33% of the time you use your flashlight (torch) you want flashing lights!

[canuckamuck]

Apparently this is the consensus of flashlight makers world wide.

I think the options of full power or less power is good, a nice way to save battery power. But I cannot remember ever needing a strobe light. It is  not beyond my imagination to realize there is a time and place for a flashing light but it is certainly not 1/3 of the time. Is it so hard to make a three function flashlight that has the ability to switch on and off separate from the modes of max power, min power and flashing?

Yes it is a rainy day in Thailand.

Edited August 18, 2018 by canuckamuck

[55Jay]

Huh.  That does seem like a lot  I've had portable lights with the flashing/strobe function and like you, aware of when it would be useful, but never needed it.

 

How'd it go up North with that storm blowing through yesterday?  Lose power?

[robblok]

Far more useful for me are lights that i can put down when there is a blackout here.. not strobe. I finally found a few that do that. Also I have bought a good flashlight... a mag lite from the US .. not too big and made of metal. Quite happy with it.

[canuckamuck]

3 hours ago, 55Jay said:

Huh.  That does seem like a lot  I've had portable lights with the flashing/strobe function and like you, aware of when it would be useful, but never needed it.

 

How'd it go up North with that storm blowing through yesterday?  Lose power?

The title is tongue in cheek, I am sure most people have never needed a strobe, or maybe once out of a hundred times.

We are fine up here, the rain seems to have subsided. power outages were brief. 

[John435]

Great rant. I get it.

[malt25]

On 8/18/2018 at 12:56 PM, robblok said:

Far more useful for me are lights that i can put down when there is a blackout here.. not strobe. I finally found a few that do that. Also I have bought a good flashlight... a mag lite from the US .. not too big and made of metal. Quite happy with it.

"are lights that i can put down "   Why, it break a leg ?

[chrisinth]

The strobe function on these lights is a distress signalling feature. I agree that it is a pain and unfortunately featured in all the Cree style torches I like as well.

 

Seems the only way to avoid it is to not buy a tactical torch or to at least check the functions before buying.

[Andrew Dwyer]

A have a few of these tactical type torches/flashlights that I have bought over the years.

I used one regularly in my working years and tended to buy the usb rechargeable type ( so I could plug it into my laptop at lunchtime for a battery boost ).

Pretty much all of these have 3 or 4 functions, 1 of which is the strobe/emergency function.

One I keep in the car is most annoying as you have to click through the modes , low-med -high-strobe, to turn it on and off !!

I guess the strobe function will come in handy if broken down at night on a particularly dark section of road.

 

My favourite is a Taklite TA 50 which is super bright but you have to hold the button down to turn it on and then a quick press to scroll through the modes. People were always asking to borrow it when they saw how small yet powerful it was but could never manage to turn it on [emoji23]

 

I’ve had many over the years, long gone are the days when a silver Maglite was all I needed !!

On trips to the US I used to search the Ace Hardware stores to find something new or a handy belt clip/pouch, nowadays it’s a few clicks on the iPhone to buy one !!

[starky]

 Or all you mad prepper, bear grylls, tactical torch, MAG lite carrying numpties could just buy a torch with an on/off button.

[chickenslegs]

11 hours ago, Andrew Dwyer said:

I guess the strobe function will come in handy if broken down at night on a particularly dark section of road.

 Yes, it will give the drunk drivers something to aim for.?

 

But, seriously, much better protection than a twig broken off a nearby tree.