Broken torch

Oh no, my torch broke.

For the past few months, I’ve been carrying a small torch almost all the time and virtually everywhere I go. I picked up the AceBeam Pokelit AA for about 30€ back in April. I see it’s now available for about 21€–42€ depending on whether you have Amazon Prime or not.

A few people recommended carrying a torch as an EDC item, but I have to admit that I was relatively suspect of the whole concept at first. I struggled to understand in which kind of environment one would have to live in order to justify having a torch in their pocket 24/7. I remember a video from many years ago where Adam Savage modified his EDC pocket torch. For years I periodically wondered why anyone would need one.

I found a comfortable place to store it in my jeans (rightmost corner of my front-right pocket, using the pocket clip), and decided to carry it for a few days to see what the fuss was all about.

When a big angry red error message appeared on my car dashboard I was able to use the light to easily verify the coolant levels in the engine bay, even in the relative darkness of an underground car park. When my dog chews on something suspicious in the middle of the night or when she drops a number two in a grassy patch, the light comes in very useful because I can (much) more easily see what is going on. When we were looking to buy a house having a torch meant being able to see further and with more precision and detail. It is insane the amount of detail that my eye glossed over with poor lighting.

The reversible clip means the torch can be clipped onto a cap and used hands-free in a matter of seconds, which is extremely practical either when I’m digging through my scuba gear at the dive site, or when I need to repair some gear in less than ideal lighting conditions (which turns out to be almost always).

Suffice to say, I am now a convert.

But the most surprising place where I’ve been using the torch on a regular basis is actually at home. The moonlight mode (5 lumen) is perfect for checking things at night without waking my partner.

About the Acebeam Pokelit AA

It’s a fine light, but the UI took a bit of getting used to. The memory mode—the light remembers which mode it was last used in and immediately resumes that mode the next time you turn it on—sounds kind of OK at first. I would much rather have a predictable way to start the light rather than having to try and remember what mode the light was in. If you think the light will start in the moonlight mode, but surprises you with a blast of its full output, that is not fun.

Also, because of the forward clicky tail switch (the button turns the light on immediately when half-pressed, but requires a full press to lock it in), it has happened that the light changed modes in my pocket, or even unintentionally turned on on a couple of occasions.

While 5 lumen is absolute acceptable, the jump to 190 lumen as the intermediate mode is crazy. There is definitely another step missing there, around 70-80 lumen.

Finally, maybe I was unlucky, but I feel that a single drop from about 1.2m high shouldn’t have destroyed the light. To be fair, the drop was sort of the worst possible scenario: The light landed on its side into a dead stop, without any bounce or anything. I wish the light was a tad more resilient.

Replacements?

I ordered the Acebeam Rider RX 2.0 Titanium, and a Sofirn SP10 Pro. One of the main improvements of the rider over the Pokelit is that it has 4 modes—introducing a 50 lumen mode between the 5 and 200 ones. It seems it has the same UI as the Pokelit for the rest. The high power mode seems to be slightly more powerful than the Pokelit, but I doubt I’ll notice the difference. The light can also be used in “candle” mode, meaning it can stand on its end and shine light straight up. I’m unsure about how useful this is. Sadly this light also has the forward clicky switch, but it’s possible to physically lock it out. It also still has the memory mode.

The Sofirn SP10 Pro is the second torch I’ve ordered. This one is significantly different from the comparatively simple Acebeams. The big difference is that this light comes with Andúril 2, a specific UI for flashlights that gives access to a ton of features and customisation. This one has a side switch, though, which I’m not convinced I’ll enjoy massively.

I might post an update in the future after I get both torches and have had some time with them. I don’t think I’ll do proper reviews or anything; as usual, this is just my random thoughts on minor items in my every day life.