Unbiased technical review on SLX 800t

[Nocturnal Lights]

Here's an unbiased review from Brian Draper of Adventures in Underwater Florida.

180 LUMEN

(Note that the title of the page is wrong - it's the SLX 800t 800 lumen dive light)

Here's the official product page on our MFG website: Dive Lights


You can also find some reviews on other lights through their home page under "gear reviews"

Brian approached us wanting to do a review of the light and we agreed to do the review under the condition that the reviews are completely unbiased and that they're not going to get to keep the products.

Here are some background information about this review:

I wanted to let you know that I've completed my reviews; though I have a little more to post. On Saturday, I took the lights and three other divers out to a wreck called the Empire Mica. The wreck is located 27 miles off shore in 105 feet of water. Each diver had a chance to see how the lights preformed. We had around 60-70 foot visibility, with no current. The SLX800T and 800i lights did an impressive job of restoring the colors lost at depth. It shined some serious light into a few rooms of the wreck putting the Goliath Grouper on their toes (figuratively speaking) and spooking the other fish lurking in the dark. The lights were our favorites. I'll update the reviews with information about the saltwater performance of each light.

Brian Draper - Producer / Host
Adventures in Underwater Florida
Adventures in Underwater Florida

Hope this helps anyone who is looking for a bright, durable, reliable, and compact dive light.

 

[Packhorse]

It says 800 lumen, but how long does that 800 lumen last? 1 minute? 10 minutes? The entire burn time?

Also is this estimated produced Lumen or is it actual measured lumen output?

 

[Hatul]

It says 800 lumen, but how long does that 800 lumen last? 1 minute? 10 minutes? The entire burn time?

Also is this estimated produced Lumen or is it actual measured lumen output?

Can I ask you if you get more light from two 1watt LEDs or from one 2 watt LED?

I believe with incandescent bulb it's more efficient to use a single bulb than two.

Adam

 

[Packhorse]

Can I ask you if you get more light from two 1watt LEDs or from one 2 watt LED?

I believe with incandescent bulb it's more efficient to use a single bulb than two.

Adam

LEDs lose efficiency when driven harder. So if the LED was the same driven at 1 watt it would be more efficient than driven at 2 watt.

I believe incan's and HIDs are the opposite and become more efficient when driven harder.

 

[Byte Me]

Just to avoid any confusion - the review is by Brian Draper, not Brian Treinen. I'm Brian Treinen and am not affiliated with underwaterfla.com and haven't seen the light (as it were) yet. I had simply inquired about the light in an email to Nocturnal.

Here's an unbiased review from Brian Treinen of Adventures in Underwater Florida.

180 LUMEN

(Note that the title of the page is wrong - it's the SLX 800t 800 lumen dive light)

Here's the official product page on our MFG website: Dive Lights


You can also find some reviews on other lights through their home page under "gear reviews"

Brian approached us wanting to do a review of the light and we agreed to do the review under the condition that the reviews are completely unbiased and that they're not going to get to keep the products.

Here are some background information about this review:



Hope this helps anyone who is looking for a bright, durable, reliable, and compact dive light.

 

[Nocturnal Lights]

Hi Brian,

Sorry about the typo, I was trying to reply to you and get this post up at the same time.

The lumen output is estimated and it's a good estimate given by the voltage, current, and the MFG rating of the bulbs. Total lumen output is measured from the source of the bulb so it is generally very difficult to get the exact measure, on top of that the total output varies with the quality and the design of the reflectors so if you use a reflector that is specifically designed for the bulb (like we do) you'll get a much better quality light.

Generally LEDs are more powerful than halogens. Well, at least the ones that we use. There's quite a lot of misinformation out there in terms of how bright a light actually is. Some claims that 10w HIDs are as bright as a 50w halogen... this number is questionable because 10w HIDs are generally about 400-450 lumens while halogens are generally around 14-20 lumens per watt. LEDs have come a long way since they're introduced and they can EASILY produce 50+ lumens per watt given that they're designed to be a high-output LED instead of those clustered LEDs.

Let me know if you guys have any additional questions. I'll be happy to help out

 

[Packhorse]

So what LEDs are you using that produce 266 lumen each? And what current are you driving them at?
Also you avoided the question about how long your light will put out the "claimed" 800 lumen.

 

[Nocturnal Lights]

Hi Packhorse,

After discussing this with our engineers and business partners we have decided that some of this information is considered trade secret and it would be unwise for us to post it openly in a public forum. We will be happy to answer any additional questions that you might have.

 

[Hatul]

Hi Packhorse,

After discussing this with our engineers and business partners we have decided that some of this information is considered trade secret and it would be unwise for us to post it openly in a public forum. We will be happy to answer any additional questions that you might have.

I can see how the LED info could be a trade secret, but the question about length of time the light put out the rated 800 lumen, is part of performance info one wants when shopping for a light. If this information is withheld the presumption is that it's not very long, and the rated output is meaningless.

Adam

 

[Nocturnal Lights]

Hi Adam,

The output of the light is not constant and it depends on the characteristics of the batteries. Some batteries will perform better than others. A rule of thumb is that you'll notice a more significant drop in output after about 2 hours on a set of regular NiMH batteries whereas the decrease in output is more consistent with a set of Alkaline AAs. We designed it w/o a resistor which essentially keeps the light output constant because its' less efficient and you will essentially need to switch batteries every single time because you never know when it's going to be out of power. The lumen rating is similar to horsepower on a car and is always rated at the peak output. I can tell you that the initial reaction from most of our customers is they're plesantly surprised at how bright the lights are, and we have received no complaints about any drop in the light output.