I have an ancient car with an old fashioned, manual, key in the hole locking system - which is all well and good in the daytime - but attempted access at night has resulted in scratches all around the lock as i jab at it blindly in the dark, time for a torch. Now, I could have settled for a £2.99 jobby off eBay that would cast a faint glow for a few months before falling apart, but if you are going to do something you might as well do it right.
The Olight I1R EOS is a small but mighty flashlight with a built-in rechargeable battery, with two brightness settings to choose from, 5 or 130 lumens, it weighs just 12g and is super compact at 41mm (length) x 14mm (diameter), it comes with a little keyring, so you can easily attach it to your keys. A major plus is the rechargeable Li-ion battery with comes with a Mirco-USB which saves you from having to continually replace with tiny batteries, the downside is that you need to unscrew the two pieces to find the USB port which risks you loosing on half, but on the plus-side ensures the torch has an IPX8 rating (making it suitable for submersion).
The Olight I1R EOS uses a Philips Luxeon TX LED paired with a TIR optic lens which happily produces a soft and balanced beam, to switch the light on you simply twist the light head clockwise, it will come on at its lowest setting then simply twist a little further to activate the brightest setting, this system maybe easier than finding a tiny button but there is a risk of forgetting which way to twist on and therefore accidently twisting the two pieces apart if you aren’t paying attention. For a full charge it will take you just 1 hour 1 5mins (red and green lights will indicate when its charging/fully charged), the USB cable means you can charge it in the car through the cigarette charging adaptor, the lowest setting will provide you with 7hours of constant use whilst on the highest setting you get 20 minutes. You get a beam distance of 54m and light intensity of 730 candela, perfect for close-up use, but will also flood a car or small tent with light. This powerful little light is a great choice if you are looking to a compact and light weight torch for your keys, wallet or bag, the convenient rechargeable battery makes it eco-friendly and the Luxeon TX LED produces a satisfyingly bright light for its size. RRP £15.99
4.6 out of 5
Pros
Compact
Lightweight
Rechargeable
Up to 130 lumens
Charging indicator
Two brightness settings
IPX8 rating
Cons
Twisting operation could result in unscrewing
You have to remove the bulb head to charge
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