Tampilkan postingan dengan label reviews. Tampilkan semua postingan
Tampilkan postingan dengan label reviews. Tampilkan semua postingan

Sabtu, 06 Februari 2016

Thorfire S50 Ultra bright 2000 Lumen Flashlight Cree XHP-50

Hi everyone I hope you are all keeping snug and warm on these dark Winter nights. 
I have another fabulous product from Thorfire for you today; with these dark nights you need all the light you can get out in the garden or walking the dog. Thorfire have just brought out one of their strongest torches yet with its 2000 Lumen's beam...yes...I did say 2000 Lumen's.

I just cant wait to show you just how bright this is, it lights the garden up.
 I have posted a full video review and night time shoot so you can see this in action. Its made for the military and now sent to me and I'm so very pleased to show you guys what I perseve to be one of the best torches out there. 
Have a look at how bright this bad boy is....

If you're been following my reviews you would have seen Ive reviewed quite a few items for Thorfire.
 See below

 This is one amazing high powered Flashlight. I do have a thing for torches and have been on a mission to bring you guys the most powerful ones.

 I have added a video review too so you can listen or read my ramblings...either way grab a coffee and bikky.

Packaging
It arrived well packaged as does every product from Thorfire. Wrapped in thin foam, the box is sturdy, strong and will stand up to very vigorous delivery drivers.

 The box opens up to show you how secure the torch is inside its solid packaged foam padding.

 Inside the box you get your Thorfire S50 2000 lumens. A bag of spare waterproof seals and 2 spare on/off buttons. Something of a surprise and quite unusual is a spare "glass" torch lens incase you break the one already attached.

 I really love the idea of have the choice to swap out the black on/off button for either one of these green or orange ones. However Im more than happy with my black one.

 You get extra of the waterproof seals which is really impressive.

 Plus an easy to read user guide; which annoyingly does contradict itself in places.



Description
This large heavy duty rugged aluminum alloy casing has been designed and made for the military, law enforcement and outdoor activities; and now little old me. The aircraft aluminum gives exceptional durability and protection against corrosion is designed to be shockproof and IPX8 waterproof...this means;
IPX-8 Protected against water submersion - The equipment is suitable for continual submersion in water under conditions which are identified by the manufacturer.
 It can be submerged down to 2 meters and it has a strobe mode for emergencies.

Features
  • Emitter type; Cree XHP-50.
  • Brightness; 55-2000Lm.
  • Powered by; 2 x rechargeable 18650 batteries.
  • 5 Modes; Low-Mid-High-Turbo-Strobe.
  • IPX8 Waterproof and Shockproof.
  • Rugged Aluminum Alloy build.
  • Weight (excluding batteries); 450g.
  • Maximum runtime of 60 hours in low mode.

 What I love about this flashlight is not just the 2000Ln but the fact they have thought about its cooling. At 2000Lm it will get hot, I have heard of some powerful torches frying eggs on their lenses. This wont get quite that hot because Thorfire have built cooling fins into the head of the torch; the hottest part.

 You can see the fins surrounds the head of the torch and will distribute the heat away from the head. Even after a full 5 hours of being turned on it was cold to the touch.
Very much like the way a heat sync does in computers; but they are usually much bigger see above.

The head of the torch has a warning HOT as it does get quite warm, Ive yet to feel it actually hot, but then Ive not used it on Turbo for long.

Note: In Turbo mode the highest mode it will drop down to high after 3 minutes not only to save power but to prevent it getting too hot.

 The handle is much thinner build allowing it to be held with more comfort especially when you have small hands like me. Most powerful torches are so wide my hand aches holding them for longer periods of time.

 They have even added a ridge an inch from the end to prevent wet hand slippage...at least I think thats whats its for, and it has four protruding feet to stop it from rolling when placed on a flat surface.
 It also has gaps to add a lariat to tie it to a belt or even round your neck or be tied to a rucksack.




Lumen outputs and runtime.
  • Low - 55 Lumens runs for approx 60 hours.
  • Medium - 350 Lumens runs for approx 12 hours.
  • High - 1200 Lumens runs for approx 3 hours 45minutes.
  • Turbo - 2000 Lumens (for only 3 minutes at a time, then drops to High).
  • Strobe 1200 Lumens run for approx 4 hours 30 minutes.
I have to say when we saw these output times we felt it was hard to believe; however after trying them.
It stayed on high mode for 5 hours, flashed 5 times then dropped to low for another 10 minutes.
We are so impressed, this is amazing, but we did thoroughly review the batteries and charger too, so that can make a difference.
 

Use This is the most powerful flashlight we've ever tested out on Gadget Girl and believe me we really do test them out as we live rurally and when its dark its black out here; you cant see your hand infront of your face in some places, so torches are essential for us. Both of us carry penlights around with us as quite often here we have power cuts.

Batteries and charger
As the torch dosent come with batteries I had to read up on other peoples reviews as to the best and non-fake rechargeable Li-ion batteries that would fit.
I have to point out this has no representation on Thorfire this was our choice. Although we did our best to track down the best quality for this flashlight.

Well you would think this would have been easy to find but actually it wasn't. We do review everything here at GGR...even down to getting the right batteries for this torch. If we had chosen cheaper quality this may have effected the effectiveness of this flashlight giving a false result.
So after some reviewing online my other half tracked down the better quality  18650/3.7volt batteries as we needed 2 for this torch and we used 1 in the previous Thorfire torch we reviewed.

 So we decided to get 2 genuine Panasonic NCR18650B Li-ion 3400mAh 3.7 v Protected batteries from a company on Ebay and as they had very good feedback we got a new charger as well.

We were advised by Thorfire to try and stick to Panasonic or Samsung batteries. These were Panasonic, but I would have been happier to see Panasonic written on the actual batteries as there are so many fakes out there but as these came with a genuine guarantee and were hologram-ed on the storage box and I had learn't more about batteries in six hours than I would probably ever need to and it was four in the morning, Bought.     Even so there are stories of some fakes that just set light in your pocket...that would never do.
So we have reviewed the charger and Panasonic batteries to save you guys the hassle too.

Note: when putting in new batteries they are quite tight and have alot of pressure so it could be easy to cross thread...just take your time.


You can see my First impressions in my video.

I love the feel of this as its slender body makes it easy to hold comfortably for hours if you need to; a thicker body makes it harder to carry. Even with the larger head its extremely well balanced in your hand.

I love that you can change the on/off button colour to orange or green but I actually prefer the black that it comes with. The base also has another 2 holes for attaching to a belt or rucksack, it gives you the choice of how to attach it.

Plus the fact you get a spare lens show its really been thought out and worth the money.

Low mode and Turbo.
Oh by the way no lizards were hurt during the making of this review as they are ceramic lizards on my wall not real.  :-)
You can see here that low mode is the average brightness of most torches available. The Turbo mode doesn't really do it justice as it really is SUPER bright it actually lit the room up...see how bright the sofa is. Plus the lizard tail can barely be seen in the 1st image compared to the 2nd.

The Beam
The fact its so bright is because it uses a Cree XHP-50 LED which has a lifespan of 100,000 hours. Cree have a fantastic name in the bulb world and after owning a few Cree torches this has shown to be absolutely true. They are always brighter for much longer.
One of the differences I love with this torch is the fact once clicked on; you simply have to half depress the button to get to the next mode instead of a full click; which in this torch is very firm.

The instructions state that this amazing Flashlight has a beam length of up to 800m which would mean I can shine a torch to light up a rabbit 800m away. This is very probably true as Ive never used a torch with this much brightness. It has a brilliant intensity and a very direct beam with very little fall out.

Intelligent memory circuit-I also love the fact it memorizes the last mode you used; saving seconds in an emergency.
Many cheaper versions dont have this intensity of beam, the average torch is around 50-100 lumen which is quite adequate in most cases.



Opinion
I realize this torch is on the dearer side and if you are just walking the dog, finding your keys or just putting the trash out, a cheaper lower lumen torch will be absolutely fine for you.
We've been using the Thorfire 500 lumen for months and its been the best torch we've ever used previously.
However if you work at night or are in the emergency services, go night hiking or fishing and camping or live rurally a good quality torch is essential and in some cases could mean life or death in finding someone fast.

Its also a huge safety factor as it is with us, we can shine the intense beam across the whole length of the garden without leaving the safety of the cottage porch; this is a massive safety factor. With other weaker torches we almost have to walk across the whole garden to see the very end.

I can absolutely recommend this flashlight, if you are going to have 1 good torch in your home make it one with this power. We now keep this by our backdoor so its easily grab-able if we need it. The fact it lasts on High for over 5 hours is just amazing; plus it was cold to touch afterwards.
If you need more convincing checkout the video to see the length and power of this beam it has to be seen to be believed. It shows clearly a 50 foot treetop but I can say how good it is till I'm blue in the face. But if I can show you, you can actually see what Im raving about.




Buy yours from Amazon Uk


3.7v LiIon LiMn 18650 18500 18350 26650 26500
£23.99



All my thanks goes to Thorfire for kindly sending us this amazing torch to show you all. All my views and opinions are my own.

All my other previous Thorfire reviews




Kamis, 21 Januari 2016

NEW Trendz travel range - Travel PU Leather Wallet and matching Buddy Speaker #Review

 NEW Trendz Hawaiian Travel wallet and matching rechargeable buddy Speaker Review

Have you guys planned your holidays yet for this year? Do you want to be reminded of hot sun and warm seas rather than the cold wind, rain and snow we have at the moment?
Well today Im bringing you some new products from Trendz to show you.


Trendz are a company that are ever evolving with new design ideas for cases and accessories for our tech. So you will always have new modern or elegant storage for your phone or tablet.


If you would rather listen to my rambling than read it; then scroll down to see my video review of both items. Its one of my longer reviews as its 2 products to show you, I felt they needed to be shown together.

Trendz released 2 NEW travel designs this year; Geometrics and the Hawaiian.
Which design do you like?

I immediately fell in love with the bright blues of the Hawaiian print with my love of nature, but both have a real holiday vibe to them.


  Trendz kindly sent me two products from the new Hawaiian Travel range. 
The Travel wallet and the Buddy speaker to show you all.

So lets get started and let me show you the wallet first.


Trendz Travel wallet
I love Trendz packaging as it leans towards being Eco-friendly with enough cardboard sleeving to explain the details.. Open the wallet and its protected with a thin foam page.
First of all its made from a beautifully patterned PU leather. My first impressions was how light it feels in your hand; perfect for traveling when weight is so important, every gram counts eh!

But first lets just take a minute to look at this gorgeous design of Hawaiian flowers against the deep bright blue background; does it take you back to that hot beach, smell of the sea, cocktail in your hand, flower in your hair....okay maybe Blackpool tower and half a doughnut down your cleavage, then.....
As soon as you see the pattern it makes you feel like Summer sun and seas, it genuinely makes you smile.


 The matching blue stitching outside and Pink inside has been finished neatly with no fraying or wobbly sewn bits.

The wallet is held together with a really strong magnet tab in matching blue.
.
 I also need to point out it has plenty of width room too if you have alot of documents inside, it has some real give to it and will go quite fat.

As you see here Im trying to show you how wide I can open it while its still closed. Its also got a padded feel to it which will protect your important documents inside and make it comfortable to hold when waiting in queues etc.


Okie inside...wow I love this baby pink its really girly and fun.
This is a good colour representation too.
So inside you have 12 sections for different jobs...see my video for a live show round.

In the middle is a black elastic pen holder, they really have thought of everything that you may need to grab quickly.

 A coin purse has a concertina pocket to hold a few coins and is closed by a strong metal popper. 

Perfect for change for carparks etc.

 2 secretarial pockets, one for a passport and another for a boarding pass or tickets etc. Both pockets run the full length of the travel wallet.

Above the coin purse you have the word Passport neatly embossed into the "leather".

You can see here how easily my passport fits inside with room to spare.
Its also a tight fit too so nothing is just going to "fall" out.

 Onto the other side you have 6...yes 6 credit card slots; the first 5 from the top fit a credit card perfectly and the last one..my Tescos card slot runs right the way down to the bottom of the wallet allowing you to fit something longer. They really have thought of everything.
 
You have a photo card slot to put a driving license or a family or pet pik.

 One of the most useful sections of the wallet is this zipped section which covers the whole right half of the wallet for anything really important. Inside is a matching pink silky lining; this actually opens ups a few cm's but you cant put anything too thick in here. Its best for documents or receipts.
 The zip itself is a nice size to grip easily, it was very stiff to start with but after using it a few times its loosened off.


 So here it is with some of my stuff inside.

How perfect is this to go inside your boarding bag for flights, it holds everything you need to get at fast, like your boarding passes, tickets, spare coins, passports with even a pen strap.

It also works perfectly for everyday if your someone who travels too and from work, why not have something bright and cheerful for everyday commuting.

I really love this..no seriously I really love this... it keeps your bits together and keeps you organized so your not panicking and stressed if your anything like me. Its eye catching, fun and fashionable at the same time as keeping important documents safe and secure and in one place not loose in your hand bag or worse still your deep shopping bag, how many times are looking for a pen or your ticket or just some loose change for a carpark...Im feeling stressed just talking about it.
Not anymore everyone needs organization to stay sane and believe me this will help and look fab at the same time!

Measures 23cm x 13cm and has a depth of 1-3cm depending on how you fill it.


Now onto the Buddy Speaker, but for a better look at the sound quality do checkout my video below.

The Trendz Buddy Speaker also with the Hawaiian design.

So what better accompaniment to your holiday wallet than to take a tiny matching Buddy speaker with you. No lugging larger speakers which look cool I know; but do you really have room in your suitcase or handbag?
You now can have coordination speaker to your wallet; how pretty is this. 
I already own 2 buddy speakers so I knew already what great sound it has for only 2 inches in diameter.


 Packaging
Looks fab in its plastic transparent box with coordinating rose gold writing even before you get it out the box; great as a gift.

 In the box you get your Buddy speaker with keyring and device connector cable attached. Then inside the mini box you get a charging cable and mini basic instructions. 

This has to be THE smallest user manual Ive ever seen, so cute. It has everything you need, its actually quite thorough and its ALL English! Your probably thinking well how can I see how small it is; well checkout the staple......need I say more lol!

Specifications
Frequency response; 100 hz-20 kHz
Driver size; 36mm.
S/N; 85dB.
Output; 2W RMS@4 ohms.
Cable length is 8.5cm long.
Measuring; 5cm x 4.6cm High and 4.8cm across.


Just look at how beautiful this Hawaiian design is, I know its only a transfer, but its gorgeous, the bright colours and details are just superb.

The speaker holes are at the back, they have used as much space as possible.

 Underneath is a flattened area an inch wide where you have your micro USB charging port, which will connect to your PC or laptop to charge. You also have your on/off switch too.

 Once turned on a white LED will shine through the blue ABS plastic making it glow blue.


Here it is charging from my main PC via the included USB charging cable.
It takes 3 hours to charge but...here we go into nag-mode...always leave it a little longer for the very 1st charge and never be tempted to use it before the recommended charge time as you will never get a full charge out of its battery. I dont know how many times I say this and I do know how tempting it is just to have a little listen but you may limit the life of your battery.

The instructions say...and they are right the blue LED remains on even after its charged so its sorta guess work. All you know is as long as you leave it charging for at least 3 hours you will get a full charge. 

Next you simply plug the 3.5mm cable thats built into the speaker into your headphone socket of your phone and play your music as normal from your collection or itunes, spotify etc.


Checkout my review and sound samples of the wallet and buddy speaker. its always best to see it in real time.

Sound
I'm actually impressed and surprised at the quality of the sound that comes from such a diddy speaker; your not going to get the same sound you get from a £100 speaker...der...obviously! But you will get to hear your favorite vibes wherever you want to hear them, on the beach, at a picnic, traveling or simply inside or out in the garden with your friends or family.
Okay how to explain this...well listen to my video and you will hear the quality from several music samples. The sound has great reach and is quite loud without any interference, I would always want more bass, but the music sounds great. The trebles are high but with no distortion.



Its so damn easy to attach it to your handbag or rucksack and go hiking, its really lightweight and looks super cool, its fun and you will have music anywhere.

Kitsound Buddy speaker even looks great with designer handbags.


 Buddy speakers connected via their own 3.5mm connector jack.

Buddy Speakers
The clever thing with buddy speakers is that they are called "buddy" for a reason. 

Each speaker has its own port and an attached headphone 3.5mm cable, this simply connects into another Buddy speaker socket. You can then connect as many as you like.

Here are my other 2 buddy speakers I own already.

 So simply connect one of the speakers normally to your phone or device (The Hawaiian in the above image), then plug them in one to each other.
 You can have as many connected together as you wish, for more sound...so the instructions say.

Buddy sound
When buddied together you get alot more poke, a higher reach of sound and the fun of some quirky characters sitting on your desk.


Here are just...some...of the different designs and characters you can collect.
Which are your favorites?
Ive fallen in love with this little guy next.
Its so addictive....lol!



 For the dog lovers out there here's the NEW French bulldog and a Pug.

NOTE; You will find when you are playing music with more than 1 buddy speaker connected; the sound can become distorted when just one of them needs their battery charging. As soon as its been charged again the sound returns to normal.



Final Opinion
I'm in love with this gorgeous travel set; us girlies love coordinated products and to have a larger travel wallet that holds all your important papers all in one place, keeps your traveling, stress free. I love having everything organized and at hand for stress-free travel.
How many times have you forgotten your passport or the main holiday tickets etc. Probably because it was loose in the bottom of your large tote bag. Now you get to keep everything together and look damn good doing it, plus you also get to purchase a matching mini speaker to take with you anywhere. Enjoy your own music anywhere in the world.
If you have seen my video you will have seen how good the quality is of these mighty midgets...I was expecting them to be really awful sound. Listen for yourself Ive added some music samples.

They are a great bright and breezy set to collect for the Summer holidays. Checkout the other two products in the same line, so you can be "uber" coordinated while traveling!


Passport cover

Luggage tag back and front.

Trendz have brought out two design ranges, the top four are Geometrics and the bottom are Hawaiian. The only main difference is with Geometrics you can get a battery charger and in the Hawaiian you can get a buddy speaker in the matching designs.



Trendz Passport wallet
Amazon Uk
RRR £14.99

The Buddy Speaker
AmazonUk
RRR £9.99





All my thanks goes to Trendz for kindly sending these items to share with you all. My views and opinions are my own.

Coming NEXT
The Kitsound Dancefloor Speaker
I cant wait to show you this little guy; its amazing!

If you love Kitsound and Trendz brands like I do; checkout the other products Ive reviewed over the last few years.


Trendz Ladybird tablet case review
With both my buddy speakers and Bee USB.

If you loved the Trendz USB Bee in the above photos see my review below.
The Kitsound Swing Radio