Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)The first thing I noticed when picking up this Duracell Garrity LED Stainless Steel Pen Light is how heavy it feels. In fact, it weights about twice as much as similar 2xAAA pen lights such as Energizer Aluminum Pen LED Flashlight (PLED23AE) and Dorcy 41-1218 5MM LED Pen Light.
The body of this Garrity LED pen light (KM200G) is made of extra thick stainless steel, instead of aluminum. It is so sturdy that I can step on it without making a dent. This heavy-duty construction makes it less comfortable to carry around in my shirt pocket. But it makes a good addition to my toolbox, or as a glove-compartment flash light.
The brightness of the LED is very impressive for a 2xAAA pen light. The beam it creates is relatively wide, throwing a 5 ft diameter circle at a distance of 12 ft. This makes it suitable for short range illumination only. The Nichia LED is indeed 'twice as bright' as advertised, at least in comparison to other 2xAAA pen light I have tested (Energizer and Dorcy). The downside is that it also consumes over twice the power, resulting in much shorter run time.
The power regulation of this pen light is quite good. Battery current is maintained at around 250mA throughout most of the battery voltage range (from 3.0V down to 1.5V). This corresponds to input power of roughly 800mW down to 400mW. I have tested the run time using two 800mAh NiMH AAA cells. For the first three hours, the light was consistently bright. After 3 hour 15 minutes the light started to dim down, and it continued to glow pass 4-hour mark. In comparison, the Energizer and Dorcy pen lights can burn for over 10 hours. But it is interesting to note that, even when powered by just one AAA cell, this Garrity light is still brighter than the other two. (See my Customer Image for brightness comparison)
One thing to watch out for: the battery compartment cap needs to be tightened all the way, in order for the light to work. Initially I almost thought my unit was defective, just because the cap was not making electrical contact with the body.
For the price I paid for this Garrity LED pen light (less than $7 each), it is a great value. I only wish it can be made a bit lighter.
[Update on Sep 26, 2010]
One feature of the Garrity penlight is that its on/off switch is very easy to engage, in comparison to the Energizer and Dorcy penlights. But in real life this turns out to be a disadvantage, because it often accidentally switch on while stored in my jeans pocket.
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Product Description:
Duracell garrity LED stainless steel pen light, non corrosive with push button switch with lifetime guarantee.
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