XL50 LED Flashlight, Compact and Powerful with Multi-Mode Functionality, Water-Resistant, 3-Cell AAA Battery-Powered – Red

I am currently serving in Afghanistan and decided to buy this light after I saw one of my buddies using. I was amazed by how bright it was, especially being so very small. It was perfect for what I wanted, which was a good small light to keep on me while I worked at night. I have had it a few months now and use it fairly often. It is super bright, even at a distance on the full setting. I tend to always use the dim setting because it is plenty of light and saves on the batteries. The dim setting on this light is brighter than a lot of other regular flashlights I see other guys using. The casing has held up extremely well to the hot dusty environment of Afghanistan for the few months I have had it. It fits almost perfectly into Nite Ize LHS-03 Clip-On Flashlight Holster with Stretch Capability and 8-Position Rotating Clip and stays well on my belt. If I keep the light from pushing all the way into the holster, it protects the end cap from accidentally turning on. The only major flaw that I have encountered is the end cap. It is very easy to accidentally bump it, turning it on without noticing and killing the battery. It will eat through batteries also on the high setting, but I haven't had a need to use the high setting much. I have only changed the batteries once since I have bought it, when the high setting became about as dim as the dim setting normally would be, though I suppose I could have kept using the old batteries a while longer. I would also really like to see Maglite make a tactical attachment set for this light like they do the 2AA Mini Maglite; which includes a clip, hex roll stopper, and colored lenses. Being able to have a red lens quickly attach would be a big plus for those of us in the military. But for general use, this is a top notch light. I will definitely be picking up another one or two when I get back home and probably will be giving some as gifts.

little wider diameter than i imagined. very nice flashlight. would buy again. if you have room for a little longer flashlight, the minimaglite seems much brighter (200 vs. 332).

This is a great little flashlight. I purchased it to keep in my nightstand. I have the Mag 3D cell. Love that too, but it took up a lot of room in the drawer. So I replaced that with the 2AA Maglite, hated the twist on/off of that. I purchased the XL50 and I have found myself using this over the 3D all the time! I cannot believe how bright it is. It is a perfect size for my hands, although i am a smaller guy, it is very light and the rear thumb on/off is GREAT. Way better design than the twist-on on the 2 AA Mag we are all used too. I was originally concerned with the battery life. Using only 3 AAA, I was not sure how it will hold its brightness.I have not had it long enough (less than 2 weeks) to really comment, but I have been playing with it and using it quite a bit and notice no change to brightness. My 3D LED is GREAT battery life. I think it has more to do with this new LED light. Which, btw, I have found that MAG lite is the only manufacturer who has gotten it right. I have a Huskie so-called "LED". the ones with the six LED probes that you always see at the cashier at the hardware store, DO NOT confuse the Maglite LED with those cheap things! Overall, I am very impressed with the little guy. Would and have recommended this to many. If you need a bright compact little light, I don't see any better option. Definitely worth the $30.

I’ve owned 4-5 of these over the years. It’s all the flashlight anyone needs. Too bright at 200 lumen w/o a colored lens filter. All modes are nice for carrying at night. The high is great for powering a colored lens and still being a decent flashlight. That makes reading something, seeing the tire you’re changing, or not blinding your dogs possible. Dogs aren’t bothered by the colored lens BTW POP the lens off and it’s a light cannon. Puts a beam out over 50 yd in an urban setting. Suitable for first responders. Plenty tactical. The low setting is excellent for seeing inside of 10ft. The stobe, Hope I never find out of it works. I presume it does. I have a lanyard for hanging them People fret over AAA batteries. I run rechargeables and pop a new set in at the first sign of weakening. They go fast then they go. They last for many, many hours. Don’t sweat it. Get 3 sets for each light. Only downside is that it’s easy to accidentally turn it on in your pocket. Many tacticool folk find Maglite not as capable to handle a zombie apocalypse. It’s a crap load better than any light I’ve used through the decades. Better than what the military hands out. Get real Made in USA. Had batteries ruin a light. Never had a light fail from Maglite. Probably owned a dozen. What’s not to like.

Small pocket size flashlight, that I can carry with me all the time and it sends out a great beam of light, for it's size. Been carrying the same one for ten years and have not found a better one. Works great in the garage, it's small size allows it to get into small places. Have one in the driver side door pocket, in all my vehicles. Great for women to carry in their purse.

I have both, the black and silver version of the XL50. Since they are both the XL50 version, and I really have not used the silver one much, I will tell you about the black one I have. These lights, have a good brightness. I can light something up to see it with no problem from over 100 feet away.. If you just need to see if something is there, like where trees or people are, you can see that from many hundred's of feet away. Just do not expect to see in great detail at that distance. The beam is a nice, bright white light, and so far, it still works as good as the day I bought it. It also is pretty durable. I have had it out on the sidewalk, sitting in the direct sunlight (don't recommend doing that), for extended lengths of time, in the middle of the summer. I have dropped it many times on to the concrete and blacktop, and so far, it only has some scratches, nicks and dings in the side. The button in the bottom is easy to push and use, and has a very nice feel to it. Even with all the use I have put it though so far, the switch still feels as sturdy as the day I bought it. I like rechargeable batteries, so I am not putting a lot of money into batteries, so I use some NiMh batteries in mine. Personally, I don't think that I noticed any difference in the brightness between the NiMh ones, and the alkaline's. If there is a difference, it is very small, almost un-noticable, unless comparing side to side. But I do not think that there is a difference. This uses 3 AAA batteries, that all sit in a plastic insert, that slides easily in and out of the flashlight, so changing batteries is very easy. It is very comfortable in your hand, no matter your hand size, but is also small enough to fit into your pocket if needed. I have the solitaire, the 2AAA stick type, this one, the XL150 (which is close to being like this one, but a different switch, which in my opinion, the one on the XL150 sucks), and even some 2 AA with the twist top to turn it on. Personally, as long as you don't need any extra settings, this one, the XL50, and the XL150 are equal. But because of the settings on the switch being a pain on the XL150, I like this one better. My opinion, overall, I like this one the best of all my flashlights. As for the cap, or lens assembly, while they do not advertise this one as a torch type of feature, if you need to, you could take the lens assembly off, and set it down, facing upward, and light up a room enough to see around it, to get around, in a situation, like if the power went out.. or say if you went camping, and to light up a tent. It will work like that in an emergency. Also, say you needed to light up a wide area, you could take the lens assembly off, and use it to light up a wide area, since the lens is fixed, and not adjustable, that is what you would have to do. but you would loose you fixed, hundred feet down the road ability to light things up. But great for smaller areas, like in the same room. Like with any flashlight, they all have their limitations. No ability to focus, cant replace the lens, short battery life, not being bright enough, and even times where things are too bright. I would say that this light is a nice balance between all of them. It is bright enough to see down the road, but also, not too bright to use close up. Small enough to put in your pocket, or easily to use in your hands, but not too big that it is hard to carry around. The button is easy to access, and the battery life, you can get many hours of use out of one set of batteries. No where near as long as some D sized flashlights, but hey, I have seen some AA LED ones that only got around 2 hours max, and that is out of a set of AA batteries. So even at the 200 lumens, version, which has a lower run time on a set then the 100 lumen version, still gets almost 7 hours on a set of batteries, on full power. That, I would say is good power management, and they can get that by using good quality parts. add in that this uses a very easy to find size of battery, and the option of using rechargeable's on top of it. Overall, I think that this is a good, well rounded flashlight, that is one of my favorites, because it has the most balanced, well rounded, features. and add in that it is made in the USA, not china, like 98% of the flashlights out there. There really is not too much that I can say bad about it. But like any flashlight, it still has its limitations. But that does not make it any less likable. I would like to point out, this is a comparison between all the types, and brands, USA and china made, ones that I have seen, used, and tried out. I have never tried the XL200 version, so I can not say anything about that one, which is also about the same type and design as this one.

I now own 4 of these flashlights... 3 in gray and 1 in black (the gray ones belong to my mom (2) and my wife (1)). My mom keeps one upstairs in her kitchen and 1 in the basement/cellar where she does her laundry. My wife keeps her gray one on her side of the bed and I have my black XL50 on the dresser near my side of the bed. These lights are amazing for the cost... VERY durable, bright and easy to operate. This light is an OUTSTANDING value for the cost. The only downside I have noticed after 4 years of ownership is that the batteries seem to drain a little fast... of course I use the "high" beam a lot, which I'm sure doesn't help. It's a good thing AAA batteries are not that expensive. My wife bought me a Maglite XL200 a few years ago as a gift... and while it is also a quality flashlight, that one stays in my car for emergencies. The XL200 is a little more complicated to use and while it is brighter than the XL50, honestly, for the money, I prefer the XL50. I also just got a Maglite Mag Tac this year as a Christmas gift and it is also a great light, although double the cost of the XL50! For the money, I don't think there are any small flashlights on the market that can outperform the XL50!! It is a great buy at around $30. I found my black one online about 3 years ago for $23... wish they were still going for that price! I'd probably own 10!!

MAGLITE XL50-S3016 LED Flashlight, Black This is a great flashlight. It is small enough to carry in a pocket, but much much more powerful than the old 2AA cell Maglites with krypton bulbs. I usually steer clear of LED flashlights because I hate the high color temperature (extreme blue cast) of the light they usually produce. This flashlight has a very comfortable color temperature, just a little bluer than most fluorescent lights in an office building. As for power, it has plenty! It is painful to look into, even from 25 feet away. The light is mostly concentrated into about a 10° beam with a larger flood area about 45°. The description says the beam pattern is adjustable, but this is pretty ineffective in actual use. I don't find that I need to adjust as much with this as with the old krypton lamp type flashlights, so it doesn't really matter. One improvement could be made: 1) include a wrist strap (or at least give me a hole to add my own) I haven't had it long enough to run through a set of batteries yet (about 2 hours use to this point) so I can't comment on battery life. The good: - small - powerful light - good color light - decent beam spread The indifferent: - beam focus adjustment The bad: - no wrist strap - won't fit in 2AA minimag holster Gets 5 stars and a recommendation. Update: after having my flashlight for about 4 months I thought it was broken - every time I turned it on, after about 5 seconds it would automatically dim to the 50% level. Turned out that changing the batteries solved the issue. May be that's the low battery indicator? Still love the flashlight and wont trade it for any others.