Moonlight and Firefly Modes on Flashlights. What those about?
Published: 7 years ago
A good moonlight or firefly mode in a flashlight is a thing that gets me excited. And makes other people say what the hell is wrong with you. And other people say, you don’t sound very excited. Ok maybe I’m not as emotive as other Youtube bros, but I have feelings too.
So what is a good moonlight mode? And is a firefly mode any different? Well first, that depends on you. Second I used to think a firefly was lower, but since manufacturers seem to use them interchangeablely from .01 lumens to 5 lumens, Armytek- not I don’t think there’s a distinct agreed upon definition.
Let me share with you my opinion though. A good moonlight mode for me, is one that is under a lumen… actually less than half a lumen. More like a Zebralight, Armytek, and Olight. My favorite lights give me a few options from, .01 lumens to 5 ish lumens… Let’s say you wake up from a deep sleep at night, and you’re camping… something less than .5 lumens more like a 10th of a lumen . It’s the perfect piss light, because it doesn’t disturb your camping buddy or hostage, and it doesn’t make your eyes hurt when you turn it on. The ultralowest of these modes will also allow you keep your eyes adjusted to the night too. A moonlight mode is usually enough to allow you to see the ground or inside of a bag dimly, but a little too dim for reading without straining your eyes. Moonlight modes are also very efficient and can get you out of an emergency if your lost in a dark place, and need to conserve battery. Moonlight modes and low modes if they’re efficient can last for months of continuous output.
Sometimes you need a bit more light though, and brands like Zebralight allow you to program modes from a few selections.
Now flashlights will often vary between model to model on what a moonlight mode is, because of different factors like batteries, drivers, and LED emitters- but here are some of my favorites. The Armytek Predator Pro v2.5 … The Zebralight SC600 MkIII HI, the Manker MK34 either my lowest or second lowest surprisingly when you consider it can also put out 5000 lumens… My Olight S2 copper… I have 5 or 6 olights, and for some reason this is the lowest. My Armytek Tiara A1 Pro… it’s either this or the Manker MK34… Amy My Armytek Wizards.
Anyway… your eyes are really what matters though, so you’ll need to try out a few options from the list of manufacturers to see what works best for you. And on the other hand, you may be one of those people who like to wake up and use 1000 lumens- and thing moonlight modes are stupid. That’s fine too. But as far as I’m concerned Usually anything in the under 1 lumen range can be considered a moonlight mode, although Nitecore has some in the mid 1 lumen range… so maybe those work best for you. If you like this video, subscribe, like comment, and watch my other videos. Thanks for watching.
So what is a good moonlight mode? And is a firefly mode any different? Well first, that depends on you. Second I used to think a firefly was lower, but since manufacturers seem to use them interchangeablely from .01 lumens to 5 lumens, Armytek- not I don’t think there’s a distinct agreed upon definition.
Let me share with you my opinion though. A good moonlight mode for me, is one that is under a lumen… actually less than half a lumen. More like a Zebralight, Armytek, and Olight. My favorite lights give me a few options from, .01 lumens to 5 ish lumens… Let’s say you wake up from a deep sleep at night, and you’re camping… something less than .5 lumens more like a 10th of a lumen . It’s the perfect piss light, because it doesn’t disturb your camping buddy or hostage, and it doesn’t make your eyes hurt when you turn it on. The ultralowest of these modes will also allow you keep your eyes adjusted to the night too. A moonlight mode is usually enough to allow you to see the ground or inside of a bag dimly, but a little too dim for reading without straining your eyes. Moonlight modes are also very efficient and can get you out of an emergency if your lost in a dark place, and need to conserve battery. Moonlight modes and low modes if they’re efficient can last for months of continuous output.
Sometimes you need a bit more light though, and brands like Zebralight allow you to program modes from a few selections.
Now flashlights will often vary between model to model on what a moonlight mode is, because of different factors like batteries, drivers, and LED emitters- but here are some of my favorites. The Armytek Predator Pro v2.5 … The Zebralight SC600 MkIII HI, the Manker MK34 either my lowest or second lowest surprisingly when you consider it can also put out 5000 lumens… My Olight S2 copper… I have 5 or 6 olights, and for some reason this is the lowest. My Armytek Tiara A1 Pro… it’s either this or the Manker MK34… Amy My Armytek Wizards.
Anyway… your eyes are really what matters though, so you’ll need to try out a few options from the list of manufacturers to see what works best for you. And on the other hand, you may be one of those people who like to wake up and use 1000 lumens- and thing moonlight modes are stupid. That’s fine too. But as far as I’m concerned Usually anything in the under 1 lumen range can be considered a moonlight mode, although Nitecore has some in the mid 1 lumen range… so maybe those work best for you. If you like this video, subscribe, like comment, and watch my other videos. Thanks for watching.