If you are looking for a high-power, affordable flashlight, the UltraFire WF 502B delivers an extraordinary 1,000 lumen output with great build quality, good selection of modes and accessories including a tactical mount. It provides good value for money but watch out for fake products and check that you’re buying a genuine UltraFire product.
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Review of the UltraFire WF502B
The UltraFire WF502B flashlight gets good reviews on sites such as Amazon, and provides a reliable, well-built and rugged flashlight that despite being compact produces an impressive 1,000 lumen power output. Delivering this bright beam is the latest CREE XML T6 LED component.
This rugged flashlight has an aluminum alloy casing that is weatherproof (note, it’s not waterproof, so don’t drop it in the river!) and is supplied with spare O-ring and seals for the lens cap and tail cap.
Some suppliers offer the UltraFire as part of a kit which includes a rechargeable battery pack and charger but be careful since the manufacturer is very specific about the type of battery you should use with this torch to avoid damaging the electronic components or LED itself. It specifies a 3.7 volt, 18650 Lithium battery and warns against using any other type of battery. Unfortunately, this is not a standard size, so you might have to order replacements online – the advantage is that they will last for several hours when running at full-power.
There are five modes and you can switch between these with a gentle half-click on the power switch that’s on the base of the flashlight; if you press hard (a full-click) you will switch the device off.
The WF502B provides five modes that include SOS, strobe, low-power (40 lumen), high-power (400 lumen), and super-power (1000 lumen). A nice feature is that the flashlight keeps a memory of the last mode you used before switching off the device and reverts to this mode when you switch it back on again.
In its brightest mode, the flashlight can cause some problems – it’s as bright as car headlights and can be too bright for even a bike light. The beam is wide and cannot be adjusted – which means you lose the ability to have a focussed, narrow spot but instead you will illuminate a wide area. This could suit your requirements well and worth bearing in mind. In its high-power mode, the UltraFire can provide a beam that reaches about 200 yards.
Produced by the What Fat Technological Company, the UltraFire is sold around the world and has a good reputation with, in this model, a very impressive beam power output. Watch out for copycat models when ordering to avoid mistakenly buying an inferior product.
There are a couple of minor downsides which are reported by customers writing reviews on sites such as Amazon; this includes that the flashlight can get uncomfortably warm if set to super-power and used for more than 30minutes. Another issue is that the switch on the base of the flashlight can be knocked, which changes the mode unexpectedly. However, it’s well-built and available at a good price so makes this a good buy for your home or for emergencies.
Summary
Make sure that you buy a genuine UltraFire and you’ll get a good flashlight with a very impressive light power output within a well-built aluminum casing. There are a couple of niggles, especially on overheating with extended use, and specific requirements of its battery. However, for the price, this is a good buy for your home or car.
Top 5 Main Features
- Uses the CREE XML T6 LED bulb with up to 1,000 lumen output
- Bulb lifespan of 100,000 hours
- Very specific battery requirements – but battery life of several hours
- Aluminum alloy casing
- Water resistant
- Five operating modes: SOS, strobe, low, high, super
Physical Features
Size: Length is 132mm, body 24mm diameter, lens casing diameter 32mm
Weight: 4 ounces with no battery; 5.6 ounces with battery
Battery Type: 18650 3.7 volt Lithium
Power/Lumens: Maximum of 1,000 lumen, 400 lumen and 40 lumen modes
Body Material: Aluminum alloy casing
Mount: Tactical mount available
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