Thursday 13 September 2012

Review: LED Lenser P3 Torch

We need light to see, with out light, we would be in darkness. I know that's very obvious, but a good light source can make all the difference, particularly artificial light, at night. How about a high quality light source, at a reasonable price, and fits in the palm of your hand. Maybe the LED Lenser P3 will fit the spot.




 
When you open up the packaging for the P3, you get the torch, a case, a wrist strap, a pocket clip, and a battery. So no reason not to try it out on opening. The P3's diminutive size belays its ability to cast light. The construction of the torch is modular, so taking it apart to swap out a battery or bulb is easy.





What about performance? Well LED Lenser quote an output of 16 lumen's with a range of 31meters, and I have to say, it's all that. It certainly punches above it's weight. I used the P3 for a weeks camping, making my way back from the....erm.....pub, trips to the little boys room and general use around camp. It's performance is very good, although there may be better options if a longer battery life is needed. It was okay for a weeks occasional use, the torch lasted on a single battery, but constant use would probably mean a new battery more regularly. The average lifetime of 7 hours that LED Lenser quote will probably depend on battery quality.


The remarkable thing, for me still, is the size and quality of the beam this torch can cast. It uses LED Lenser's Blue Moon focusing system which allows you, by simply moving a thumb and fore finger to slide the bezel backwards and forwards, to go from a wide soft beam, to a narrow sharp beam.





It can be picked up fairly cheaply, around the £12-15 price point which makes it quite competitive. It's battery life may not be up to your needs, but for a torch to use on odd occasions or in emergencies, it could be worth considering.

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