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Bronte has long been a flashlight brand that I have much respect for, after reviewing one of their lights that I think has one of the best user interfaces I've used, the Bronte RC25S. Now they've released a light in a oft-neglected class, the single 26650.
Thanks to Bronte for providing the X26 for review.
I'll be reviewing the X26 in two sections: first, I'll discuss the light objectively (the facts about the light itself), then I'll discuss the light subjectively (my impressions about the light's performance when used for specific applications). If you have any other specific applications you'd like the light tested for, let me know and I'll see what I can do.
Video Review
Below is a video review of the X26. Due to my old image hosting site closing down, I've got new restrictions on image uploads and have replaced the "Construction" section of my reviews with a more detailed video review.
This video is available in 1080p HD, but defaults to a lower quality. To select the playback quality click the settings button (looks like a gear) after you've started the video.
Objective
Manufacturer's Specifications
Price: 113 USD
Dimensions
Plus, here's a few shots with some good detail.
User Interface
The X26 has a very simple user interface, using only a single switch to control five modes.
To turn the light on, you do one quick click to the side switch. Once the light is on, a single quick click cycles through the available modes: Low -> Medium -> High -> Strobe -> SOS. To turn it off, you hold down on the switch for about a second. The X26 has mode memory, so whichever mode you use last will be the one to activate when you turn it on next (including Strobe or SOS).
Action Shots
You can click on any of these shots to see them full size.
Light in Hand
White Wall (Low, Medium, High)
ISO 100, f/3.3, 1/20"
BeamSlice
MugShot
Indoor Shots (Low, Medium, High)
ISO 100, f/3.3, 1"
Outdoor Shots (Low, Medium, High)
ISO 100, f/3.3, 2.5"
Long-Range Shots (High)
ISO 100, f/3.3, 5"
Performance
Submersion: I submersed the X26 under a foot of water for about an hour, clicking the switch several times. I found no evidence of water entering or damaging the light.
Heat: The light gets warm after about 15 minutes on high, but never hot.
PWM:
Drop: I dropped the X26 from about a meter onto various surfaces (including grass, carpet, dirt, and hard wood), and found no cosmetic or functional damage.
Reverse Polarity Protection: The X26 claims reverse polarity protection, so I tried to turn on the light with the battery inserted backwards. Upon correcting the polarity the light functioned normally.
Over-Discharge Protection: The X26 does not have over-discharge protection, so be sure to recharge the battery when it gets low.
Spectral Analysis
All light that we see as white is actually made up of several different colors put together. The relative intensities of the different colors in the mix are what determine the tint of the white we see. For example, cool white LED's have a lot of blue, and warm white LED's have more red or yellow. This measurement was done on a home made spectrometer. The plot below the picture is corrected for the spectral sensitivity of the human eye. Note: the peak in the 900nm region doesn't really exist, it's a piece of the second-order spectrum that's showing up here because of the high intensity of the light source.
Output and Runtime
ANSI FL-1 runtime ratings are the time it takes for a light to fall to 10% of it's original output (counting from 30 seconds after turning the light on).
The vertical axis of the graphs below represents a relative brightness measurement using a home made light box. The horizontal axis is time in hours:minutes:seconds. Runtimes are stated in hours:minutes:seconds. These graphs may be truncated to show detail.
Mode Comparison
High
Medium
Throwing Distance
ANSI FL-1 standard for stating a light's throwing distance is the distance at which the peak beam intensity (usually at the center of the beam) is 0.25 lux. I calculate throwing distance and candela (lux at 1 meter) by measuring peak beam intensity at five different distances and using the formula lux*distance^2=constant.
Peak Beam Intensity: 34020 cd
Throw Distance: 369 m
Subjective Review
Quick break down:
+ High brightness
+ 4000 mAh battery
+ Comfortable size
+ Simple UI
+ Very nice beam profile
+ Solid construction
- No regulation on high
- Flashy modes in normal sequence
- Gain in mAh not proportional to size
The X26 is a simple light, but different from many similar lights by it's choice of battery. The 26650 sized battery is larger in diameter than the 18650, which is the choice of most high-end lights at this time (about 26 mm in diameter compared to 18 mm in diameter), but about the same length (~65 mm). A 26650, by adding that extra diameter, will have about twice the volume as a 18650 battery, so you might expect it to have about twice the energy storage capacity. Unfortunately, this is not the case, and the major factor is the disproportionately high demand for the 18650 sized battery (mostly for laptop batteries). Because the 18650 is in such high demand, a lot of work has gone into increasing it's capacity, and that new technology has not always been applied to other sizes of lithium-ion batteries. The result is, while 18650 batteries are available in 3100 or even 3400 mAh by trustworthy brands, the "standard" 26650 battery is available mostly in only 4000 mAh. I've seen a few brands I respect claim a bit more (4200 or 4300), but I've had no opportunity to test those claims, and the highest claims I've seen only reach 5000 mAh and they are by brands known to exaggerate. Hopefully some day we'll see the same technology put into development of other battery sizes, and will 26650's with over 6000 mAh capacity. So, the point is that a flashlight using a 26650 doesn't get as much extra capacity as it should for the increase in size necessary. That being said, the extra size doesn't bother me much, because it's more the size I'm familiar with from a "traditional" flashlight.
The user interface of the X26 is plain and simple. Some other lights with only a single electronic switch have started requiring a long press of about a second to turn the light on, and that just seems wrong to me, so I appreciate that a single quick click turns this light on. If I could change anything about the UI, I'd make it turn off with a single quick click as well, and require holding the button for a second to change modes.
As with all the other Bronte lights I've reviewed, I found the construction quality to be on par with top name brands, and better than other low priced brands.
My only big disappointment with the X26 is the lack of any regulation on High and the short regulation time Medium.
Overall, the X26 is a well-made, reliable light in a larger form factor than standard single-cell light. For that extra size, you get a bit of extra run time and a larger reflector for better throw. There's not too many other lights in this category, so the Bronte X26 should definitely be considered.
Long Term Impressions
I'll fill this part in after carrying the light for a while. If nothing get's added here, either I find nothing else worth noting about the light, or I end up not using it often.
Don't forget to click "Like" after the page loads!
Bronte has long been a flashlight brand that I have much respect for, after reviewing one of their lights that I think has one of the best user interfaces I've used, the Bronte RC25S. Now they've released a light in a oft-neglected class, the single 26650.
Thanks to Bronte for providing the X26 for review.
I'll be reviewing the X26 in two sections: first, I'll discuss the light objectively (the facts about the light itself), then I'll discuss the light subjectively (my impressions about the light's performance when used for specific applications). If you have any other specific applications you'd like the light tested for, let me know and I'll see what I can do.
Video Review
Below is a video review of the X26. Due to my old image hosting site closing down, I've got new restrictions on image uploads and have replaced the "Construction" section of my reviews with a more detailed video review.
This video is available in 1080p HD, but defaults to a lower quality. To select the playback quality click the settings button (looks like a gear) after you've started the video.
Objective
Manufacturer's Specifications
Price: 113 USD
Dimensions
Plus, here's a few shots with some good detail.
User Interface
The X26 has a very simple user interface, using only a single switch to control five modes.
To turn the light on, you do one quick click to the side switch. Once the light is on, a single quick click cycles through the available modes: Low -> Medium -> High -> Strobe -> SOS. To turn it off, you hold down on the switch for about a second. The X26 has mode memory, so whichever mode you use last will be the one to activate when you turn it on next (including Strobe or SOS).
Action Shots
You can click on any of these shots to see them full size.
Light in Hand
White Wall (Low, Medium, High)
ISO 100, f/3.3, 1/20"
BeamSlice
MugShot
Indoor Shots (Low, Medium, High)
ISO 100, f/3.3, 1"
Outdoor Shots (Low, Medium, High)
ISO 100, f/3.3, 2.5"
Long-Range Shots (High)
ISO 100, f/3.3, 5"
Performance
Submersion: I submersed the X26 under a foot of water for about an hour, clicking the switch several times. I found no evidence of water entering or damaging the light.
Heat: The light gets warm after about 15 minutes on high, but never hot.
PWM:
Drop: I dropped the X26 from about a meter onto various surfaces (including grass, carpet, dirt, and hard wood), and found no cosmetic or functional damage.
Reverse Polarity Protection: The X26 claims reverse polarity protection, so I tried to turn on the light with the battery inserted backwards. Upon correcting the polarity the light functioned normally.
Over-Discharge Protection: The X26 does not have over-discharge protection, so be sure to recharge the battery when it gets low.
Spectral Analysis
All light that we see as white is actually made up of several different colors put together. The relative intensities of the different colors in the mix are what determine the tint of the white we see. For example, cool white LED's have a lot of blue, and warm white LED's have more red or yellow. This measurement was done on a home made spectrometer. The plot below the picture is corrected for the spectral sensitivity of the human eye. Note: the peak in the 900nm region doesn't really exist, it's a piece of the second-order spectrum that's showing up here because of the high intensity of the light source.
Output and Runtime
ANSI FL-1 runtime ratings are the time it takes for a light to fall to 10% of it's original output (counting from 30 seconds after turning the light on).
The vertical axis of the graphs below represents a relative brightness measurement using a home made light box. The horizontal axis is time in hours:minutes:seconds. Runtimes are stated in hours:minutes:seconds. These graphs may be truncated to show detail.
Mode Comparison
High
Medium
Throwing Distance
ANSI FL-1 standard for stating a light's throwing distance is the distance at which the peak beam intensity (usually at the center of the beam) is 0.25 lux. I calculate throwing distance and candela (lux at 1 meter) by measuring peak beam intensity at five different distances and using the formula lux*distance^2=constant.
Peak Beam Intensity: 34020 cd
Throw Distance: 369 m
Subjective Review
Quick break down:
+ High brightness
+ 4000 mAh battery
+ Comfortable size
+ Simple UI
+ Very nice beam profile
+ Solid construction
- No regulation on high
- Flashy modes in normal sequence
- Gain in mAh not proportional to size
The X26 is a simple light, but different from many similar lights by it's choice of battery. The 26650 sized battery is larger in diameter than the 18650, which is the choice of most high-end lights at this time (about 26 mm in diameter compared to 18 mm in diameter), but about the same length (~65 mm). A 26650, by adding that extra diameter, will have about twice the volume as a 18650 battery, so you might expect it to have about twice the energy storage capacity. Unfortunately, this is not the case, and the major factor is the disproportionately high demand for the 18650 sized battery (mostly for laptop batteries). Because the 18650 is in such high demand, a lot of work has gone into increasing it's capacity, and that new technology has not always been applied to other sizes of lithium-ion batteries. The result is, while 18650 batteries are available in 3100 or even 3400 mAh by trustworthy brands, the "standard" 26650 battery is available mostly in only 4000 mAh. I've seen a few brands I respect claim a bit more (4200 or 4300), but I've had no opportunity to test those claims, and the highest claims I've seen only reach 5000 mAh and they are by brands known to exaggerate. Hopefully some day we'll see the same technology put into development of other battery sizes, and will 26650's with over 6000 mAh capacity. So, the point is that a flashlight using a 26650 doesn't get as much extra capacity as it should for the increase in size necessary. That being said, the extra size doesn't bother me much, because it's more the size I'm familiar with from a "traditional" flashlight.
The user interface of the X26 is plain and simple. Some other lights with only a single electronic switch have started requiring a long press of about a second to turn the light on, and that just seems wrong to me, so I appreciate that a single quick click turns this light on. If I could change anything about the UI, I'd make it turn off with a single quick click as well, and require holding the button for a second to change modes.
As with all the other Bronte lights I've reviewed, I found the construction quality to be on par with top name brands, and better than other low priced brands.
My only big disappointment with the X26 is the lack of any regulation on High and the short regulation time Medium.
Overall, the X26 is a well-made, reliable light in a larger form factor than standard single-cell light. For that extra size, you get a bit of extra run time and a larger reflector for better throw. There's not too many other lights in this category, so the Bronte X26 should definitely be considered.
Long Term Impressions
I'll fill this part in after carrying the light for a while. If nothing get's added here, either I find nothing else worth noting about the light, or I end up not using it often.
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