Flashlight 2026 Test: Which Brand Wins?

second brightest at the start (Nitecore led at 7,434)

described as pretty impressive for such a compact light

turbo mode, brightest of all flashlights at the start, but turbo mode powers down automatically at 14 seconds

turbo mode

well below its own 3,000 lm rating

almost as bright as the ThruNite

the brightest yet at that point in the sequence

moved into second place at that point in the sequence

short of its own 1,200 lm rating

better than its own rating

just above its own 700 lm rating

over 99,000 lm short of its own advertised 100,000 lm rating

way short of its own claimed 99,000 lm

the least expensive flashlight in the video

best of all brands at 30 seconds, better than its own rating

second place at that point in the sequence, only 105 lm below its own rating

better than its own 2,000 lm rating

after turbo mode powered down and the light partially regained brightness as it cooled, the best 30 second figure at that point in the sequence

brightness actually increased as the LED warmed up

moved into second place at that point in the sequence

just above its own 2,000 lm rating

better than its own 1,100 lm rating

below its own 2,000 lm rating

dropped well below its rating

dropped to second place at that point in the sequence

best of all brands at 15 minutes

the best yet at that point in the sequence but later surpassed

the best yet at that point in the sequence

moved into second place at that point in the sequence

the best yet at that point in the sequence

the best yet at that point in the sequence

a peak best at that point in the sequence

the best yet at that point in the sequence

the best yet at that point in the sequence

third place at that point in the sequence

a lot of fluctuation stated as ranging from 274 to 291 lm

struggling

pretty hot at close to 115 F

hottest yet at over 127 F

just a little warm to the touch

not too hot

a little warm

a little warm at 113 F

pretty warm at 160 F

not too bad for such a powerful light

just below 93 F, relatively cool

warmer than the Victoper

not uncomfortably warm at around 95 to 96 F

the hottest flashlight yet at that point in the sequence

relatively cool

pretty cool given the low light output

and 3/16 in

and 11/16 in

very close to 6 in

and 13/16 in

very close to 9 in

and 5/8 in

very close to 5 and 5/16 in

very close to 5.75 in

very close to 5.75 in

the most compact flashlight at that point in the sequence

and 3/16 in

quite a bit longer than average

very close to 5.75 in

very close to 7 in

by far the longest flashlight tested

pretty compact

without the holster

(claimed 154 g or 5.43 oz in its own marketing, but the reviewer's own scale reading is kept here)

heavier than average

very light

by far the heaviest yet at that point in the sequence

pretty heavy

very light

rated 5,000 mA hours, actual 5,090 mA hours, beat its own rating and took the lead at that point in the large-cell capacity test (17.57 Wh)

two different figures appear in the transcript for this brand's large-cell capacity test: an initial reading of 'just over 4,000 mA hours or just over 14 Wh,' and a later line saying 'the Acebeam moves into the lead at 16.72 Wh or 4,850 mA hours.' The second figure fits far better against this brand's own 5,000 mA hour rating and the narrative that it is taking the lead, but both are recorded here rather than silently picking one, since the source itself is ambiguous about which is correct

rated 4,900 mA hours, actual 4,840 mA hours, almost achieved its rating

appears to have a 5,000 mA hour battery per the intro; produced 4,710 mA hours or just over 16 Wh, described as under its rating but the most energy yet at that point in the sequence

rated 3,000 mA hours, actual 3,266 mA hours

rated 3,400 mA hours, actual 3,573 mA hours

rated 2,000 mA hours, actual 2,123 mA hours

figure captioned as 'the Reuben' in the battery capacity recap ('the Reuben has a 2,600 milliamp hour rating and it performed even better than its rating at 2,685'); resolved to Wuben since its own intro states 'the Wuben appears to have a 2600 mA hour battery,' the only brand in the video with that rating

captioned as 'the Reball,' rated 1,800 mA hours, actual 1,875 mA hours

captioned as 'the Trick Stub,' rated 1,800 mA hours, actual 1,858 mA hours

captioned as 'the Liltings,' rated 10,000 mA hours, actual only 4,620 mA hours or 15.39 Wh, described as really struggling

second place behind Sofirn (60.7 W)

best of all brands tested in this sub-test

captioned as 'the Reball': 3.98 W at 1 amp, 20 W at 6 amps, 25 W at 8 amps, and fell below 3 V at 10 amps making it to 30 W; this appears to be a standalone demonstration example rather than part of the final top-3 recap (Sofirn, Acebeam, Fenix)