRI and TLCI from ArgyllCMS's spotread.exe. Here's some more: http://imgur.com/a/Fe5Jh


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## mhanlen (Jan 6, 2016)

Cool!


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## KITROBASKIN (Jan 7, 2016)

Thanks again for a good review.

The wife and I gave a friend a NiteCore T360 but wife likes it and wanted another. Perusing illumn website showed this little Nichia twisty. Good price for the emitter used, even though I prefer click switch and clips. So now wife has another T360, and I have this. It is nice. Significantly warmer tint than 5000K in this sample. Based on reviewer comments in this thread, I put a fully-charged (tinywind purchased) Soshine 350 mAh 10440 button-top in the RAYUS C01. Much brighter than a Duracell HR03 Nimh, gets warm in the head. I turned it off after about two minutes and wrote this post.


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## Phaserburn (Jan 7, 2016)

KITROBASKIN said:


> Thanks again for a good review.
> 
> The wife and I gave a friend a NiteCore T360 but wife likes it and wanted another. Perusing illumn website showed this little Nichia twisty. Good price for the emitter used, even though I prefer click switch and clips. So now wife has another T360, and I have this. It is nice. Significantly warmer tint than 5000K in this sample. Based on reviewer comments in this thread, I put a fully-charged (tinywind purchased) Soshine 350 mAh 10440 button-top in the RAYUS C01. Much brighter than a Duracell HR03 Nimh, gets warm in the head. I turned it off after about two minutes and wrote this post.



Do you know the current draw on the 10440?


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## mhanlen (Jan 7, 2016)

Yeah it'd be a tiny light for a 10440. My BLF-348 has quite a bit more mass and it gets really hot.


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## mhanlen (Jan 7, 2016)

KITROBASKIN said:


> Thanks again for a good review.
> 
> The wife and I gave a friend a NiteCore T360 but wife likes it and wanted another. Perusing illumn website showed this little Nichia twisty. Good price for the emitter used, even though I prefer click switch and clips. So now wife has another T360, and I have this. It is nice. Significantly warmer tint than 5000K in this sample. Based on reviewer comments in this thread, I put a fully-charged (tinywind purchased) Soshine 350 mAh 10440 button-top in the RAYUS C01. Much brighter than a Duracell HR03 Nimh, gets warm in the head. I turned it off after about two minutes and wrote this post.




It's a nicer tint than the tube for sure.
I just got one of those last week.


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## maukka (Jan 7, 2016)

Here's a CRI breakdown from Babelcolor CT&A. CRI is calculated from the R1-R8. Seems that the current version of Rayus C01 cannot be called a high CRI light. Saturated red (R9) is problematic for most lights and often drops to negative.






Eagletac D2LC25 for reference once again.


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## KITROBASKIN (Jan 7, 2016)

mhanlen said:


> It's a nicer tint than the tube for sure.
> I just got one of those last week.



Very true, although the Tube could be worse! The NiteCore T360 has a better, significantly less blue tint but strongly suspect spectral analysis would reveal a spiky, gappy profile. It is still on the cool side of neutral. 

Shine your RAYUS R01 on snow. If it looks like the white snow you see on a cloudy day, then that is what some of us consider 'close to neutral', while others want that slight browness and call that neutral.

Regarding current measurement: Tailcap readings, if done consistently, can give relative values but it just does not instill confidence to say that the flashlight emitter, in normal use, is getting the same amount of current as when it is being measured with (sometimes chump) test leads and circuitry of a multi-meter. So I don't even mess with measuring current at the tail cap. Maybe I am mistaken.

Oops. I apologize to the esteemed, Phaserburn. You were asking about the cell. Soshine prints on the battery: "Max Continous discharge 2A, Cut-off 2.8V"
Also "Charge: Standard 70mA, Rapid 350mA to 4.2V"
And while it is labelled 350mAh, the fine print reveals "Min 320mAh Made in P.R.C."
illumn used to sell 18650 Soshine. Tinywind has them now. It is perhaps a good choice for hot-rodding AAA flashlights; not too juicy. What do you think?


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## mhanlen (Jan 7, 2016)

maukka said:


> Here's a CRI breakdown from Babelcolor CT&A. CRI is calculated from the R1-R8. Seems that the current version of Rayus C01 cannot be called a high CRI light. Saturated red (R9) is problematic for most lights and often drops to negative.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Thanks for the charts. I don't know how many revisions this light went through, since I reviewed it sometime in 2014. I'm not really that sensitive to difference in CRI, so a 70-90... unless I have lights side by side I wouldn't be able to tell. I do know that often trying to color correct for my videos is challenging with my newer cameras... even when I set my white balance to what color I believe the light to output.






KITROBASKIN said:


> Very true, although the Tube could be worse! The NiteCore T360 has a better, significantly less blue tint but strongly suspect spectral analysis would reveal a spiky, gappy profile. It is still on the cool side of neutral.
> 
> Shine your RAYUS R01 on snow. If it looks like the white snow you see on a cloudy day, then that is what some of us consider 'close to neutral', while others want that slight browness and call that neutral.
> 
> ...



I have a Tube and a 360, so I'm in the beginning stages of comparing the tints of those two lights when I have time. They're kind of close, although the lower modes on the tube do use visiblw PWM, but I guess thats the price you pay in that small of a package. It's a shame Nitecore doesn't list much about what emitter they use in those lights. I'm working on reviews of them, but I probably won't post them here- most likely straight to my Youtube. Anyway, thanks for the comments.


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## maukka (Jan 7, 2016)

mhanlen said:


> Thanks for the charts. I don't know how many revisions this light went through, since I reviewed it sometime in 2014. I'm not really that sensitive to difference in CRI, so a 70-90... unless I have lights side by side I wouldn't be able to tell. I do know that often trying to color correct for my videos is challenging with my newer cameras... even when I set my white balance to what color I believe the light to output.



I also think the tint is very nice and color reproduction is fine. Of course in head to head comparison a true high cri light looks more natural and especially deep colors seem more vivid. For the price I have no complaints.


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## mhanlen (Jan 7, 2016)

Oh yeah the price is right!


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## KITROBASKIN (Jan 7, 2016)

Just curious why you do not plan on posting your T360 review here. You do a good job. I'm still wondering if it was computer equipment or maybe a copy machine or something else you were poking around in, during the RAYUS R01 video!


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## mhanlen (Jan 7, 2016)

Because it's in conjunction with a retailer that wants me to mention their name a few times. I don't think that jives well with CPF. They actually sent me about 6 nitecore lights to do my typical reviews on. The t360, the tube, the ec11, ec20, mh20, and ec4s. It's actually an old arcade game. It's an asteroids deluxe cabaret and it's currently on the fritz.


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## KITROBASKIN (Jan 7, 2016)

Ah, the price of stardom.

Well, the RAYUS C01 is a bang-up-bargain with a Nichia light. It seems that it could be a two mode if one also has a button top 10440 battery (although I have not done long-term use of the Li-ion in it)

I attached a tiny cord as a three-fingered lanyard for extra holdability. Nice light.


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## maukka (Jan 8, 2016)

The output regulation is bang on. With an Eneloop it just keeps going on full blast until dims very quickly @ 4 h 17 min. 10 % @ 4:23.






Highest temp during this 4 hours at room temp was only 30 °C. Not even warm to the touch.


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## mhanlen (Jan 8, 2016)

You have some nice tools there. I'm jealous!


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## maukka (Jan 8, 2016)

mhanlen said:


> You have some nice tools there. I'm jealous!


But you've got the personality. Love your videos!


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## KITROBASKIN (Jan 8, 2016)

Very instructive! Maybe you would be willing to make thermal and runtime/brightness tests with a 10440 battery?


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## maukka (Jan 8, 2016)

I have some 10440's coming in the mail. Will measure as soon as I get them.


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## mhanlen (Jan 12, 2016)

maukka said:


> But you've got the personality. Love your videos!





You're too kind, thanks!


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## maukka (Jan 21, 2016)

As promised, here's the runtime graph with a 10440 cell. Yes, the output is six times higher in the beginning. Total runtime 43 min and 10 % output @ 41 min 30 sec. You can notice how the driver tries to keep the output at the same level as with the Eneloop for a while but quickly drops after.

I had a fan blowing on the light during this test just in case and the highest temperature was 38°C at 5-10 minutes. After that the light got gradually cooler.







This was the 10440 cell I ordered: http://www.gearbest.com/batteries/pp_187025.html but my cell states 350 mAh.


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## mhanlen (Jan 22, 2016)

Awesome, thanks!


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## Swedpat (Jan 23, 2016)

Thanks mhanlen for another interesting review! I like your little "quirky" and humorous videos, always enlightening and fun to watch! :thumbsup:


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## mhanlen (Jan 23, 2016)

Swedpat said:


> Thanks mhanlen for another interesting review! I like your little "quirky" and humorous videos, always enlightening and fun to watch! :thumbsup:



This is an oldie! I was quite surprised when I saw it bumped- mid 2014 sometime? Maukka had some cool info to add that I'm not equipped to provide, so I'm glad he posted here.


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## Swedpat (Jan 23, 2016)

mhanlen said:


> This is an oldie! I was quite surprised when I saw it bumped- mid 2014 sometime? Maukka had some cool info to add that I'm not equipped to provide, so I'm glad he posted here.



Yes; I now I see! I usually check the date of the first post but forgot it this time.

By the way: according to the runtime graph this light using Eneloop has flat regulation and then an instant drop to around 40% followed by ~15min until it's dead. I assume alkaline does not provide such a long stable output but instead a longer time of slowly declining brightness until it's dead. Any experience of that?


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## KITROBASKIN (Jan 23, 2016)

Just watched the OP's reviews on the NiteCore Tube and T360; good job! Yes, you did mention the company you got the lights from, quite a few times, as they requested. But you did it well.

Many Thanks to Maukka for the 10440 information!


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## mhanlen (Jan 24, 2016)

KITROBASKIN said:


> Just watched the OP's reviews on the NiteCore Tube and T360; good job! Yes, you did mention the company you got the lights from, quite a few times, as they requested. But you did it well.
> 
> Many Thanks to Maukka for the 10440 information!



Thanks! I actually do other videos for their Youtube channel- of product demonstrations. So they just became an authorized US Nitecore dealer, and wanted me to do the videos for those. They said don't change a thing, and do them normally but they want them on their website as well as my channel. So think of it sort of like a Going Gear review, but more my style- presenting the facts with jokes. 



Swedpat said:


> Yes; I now I see! I usually check the date of the first post but forgot it this time.
> 
> By the way: according to the runtime graph this light using Eneloop has flat regulation and then an instant drop to around 40% followed by ~15min until it's dead. I assume alkaline does not provide such a long stable output but instead a longer time of slowly declining brightness until it's dead. Any experience of that?



I did not test this on the Rayus.. but I have found that to be the case on Alkalines versus eneloops. I did a video runtime comparison quite some time ago of this on an Armytek Tiara.


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## maukka (Jan 24, 2016)

Swedpat said:


> By the way: according to the runtime graph this light using Eneloop has flat regulation and then an instant drop to around 40% followed by ~15min until it's dead. I assume alkaline does not provide such a long stable output but instead a longer time of slowly declining brightness until it's dead. Any experience of that?



Here's a runtime graph with Ikea Alkaline added (http://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/Ikea AAA UK.html)


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## Swedpat (Jan 24, 2016)

maukka said:


> Here's a runtime graph with Ikea Alkaline added (http://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/Ikea AAA UK.html)



Thanks maukka! 

Interesting, still flat regulated just much shorter runtime, but with around twice the declining output until it's dead. Still it's more than 2,5hours flat output. Actually I just placed an order for this light, I will measure the runtime with Energizer lithium.


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## Swedpat (Feb 12, 2016)

Today I received the light. I really like it! Simple, small and very lightweight. PERFECT twisting friction. For several years I have used Fenix LD01 SS as my keychain light. It's good and tough but the bluish tint sucks. The tint of Rayus C01 Nichia 219 is beautiful in comparison!
As with the Fenix I will use it with an Energizer Ultimate lithium battery, think it's the best choice for a keychain light.


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## Swedpat (Feb 14, 2016)

This night I finished the runtime test with Energizer Ultimate lithium cell:

Stable output for 6 hours ~26 min. Then a few hours of declining but useful light. I went to sleep and didn't measure the final, but when I woke up around three hours after it ran out of regulation it still shined at very low but still useful level. I was not surprised by the long regulated runtime, but the long decline was much longer than the graphs above show with alkaline and NiMh. I suppose that these other batteries provide a few hours decline as well but that the graphs above just has too small scale to show it.
This is interesting because it means you will not be totally left in the dark within only half an hour after it runs out of regulation.


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## mhanlen (Feb 15, 2016)

It's a pretty cool little light huh? Glad you like it!


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## Swedpat (Feb 15, 2016)

mhanlen said:


> It's a pretty cool little light huh? Glad you like it!



Yes, and this is the second flashlight model I have become aware of and bought due to your reviews and posting! 
So you can receive credit for the increase of my flashlight collection! Or maybe more correct: selection.


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## mhanlen (Feb 15, 2016)

My Meteor review convinced me to buy one... so I understand how you feel!


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## LeanBurn (Feb 15, 2016)

ronniepudding said:


> Their website shows 29 lumen output for the Nichia 219 model and 35 lumens for the XP-G2. http://www.rayuslight.com/detail.aspx?cid=191
> 
> I think 30-35 lumens with a 4-hour run time is a good level for a single-mode keychain AAA light. I carried a Thrunite TiS on my keychain for a while and liked the simplicity, but I found the ~60 lumen output too high for many uses (reading a map for instance) and the the run time unacceptably short. Of course one of the most appealing things about the TiS is that it was ~$8 shipped... but based upon the sample I have, you got what you paid for with that light in terms of build quality.
> 
> If Rayus indeed has Fenix-like machining and anodizing (I have no reason to doubt mhanlen on that point), -- and considering that the Nichia 219B option is rare in a keychain light -- then $15 sounds OK in comparison to the TiS. If it was a few bucks cheaper it would probably sell better, but I think I'll try one.



Products definitely evolve over time. I have the TiS as well. The stats are now:
Output and run time: Firefly: 0.04 Lm(115h), Low: 12 Lm(6.3h), High: 120Lm(0.5h), Strobe:120Lm(1 hour)...Basing from the one I have which is now $20 on amazon, if I could find the TiS for $8 shipped, I would buy 10 of them. 

Back to the OP, mhanlen I found your video to be quirky, entertaining, yet informative...a breath of fresh air .
I tried to look where I could buy a Rayus C01 or Rayus anything in Canada but I am not having much luck even though they have many more products now. I wish that I had access to it as it is on sale now at Techtoolsupply dot com for $8.70 but it is on order. That would be excellent value indeed.


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## mhanlen (Feb 15, 2016)

Thanks! Despite them being a Chinese manufacturer about the only places I've seen carry them are US based, which probably kills the deal with shipping for a sub $10 light. There's another similar sized light called an astrolux s1 that's a bit more warm tinted than this light... But shares a similar size but includes a few more modes.


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## Tachead (Feb 17, 2016)

mhanlen said:


> Thanks! Despite them being a Chinese manufacturer about the only places I've seen carry them are US based, which probably kills the deal with shipping for a sub $10 light. There's another similar sized light called an astrolux s1 that's a bit more warm tinted than this light... But shares a similar size but includes a few more modes.



I think you mean Astrolux A01. Its a nice light. Much brighter then this one, Nichia 219B at 4000K, 4 modes including a moonlight and strobe, and much higher CRI at a tested 91 CRI. All for just $10.


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## Illum (Feb 26, 2017)

:bump:

apparently Rayus went  in terms of being a company, if anyone wants to pick up another of the C01 in Nichia just as a 10440 burner or whatever, they are now on sale on Amazon for $6 and Prime eligible
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LMY8WIE/?tag=cpf0b6-20


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