Layman’s Flashlight Reviews

Surefire A2 Aviator

The Surefire A2 Aviator is Surefire’s only hybrid LED/Xenon flashlight, and their only light with a digitally regulated Xenon main beam. This light was one of their flagship models and is one of the reasons Surefire is so well known today.

Surefire A2 Aviator

Meat and Potatoes

The Surefire A2 Aviator employs one of my favorite Surefire inventions. The 2 stage momentary tailcap switch is, in my opinion, one of the greatest achievements of this spectacular company. There is very little that can be simpler to grasp than press harder to get more light. This simple concept is what makes this light such a joy to use. Once you turn this light on, there is no need to adjust your grip in the slightest in order to have access to full power. The basic twist for constant on settings are also very easy to use, even single handedly.

The A2 utilizes a trio of 5mm LEDs in quite a few choices of colors. I’ve had the occasion over the last couple years to spend a little time with several of the colors, but I believe that the white LEDs are the most useful. The advertized 3 lumen output seems to me to be far understated. I have found the light level of the white LEDs to be more than adequate for a large number of around the house and even outdoor tasks.  In the dark with adjusted vision, the secondary beam produces a beautiful flood profile allowing the immediate area to be illuminated with little to no hotspot washing out your vision.

The main Xenon beam also seems to suffer the affliction of being underrated. It is advertised as a mere 50 lumens, however I would be surprised know that was actually the top end of it’s performance. The Aviator competes with other lights sporting somewhat more impressive numbers. This is, however, as much a testament to Surefire’s routinely understated marketing department as it is to this particular light.

This torch also provides one extremely useful feature, it’s rock solid construction. When you pick up the Aviator, you know instantly that you have a quality light in your hand. Every facet of this light exudes quality of materials and workmanship.  The machine work is exquisite and Surefire’s attention to detail is unparalleled in this light.

While this light may be a touch larger than I like in an “Every Day Carry” type of setting, it does make a fantastic go-to light for around the house or around the woods at night. The two levels of light are fantastically useful for many nighttime tasks. The Aviator proves itself to be a specialized tool that does it’s job well.

Surefire A2 Aviator

Constructive Criticism

While the A2 has many excellent qualities, no light is perfect. Even though I suspect that the 50 lumen output is misleading to the power of the beam, the incandescent Xenon light is incapable of truly matching output with a quality current generation LED when it comes to sheer power and efficiency. I know that many die-hard incandescent enthusiasts will be shuddering at that statement, however I think the time may have come for Surefire to find some high color rendition LED to replace the Xenon lamp assembly in these lights.

Also of concern when it comes to an incandescent light is the relative fragility of the light bulb filament. The main beam of the Aviator is most unfortunately susceptable to damage from shock or merely outliving it’s relatively short life expectancy. The A2’s “Soft Start” power regulation does wonders to increase that life span, but even still there is a likelyhood that eventually you will find yourself shelling out the price of a replacement lamp assembly.

One interesting note that I discovered is that, though the white secondary LEDs produce a beautiful, nearly flawless beam, the colored LEDs do not fare quite as well. Where the white beam has a beautifully smooth wide spread of light, the colors tend to produce a trio of noticeable interlocked rings from their oddly reflected spill beams. This inferior beam can be quite distracting in almost any circumstance.  I’m not sure what method Surefire could employ to alleviate this, but I know that some users have taken to aftermarket sanding of the LED’s domes to diffuse the light better.  This should not be necessary in a light of this caliber.

Even if you choose to overlook the shortcomings of an incandescent lamp in favor of it’s color rendition and warmth, you still end up having to deal with it’s relative inefficiency. If Surefire were to offer any sort of rechargeable option for this light it would go a long way. As it stands, you currently are limited to around an hour of high beam usage before you are forced to drop in another set of CR123A cells. The highly efficient 5mm LED low beam will continue to run even beyond the point where the main beam fails to light, however you will be deprived of your high output for some time if you choose to run a set of batteries into the ground. Careful usage will prolong that hour, making it seemingly lastlonger, but your burn time is still limited no matter how you look at it.

Surefire A2 Aviator

Conclusions

The Surefire A2 Aviator is a mainstay in the world of flashlights. It is one of the lights that opened my eyes several years ago to the world of high quality illumination tools. Many incandescent enthusiasts consider it to be about the pinnacle of that genre and would love nothing better than for it to never be changed. Over my use of this light I have found it extremely hard to put down and am now genuinely seeing the appeal of glowing tungsten as a source of light. I still personally find this light to be ripe for a makeover, but If you are looking for incandescent specifically, you can do little better.

Fenix E01

The Fenix E01 is a little light trying to fill a big role.  Hardly bigger than the AAA cell that powers it, this little light seems to be designed around the ability to be completely forgettable, but only until it is needed.

Fenix E01

Meat and Potatoes

The Fenix E01 utilizes a Nichia 5mm LED to provide consistent low levels of illumination for extended periods of time.  The fact that the E01 has a flat discharge curve over the first 10 hours of battery life is fantastic.  This light is the perfect key chain companion ready to serve in a moments notice, even for just an average Joe who wouldn’t normally take to carrying a larger, higher powered flashlight at all times.

The simple twisty switch supplements this intent by performing as a no frills reliable and out of the way switching mechanism that doesn’t add any unnecessary bulk to the light at all.  With no extra parts at all, it literally cannot get any simpler than this.

One of the most interesting features of this light has been proven through numerous documented accidents and destructive testing.  Through the combination of quality building materials and light weight, this light appears to be nigh unto indestructible.  Tales have been told of E01’s surviving falls from multiple stories in height, apparently unperturbed by the precipitous drop, nor the concrete impact awaiting the end of the trip, that would invoke the demise of lights with more gargantuan proportions.

Constructive criticism

My E01 does have one glaring fault that I find slightly disconcerting.  The bad news is, it’s big.  The good news however, is that it is quite likely my individual unit rather than a design flaw for the entire run.  The LED is angled quite severely off to one side shedding a beam that is disturbingly out of alignment.  The further away from myself I shine the light, the further off center the beam shows up.  Navigating my way around a dark room, I find myself having to consciously aim the light away from my intended target.  Whether high, low, left, or right of center depends entirely on how I happened to extricate it from my pocket on that particular occasion.  I know that this is not likely to be a design error, and that Fenix is probably not exactly intending this to be within tolerance, however apparently some further care needs to be taken when inspecting the final product before it leaves the factory destined for the hands of the consumer.

Off center beam

Another point of contention where this light could stand to improve somewhat is the tints.  No, that is not a typo.  The beam of the E01, though it still classifies as white overall, is actually a varying duo of two different tints throughout the beam.  The diffuse hotspot appears with a strong blueish hue fading extremely smoothly into a yellow toned corona/spill.  Admittedly, this concatenation is only apparent when hunting down the elusive uninterrupted stretch of white wall, but it is there none the less.

I have read of some high end, semi-custom lights in this category sporting a Cree based high color rendition 5mm LED.  While I suspect it will be some time before that caliber of LED begins to show up at this pricepoint, it would be quite a feat if Fenix were to be able to become one of the first mass production lights utilizing this technology.

Conclusions

This little light has an occasional use or emergency use mindset that benefits it greatly.  It’s long lasting low level light is probably better suited to a disposable Lithium AAA cell rather than rechargeables of whatever sort, due to its ability to not be in your way until you find yourself in need of light.  From finding a keyhole in the dark, to navigating a prolonged power outage, these are the situations where this light really shines.  My E01 has found it’s way onto my keyring, where it is likely to endure for some time to come.

Fenix E01