Olight i3T 2 Review
Where are you going to buy your next LED light? There are many fantastic options out there, but I think you need to seriously consider Olight as a serious contender.
My name is Matt, I am an experienced hiker, camper, and 4wder and have done my fair share of hunting over the years as well. And we all know that when you are out in the bush at night trying to find your gear, light a path, work on your car, read, or do something else, that you need a good light that you can rely on and know will work every time, and also work really well. In the past, my two go-to flashlights were my old Led Lenser and my LED modified Maglite-Mini (I have had this since my army reservist days and it used to be an incandescent bulb torch. What can I say, I like things which last). In recent times I have come across Olight, and now I have a new go to torch for every day carry and hiking and camping uses. Why? Well, let me tell you about the Olight qualities and you will understand why.
There are many cheap LED lights out there. You can get a AAA dual or single battery LED light for about $5 off a cheap Chinese site, and it will look flash and work for a bit, but then it will just die. They are poorly made, often don’t screw down properly, have poor quality control, and in one of them I put a 10440 battery in because I needed longer use, and it just died instantly. Olight is nothing like this, it is not cheap in build or quality, like the cheap things you find online.
Take the torch we are talking about in this review; the Olight I3T 2 which is 10440 compatible (note not all Olight torches are, so read carefully the specs of each one). When you get it in the mail it will come in a small box, not much larger than Swiss Army Knife packaging, but the box is solid, so you know that your torch came by delivery undamaged. Inside you have the torch with a AAA battery in it, and two spare o-rings. This torch feels solid, really solid. I have bought other decent LED lights from reputable manufacturers and they felt light and flimsy and cheap. Of course, the cheap knock-offs on Ebay or Chinese sites feel light and flimsy, but so do some of the store bought ones from proper manufacturers. Olight torches do not, they feel solid. When you screw down the battery lid it stays lockedsolid, which is good, because that O-ring comes on the torch so that you can use it under water. You can’t trust the cheap light to say closed, you can trust the Olight one to though. These things have an IPX8 water-proof rating, which is incredible. Yes, other decent lights will also be waterproof. But for $29.95 you get this water-proofing, a 200-300 lumen (depending on the battery you use) light, and the torch feels solid as well. It is something that you know will last. It is incredible you can get that at such a good price.
【Image1: Here is my Olight I3T 2 sitng in a creek on my last hiking trip.】
Now, when I say it feels solid, I do not mean that it is heavy. This thing is smaller than a pencil and bright. When you are hiking you want to take light gear. Every gram is an extra gram you carry on your back. The I3T 2 torch is small, it can be poweredby a AAAbateryor a 10440 batery, and it is incredibly bright, as noted above. Sure, it is not the torch you will take with you spotlightngfor roos, but it is the torch you can clip into your pocket to fnd your equipment in the car, or where you stored it at camp, or general camp dutes at night. It will do the job, brilliantly, and it is so portable. And if you don’t want to carry it, you can place it on the brim of your cap and use it as a very good headlamp. In this sense the torch is a two in one bonus torch: a handheld torch and a headlamp. Fantastc value for such a small price, and it is now my frst-choicetorch for hiking, because I don’t want to carry heavy equipment. If you are a hiker this is a seriously good opton for you.
【Image 2: My I3T 2 torch next to my tnker Swiss Army Knife,my I3EOS, and my Kindle.】
It is not just great for hiking. This is a good everyday carry torch. I have previously used the little mini AAAtorch that Olight sell for $12.95, the litle Key ring torch, the I3EOS, just to see how it would go, and it is brilliant for what it is. It is as bright or brighter than my Maglite-Mini. But sometmes you need just a litle more brightness and depth with your torch. The i3T 2 EDC gives you that added power, but it is stll small enough to not be a problem in your pocket. You can carry it, you can buy the bright pink one for your wife to keep in her purse, you can leave it in your glove box with a 10440 batery in it which is far less likely to leak or degrade than a standard alkaline, and you can know that wherever you are you can fnd anything in the dark because you have this brilliant litle light with you.
【Image3: Look at how it lights up this rocky creek area.
It is incredible that such a small light can be so powerful.】
I like these torches so much thatI haven’t just bought one, I have bought a few as gifsfor family members and friends for birthdays and other occasions coming up, and I will buy more. I like to give people gifs that they can actually use and which are of good quality and Olight have plenty of torches in their lineup which come in all sorts of specs and colours, which make great gif ideas for various diferent occasions. Everyone needs a torch at some point, it is good to have something of this quality to rely on.
So, I can unreservedly say that I recommend the i3T 2 EDC because it is good quality, is remarkably bright for something so small, and it is portable and light, so you can use it in a vast variety of contexts. And as noted above thislitle thing is waterproofto an IPX8 ratng that ensuresyou can drop this thing in the sink, or in a pool, or in a creek when hiking or huntng, and you don’t have to stumble around in the dark because you killed your torch. It will keep working. And if you buy soonon the Olight website, you can even get a free I3EOS keychain torch that you can give to your son or daughter which they will love as well.This is a 5 star product that you will not regret purchasing.
