The best thing I bought this year: a Zippo-sized rechargeable flashlight

1 week ago 8

The Wuben G5 rechargeable flashlight sitting successful beforehand of a reflective Zippo lighter.

I was ne'er a Boy Scout, but I person ever embraced their “be prepared” motto. When I permission the location it’s ne'er without my mundane transportation kit that, among different things, includes wireless earbuds, a tiny battery, other glasses — and a flashlight. In fact, I’ve agelong been connected the hunt for what I see to beryllium the cleanable flashlight, and arsenic a effect I present person much of them than immoderate 1 idiosyncratic could ever need. But the $25 Wuben G5 could beryllium my last, acknowledgment to a compact plan that pairs clever functionality with tons of illumination that’s casual to adjust.

I bought the G5 arsenic a replacement for the Nitecore TINI 2 keychain flashlight I utilized to carry. Nitecore’s is amazingly agleam fixed however tiny it is, but the fastener enactment that prevents the flashlight from turning connected accidentally is acold from foolproof. In reality, the TINI 2 would regularly crook connected by itself portion bouncing astir wrong my sling bag, draining its artillery without maine realizing it. You can’t efficaciously “be prepared” with a dormant flashlight.

The Wuben G5 rechargeable flashlight connected a marble coaster.

The G5 besides includes a locking mechanism, but successful the signifier of a sliding power connected 1 broadside that doubles arsenic a screen for the flashlight’s USB-C charging port. After a mates of months of carrying it around, the G5 hasn’t turned connected by itself, and astatine this constituent I don’t expect it to. It’s not rather arsenic tiny arsenic my aged Nitecore, but it’s conscionable somewhat taller than a Zippo lighter, and inactive precise pocketable.

The Wuben G5 rechargeable flashlight glowing red.

What I similar adjacent much astir the G5 is that it’s precise bully astatine conscionable being a flashlight. Instead of stepping done brightness presets, the flashlight has a instrumentality for rapidly dialing successful precisely however overmuch illumination you need, from conscionable 2 lumens to up to 400. I find its lowest mounting much than agleam capable to find thing dropped successful a acheronian car, oregon for searching for thing that rolls nether the sofa, and keeping it dim boosts the flashlight’s artillery beingness to up to 65 hours.

The G5 is not constricted to conscionable achromatic light. It has a 2nd LED whose colour tin beryllium adjusted by turning the brightness dial which cycles done the spectrum. Using a operation of treble taps and agelong presses connected the powerfulness button, the G5 tin besides flash idiosyncratic colors oregon multicolor patterns which could, successful immoderate situations, beryllium a utile mode to awesome you’re having an emergency.

Other functionality I’ve travel to admit includes a clip whose presumption tin beryllium adjusted to the front, side, oregon backmost of the G5, and that its LEDs are located connected a caput that tin rotate 180 degrees. The basal of the flashlight adjacent has a built-in magnet truthful you tin equine the G5 and usage it hands-free. In short, it feels similar Wuben enactment a batch of thought into the G5’s plan to maximize its functionality.

I’m not going to unreal that everyone would beryllium thrilled to find a flashlight successful their stocking connected Christmas morning, but I’m betting there’s 1 oregon 2 radical connected your buying database who would admit a precise utile summation to their ain mundane transportation kits.