Layman’s Flashlight Reviews

EDIT 3/30/2010: EagleTac has released a slightly revised version of this excellent light.  For impressions of those revisions, please click HERE.

The new P100 series were designed to be highly durable, efficient and reasonably priced flashlights. Their origin claims they are for Law enforcement and Military usage, but they function very well for the average consumer also providing a reliable tool that does what it is supposed to.

EagleTac P100A2

The greatest advancement in the P100 series lights is the choice of a Cree XP-E LED instead of the standard XR-E in use in the vast majority of LED flashlights today. The emission pattern of the XP-E allows for a far smoother beam even with the smooth reflector that these lights use. Once again we are moving back toward not only having a defined hotspot in the center of the beam and a more diffuse spill beam to the sides. Now the XP-E is bringing back the transitional corona between the two.

The P100A2 is the 2xAA version of the P100 series. Though both lights are extremely similar in function and design, the P100A2 does forfeit some benefits from the smaller 6V power source. Both the runtime and high-level lumen output are slightly lessened compared to its CR123A based counterpart. Also pronounced is the increased length and slighly narrower girth of the A2 over the C2. This however is something that anyone preferring the ease of accesibility of AA cells has become accustomed to and is prepared to deal with.

The P100 series has been given a significant compliment of improvements over the existing P10 series of lights. Most of the problems I addressed with the P10A2 have been covered. One of my biggest pet peeves about that light was the indecision as to it’s function. There were many instances where EagleTac tried to accomplish both ends of a usability spectrum within a single feature.

Most notable in this was the tailcap switch. Previously EagleTac had tried to provide the user with a switch that was both accessible for tactical purposes and still capable of tailstanding for room illumination. The resulting conglomerate ended up being incapable of either. Thankfully With the P100 series EagleTac has seen the error of their previous judgment and manufactured a fully protruding, easily accessible button on these lights. I feel this was the best choice for a light with these particular characteristics. It establishes the P100 series as more capable of rough use and durability under duress.

Also gone is the indecision about flashlight retention methods. The package for the P100 series does not include the trio of lanyard, pocket clip and holster as did the P10. Instead they have settled on a detachable lanyard ring and the availability of purchasing a high quality lanyard or holster at a later date. Both will soon be available as accessory options.

Other concerns that have shown up over time in the P10 series have been addressed as well. Better reverse polarity protection bumpers and shock resistant silicone gaskets around the window have bolstered the overall impact resistance of the P100 series.

Constructive Criticism

Though the advantages of the XP-E LED are readily apparent in the smooth beam one thing that I have to recommend again is a textured reflector. There is very little that can help a flashlight to achieve a perfect beam pattern as easily as a textured reflector can. When it all boils down, the beam of your flashlight is the most important factor. Even though it doesn’t sport the typical dark spots and rings of other lights, the P100 series could still stand to be a touch smoother. Nothing wrong with pressing every advantage you can possibly have in order to produce a superior product, right?

One thing missing in the P100 Series compared to the P10′s is the removable stainless steel bezel. The net result of this is that the head is quite difficult to disassemble. This is relevant because early P100 series seem to suffer from is the occasional off-centered LED. Not having access to the internal components means there is no method for the consumer to correct this. Thankfully even if the beam’s corona ends up being skewed slightly because of this, it generally isn’t enough to present itself as an issue in daily use, merely a perfectionist’s annoyance.

The P100 series has a large quantity of very excellent knurling around the head, body and tailcap. It both looks appealing and provides excellent grip without being abrasive. Standard crosshatch knurling however, has a myriad of edges and sharp corners where anodizing has a very hard time building up a thick layer. Already after only a few days of putting these lights through their paces, I have begun to see the occasional bright spot of raw aluminum on the knurled portions of the light. I can see that these are going to be the type of lights to develop quite a well-used patina over time. Thankfully they were never designed to rule the display cases in stately glory but rather to run through the trenches and be used as the quality tools they are. Thicker, more durable anodizing is never something I will say no to however.

EagleTac P100A2

Conclusions

The P100A2 is an amazing little light packing a lot of punch. Add to that an outstanding price point and high quality of materials and workmanship and you end up with a light that is very hard to argue against. These lights seem to be setting a new standard of inexpensive quality for other companies to live up to. I am expecting more great things to come from EagleTac.

UPDATE 3/30/2010:

EagleTac has recently released an updated version of their P100A2 light with some minor improvements.  While I don’t believe this is quite enough to warrant their usual Mark II badging, it does present some beneficial updates to their original excellence.

The emitter bin has been updated from its original Q5 to the slightly fresher R2 and as such the light has seen a meager boost in performance.  Now instead of 180 lumens, EagleTac is quoting 205 for this light.  I don’t know if they have adopted the standpoint of measuring Out The Front lumens for the P100 line as of yet or not, but overall this is not an enormous gain from previous.  It’s good to have the higher bin code, but unless you aren’t directly comparing them together, the difference is negligible.

Where their updates do make themselves apparent however is around the bezel.  This area has been given a redesign to a thicker sturdier head that should be even more shock resistant.  This also serves to reduce the sharp edges of the bezel from their previous knife-like edges.  The side benefit to this extra strength is that it is now far easier on any pockets or holsters that are being used to carry it.

Thicker Bezel

Also apparently improved is the quality of the anodizing on the P100A2.  It now looks to be a far more robust uniform thickness that stands up to daily life much better than it’s predecessor.  After a few weeks of carrying it daily through the same abuse as the previous model, it still looks much better than the original version did after only a few days.

In all, a rather minor selection of updates, but seen cumulatively they all serve to improve the light beyond the already excellent value of the original.

P100A2 Revised

Provided for review by the kind folks at: