this post was submitted on 06 Jan 2024
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[NLD] Just arrived: Sofirn SC13 – little EDC flashlight with 18350 battery and SST-40 behind a Fresnel lens (lemmy.world)
submitted 10 months ago by SammysHP to c/flashlight
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First impression: It's nice, I really like the new switch that Sofirn used here. It's like the large switch from Wurkkos, just smaller and far better than the hard, wobbly switch they used in the past.

The tint is mediocre and the Fresnel lens creates some rings. Unfortunately also some tint variation from spot to spill. Overall pretty soft beam, but not too floody.

It appears like the bezel is press fit, but it has a small gap and it might be possible to open it.

Interesting place to attach the clip. There's this large groove at the front. Looks little weird without a clip, though.

A magnet is included as well, but it can only be used when no lanyard is attached (D'oh!).

I will write a full review, but it will take some weeks because I have quite a lot other flashlights in the queue.

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[–] Fabrik872 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Nice trackball you got there is it elecom huge? Are you in some lemmy trackball group? I was on one when i was on reddit but i cant find any similar group here since apollo.town is down and i really miss it.

[–] SammysHP 2 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Indeed, it's an Elecom Huge. Also have some other Elecom like the Deft Pro and still thinking about getting a Bitra (although it might be too small, but not much more portable than the Deft Pro).

No, I'm in no trackball group. Just using them everywhere.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I have the Bitra, but would not recommend it. I used it for a weekend and ended up with a very sore hand. It's just too small for me.

[–] SammysHP 1 points 10 months ago

Thanks for talking me out of it!

[–] Fabrik872 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I have birta for travel but i cannot get used to it for gaming so i game on my slimblade non pro

[–] SammysHP 2 points 10 months ago

I had the Slimblade for five minutes, until I quickly returned it because of the bad buttons and the high ball without a proper wrist rest. Eventually I found the Elecom Huge which was just perfect for my hands. The Deft Pro works also great. Tried various other trackballs including thumb trackballs, but none worked as good as the Huge for me.

[–] dual_sport_dork 3 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Wait. Educate a dummy, here. Isn't 18350 the same dimensions as a CR123?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Not quite. The 18350 is the same diameter as the 18650. The CR123 is a 16340, so it's slightly smaller.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago (2 children)

I should have also said... The last three numbers are the diameter. The numbers before that are the length.

[–] Langehund 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Other way around. If it was as you said, it’d be a pancake. 18350 is 18 mm diameter and 35 mm long

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Thank you for correcting me. There may be a need for disc-shaped batteries somewhere, but I definitely had it backwards.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

There may be a need for disc-shaped batteries somewhere

Digital watches are supposed to be kinda neat. Hearing aids too.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

@Curious_Canid I read somewhere that the last digit is the shape : 0 for cylindrical

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago

You're right. I should have looked it up and not relied on my somewhat faulty memory. Thanks for the correction.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago

As far as I know, CR123 is equal to 16340, so 2 mm thinner and 1 mm shorter than 18350.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

I would lose that thing in 3 seconds flat.

[–] solrize 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

This doesn't seem to be on Sofirn's website. Do you have a link?

[–] SammysHP 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

It seems to be available at their AliExpress store: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006374608354.html

[–] solrize 1 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Thanks, I managed to find some specs. It's hard for me to find this preferable in a d4v2 with 18350 tube. I guess the USB port is nice.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Oh man thats a nice little light. So tiny! Didnt realize they had something like that. I recently picked up the IF23, which has a funky LED array along the side of the flashlight with RGB lights.

[–] SammysHP 1 points 10 months ago

It was just released. They have many flashlights for all kinds of purpose. The SC13 is more a small EDC flashlight.

[–] Anticorp 1 points 10 months ago (2 children)

How does this compare to the Rovyvanne?

[–] SammysHP 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Which one?

[–] Zak 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

18350 lights are a fair bit bigger than the sealed-battery keychain lights Rovyvon is best known for.

[–] Anticorp 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Does that provide better battery life, or greater lumens?

[–] Zak 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

A larger battery generally provides longer life, but the battery being field-replaceable is also a significant difference.

[–] Anticorp 1 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

True. My RovyVan stopped holding a charge after about a year. But it's an amazing flashlight otherwise. How long does a battery last on this one?

[–] Zak 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Runtime or service life? Runtime depends on mode and may or may not dim as the battery drains depending on the type of driver it uses. I'd wait for reviews to find out about this one specifically.

Service life for Life-ion is usually at least 500 charge cycles or five years, whichever is less.

[–] Anticorp 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I meant runtime. The service life is extendable by swapping the battery. Right? I suppose the runtime is too.

[–] Zak 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

An 18350 battery has about ten times the capacity of the sealed battery in models like the Rovyvon A1, though some other Rovyvon models have larger batteries. Most removable batteries are larger than the tiny Rovyvons as are the flashlights that use them.

[–] Anticorp 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

RovyVons are still amazing flashlights, so a slightly larger version, with a swappable battery, and 10x battery capacity sounds amazing. What would you say is the best, most compact, true color, bright, 18350 flashlight?

[–] Zak 2 points 10 months ago (2 children)

18350 is kind of short and fat and not my favorite size. Here are some 18350 lights with good color rendering, but many of them are 18650 lights with a half-length battery tube so they're not super compact.

14500 (AA-size 3.7V Li-ion) is more to my liking for compact lights because it's slimmer, but longer. The two have comparable capacity. In that size, I really like the Skilhunt M150 and H150 with Nichia 519A LEDs. They're fairly efficient, able to sustain fairly high brightness for a long time, and can also use AA batteries, but their peak brightness doesn't break any records. The Wurkkos TS10 is perhaps more impressive, but gives up some efficiency and sustained brightness as well as the option to use AA batteries.

[–] Anticorp 1 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

Thank you very much for the information. I've been using a Zebralight H600Fc as my primary headlamp for a few years now. It's a great headlamp, but it's 18650 and I've been looking to downsize for backpacking. I took the RovyVon on one trip and just used the hat clip as a headlamp. It worked, but I was worried about the capacity the whole trip and tried to minimize my use. These lights you mentioned seem like very good alternatives. I also want a better flashlight for my truck than the Costco Duracell light I have now. It works well, but it's nothing special.

[–] Zak 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I think if you like the H600Fc it's pretty likely you'll like the H150.

[–] Anticorp 1 points 10 months ago

Oop! I've been looking at flashlights since your original comment and didn't see this. I just picked up two Wuben. I replied to your last comment just now with more details. Cheers!

[–] Anticorp 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Nice, dude! I just bought a Wuben X0 in brass, a Wuben E7, a headband, and a couple of batteries. They look like really cool headlights/flashlights, so I'm really excited to get them. Thanks again!

[–] Zak 2 points 10 months ago

Wuben definitely makes some interesting designs. The X-1 with its flat form factor and cooling fan has been getting a lot of attention lately.