Simplicity tends to be a hallmark of reliability and usability too. And this holds true for flashlights. And certainly for THIS flashlight. I didn't bother to shoot a video in order to showcase / measure this flashlight's spectacular amount of lumens, or how far it can throw light (candela) because that's not the point of this flashlight, or its strength. The point of this flashlight is that you can carry it on-body, so it's readily available, and, so simple that it's quick and easy to use without getting lost in a pathway of complex commands just to shine the light you need in the moment you need it. These attributes make it worthy to serve as EDC, everyday carry. The other EDC feature is that it is fueled by readily available AA batteries which means you can depend upon batteries instead of the power grid. Which is the point of the spare battery case. The flashlight wouldn't be dependable without a complement of fresh batteries to ensure that dead batteries can be readily replaced. Operation is by hard click. Click on. Click off. You can step-through 3 levels of brightness by soft-pressing the power-button shy of a hard click. Simple. Easy. The magnetic tail is suitably strong, and, suitably weak. In other words, not strong enough to demagnetize your key fobs, and cards with magnetic strips. (Credit cards are unaffected by magnetism due to the shift from magnetic strips to EMV chip technology which is embedded into credit cards.) I recommend that you keep the spare o-ring in your spare battery case. Also, if you have a spouse, and/or children, why not outfit them with a flashlight? Emergency preparedness and readiness don't have to be scary topics. My parents gifted me a watch on my tenth birthday as a ploy to teach me responsibility by encouraging me take care of it, and, not to lose it. Cell phones are ubiquitous, but I think you can broach the conversation about safety and security and emergency preparedness by giving the people you care about a flashlight and asking them to carry it with them. Mommy or daddy can instill pride and a good habit in children by creating a ruse wherein their child gets to come to the rescue by having their flashlight, long before they are entrusted with hanging onto an expensive cell phone. I have my family outfitted (in their cars) with flashlights, first aid kits, and fire extinguishers. After a few uses, even the most care-free develop a minimum sense of respect for the EDC ethos.

I’ve had Fenix flashlights in my collection for about 20 years. Fenix makes good quality products, and this model is no different. It’s well designed and built, and it features the Luminus SST20 LED (6000K) with a lifespan of 50,000 hours. This flashlight has a metal tail switch with a built-in magnet that not only allows it to tail stand but also lets it stick to metal surfaces so you can go hands-free if needed. The user interface is simple, with settings for low, medium, and high. The low setting emits about 7 lumens and lasts for about 100 hours, which is perfect for hanging in a tent at night. The medium setting provides 30 lumens, which is enough for most nighttime activities. Then there’s the high setting, which reaches 200 lumens. The nominal operating voltage is 0.9–1.8 V, so 14500 batteries aren’t compatible. This flashlight also features a two-way body clip that’s great for attaching to pockets or hats. It’s very difficult to find a better quality AA flashlight for the price.

I like the features, but the slick body makes it hard to manipulate, and it's a 1/4in longer but my biggest gripe is the weird green/yellow tint the light has. I guess it gives a more natural light appearance but my version e12 v2 does that with a clean white beam. Hopefully the e12 v4 is just a v2 with the v3 runtimes... Which, BTW, are a bit bogus. The v2 maxes at 160lm and stays there for a bit before dimming to 0. The v3 immediately starts dimming from 200. I think I'll stick with my trusty v2 a bit longer...

Fenix is known for well made reliable flashlights. The E12 V3 is no exception. It's compact, well built, and easy to use. It arrived in a retail blister pack that has to be cut open to access everything. I prefer a box since I like to hang onto them in case I ever need it. They include a detailed user manual, spare O-ring, and lanyard. The deep carry bi directional pocket clip is excellent and comes pre-installed. The UI is super straight forward. A single full press of the tail switch to turn on or off, and half press to cycle through the three brightness modes. Thankfully there's no strobe in the brightness rotation, in fact I don't believe there is any strobe at all. This is fine by me as I never use it anyway. I'd consider this a pro, but some people may have a need for it. The tail switch also has a magnet in it which is a very cool feature that I've never seen before. I wish more flashlight brands would adopt this. A magnet in your flashlight allows you to hang it making it a useful work light under a vehicles hood or anywhere else with ferrous metal surface. The high mode isn't particularly bright, but adequate for its power source of a standard 1.5V AA battery. I am actually using a rechargable NIMH battery since they're better for the environment and cheaper in the long run. They also tend to have better runtimes than standard alkaline. A non-rechargable lithium battery would have the best run time of all and would remain stable in storage for years. I am a bit disappointed that Fenix opted to make this AA only considering almost every other flashlight out there in thos format is dual fuel and supports both AA and 14500 batteries. You would yet MUCH more output with a 3.7V 14500 lithium battery. I don't quite understand this decision, especially since it doesn't make the flashlight anymore budget friendly. In fact it's quite a bit pricier than most AA/1400 dual fuel flashlights. For an emitter they chose the luminous SST20 in 6000k. It's a bright and efficient emitter, good for a small flashlight like this, but the tint is pretty unattractive and noticeably green. That's pretty typical of Fenix, well built lights with greenish "cool white" emitters. For most people this is fine and wouldn't be noticed, but for hobbyists a green tin is usually undesirable, a neutral/warm 4000K SST20 would have really improved color rendering and tint of the beam. Runtime seems good so far, I use it quite a bit so far, and haven't had to recharge battery. Admittedly I haven't had it long enough to really do runtime testing on different levels, but knowing Phoenix it should have respectable runtimes, esp with a quality Nimh or non rechargable lithium. They did also include a AA alkaline battery which I won't use, and carrying case. Overall it's a pretty nice little flashlight, since it can't run 14500 batteries it's an ideal flashlight to keep in your vehicle since you don't have to worry about the environmental limitations of rechargeable lithium batteries. For this price however, it should support different battery chemistries and come with a rechargeable battery. I also would prefer more emitter color temperature options. Otherwise it's a fine choice if you need a compact reliable and simple to operate flashlight. I do however think there are better options.

im hondestly pretty impressed with this flashlight for the price..... its very slim and a great size for a watchpocket in your jeans..... the magnetic back is always a plus.... as well as the rear button..... great features for such a small light..... i own a baton 3 which is the closest light i have to this size..... the baton is a little shorter but much fatter..... this light is obviously not that bright but it also runs off a single AA battery... it is very bright with that in mind..... a single AA battery and it has a good amount of brightness.... it will light up bright enough to be able to find what your looking for in the dark... mine also came with a battery case..... so you can put spares and this light into a bugout bag or leave it in a place that you could get to in an emergency

The main thing I don't like about flashlights these days is the weird obsession with high lumens. I get a flashlight so I can see in the dark and do so for extended periods. This product has a low setting, which is quite low, but lasts for 100hrs. It has a medium brightness setting which lasts for 15 hrs and a high brightness which lasts for about an hour. To me that is about as idea as I can get. 15hrs is a lot of night use, 100 is amazing. If you desperately need high brightness for something, you have that option too. Uses one AA battery that was supplied. Its a perfect EDC flashlight for me.

This is a great light to carry in your bag or pocket. It's not super bright bright but gets the job done when you need some light. It's small and takes 1 aa battery. So far the battery is lasting longer than I expected. It's been very handy to have. Would recommend.

This is a very bright and well designed flashlight. It is small but really shines a big space around you. Easy, portable and compact this little flashlight packs a punch. It only requires one AA battery which is amazing considering how heavy duty the flashlight works. Comes with a battery storage case to keep everything handy and ready to go in your drawer, backpack, camping, car or wherever you intend to use it. Versatile and high quality flashlight. Comes in handy, highly recommend