Fenix LD12 Cree XP-G R5 LED Flashlight Aircraft-Grade Aluminum 115 Lumens

If you don't want to read my full review, here's the bottom line up front: After nearly a month of carrying this light every day, I couldn't be more pleased with it's features, construction and function. Highly recommended!I've had an EDC flashlight for a few years now - don't know how I ever got by without one. My most recent EDC was an inexpensive EnergizerEnergizer Tactical Metal Handheld LED Flashlight AA LED; simple, small and effective. When I lost the Energizer I went looking for a replacement. Criteria was a durable LED that was waterproof, had a good run time and was small enough to fit in my pocket. As an added consideration, I wanted a light robust enough to double as a tactical/bedside light (lighting up Grandma with your weapon-mounted light as she gets a glass of water in the middle of the night makes for awkward Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners). After pouring over a ton of reviews, I was about to pull the trigger on a Streamlight when I stumbled on the Fenix LD12. WOW. This light is everything I was looking for and then some.- It's powered by a single AA battery - the ultimate in easy replacement. I won't rehash run time numbers here, as they've already been covered in previous reviews, but I find them more than sufficient.- Bright?? It's hard to believe how much light is put out by this little guy using only a single AA (125 lumens on Turbo). Pointing the light at the ceiling in a darkened 15x20 room on its Turbo setting lit the entire area well enough to easily read small print; even on the lowest power setting the room was lit well enough to be able to move around and function. The strobe function will, literally, stun you. Yes, there are high-end lights out there that are brighter (usually employing one or more CR123's) but repeat after me: Single. AA. Battery. Simply amazing.- Construction is first rate. The aluminum body is smoothly machined and finished with an anti-roll design. The clip is heavy duty and attaches securely to my pocket without any play. The threads on the battery compartment are precision cut and the cap smoothly screws on and off (a blessing for those of us who have fought with poorly mated threads). After three weeks of carrying the LD12 in my pocket daily (accompanied & banged around by a pocket knife and mini leatherman) the finish remains essentially unblemished. One much appreciated aspect of the construction is that the body is threaded on BOTH ends. Ever have a battery leech acid and get stuck in your flashlight? I have, and being unable to get the battery out ruined an otherwise good light. With the ability to open both body ends there's no longer any chance of a leaky battery becoming a permanent fixture in the tube. My only reservation with the construction was with the durability of the gray mode select button, which is located on the body below the lens. It's rubber with a tactile raised design and I wasn't sure how it would stand up to the wear and tear of EDC. To date, my concerns appear to be groundless, as almost a month of carrying it around in my pocked hasn't resulted in any noticeable damage or wear.- Waterproof!- Cost. Let's be honest - this isn't a cheap flashlight. Fifty bucks is fifty bucks, no matter how you slice it. That said however, the LD-12 is cheaper than other flashlights with similar performance and features. Fenix also stands behind their product with a 24-month warranty (extended to 30 months if you register your light on their site). If you would have ever told me I'd buy a light for $50 and count the money well spent, I'd have offered to sell you the Brooklyn Bridge for $50 and made my money back. I was wrong. This light is a great *value*, based on features, performance, and construction.In sum, I like the light so much that I find myself looking for excuses to use my LD-12, and get this stupid grin on my face when I do. I'd buy another LD-12 in an instant if this one were to ever be lost. Even more telling, my wife and daughter may be getting these for Christmas (and I don't trust the well-being of the most precious things in my life to junk). Hmmm, I wonder if I can convince Fenix into making an LD-12 in female pleasing pink, purple or turquoise.....

It's a nice little light until it breaks. I use the LD12 as an EDC, apparently you can't drop them. I have a couple of these and they are both acting up. One is past the lifetime warranty(???), so they want me have mailed to China to have it repaired. I have to send the other one back to somewhere in the US. From now on I am only buying Surefire or Streamlight (both superb customer service). I do have a couple of Olights that haven't failed, maybe try those? No more Fenix.

If you are reading this review, you must be considering this flashlight. But like me, you might be saying to yourself... "Wow, why would I ever pay this much for a simple flashlight??" Well, this is not your ordinary flashlight. This thing is perfection in your pocket. I own 4 Fenix flashlights and a Fenix Headlamp. And compared to other brands of lights I own, I'd rate Fenix 10 stars if I could. I can't imagine being dissatisfied with any of their products.This model of Fenix light has everything you need for daily use as well as incredible reliability and features for an emergency situation. I feel the description on Amazon is somewhat lacking of this light's potential. For more details, check out the features and running times listed on Fenix's website:[...]This thing is constructed amazingly. The quality and craftsmanship is outstanding. The best part about it for me is that it runs on a single AA battery which is cheap and easy to obtain. The second best part about this is that you have 4 levels of brightness (controlled by the grey button on the side). And when you turn the light off, it remembers what brightness you last had it set at. I like knowing that runtime on the lowest setting (3 lumens) is 97 hours! In a very dark area, low might be enough to see what you are doing and conserve battery in an emergency situation. Other runtimes are as follows:Turbo: 115 Lumens (2h 9 min)High: 60 Lumens (4h 51 min)Mid: 27 Lumens (11 hr)Low: 3 Lumens (97 hr)Being able to adjust your light output in an emergency situation could be vital to conserving battery and making your light source last longer. The LED light is very 'white' and bright as opposed to other flashlights that use traditional bulbs (yellowish/tungston dull light). LED lights have a much better life and reliability when compared to older bulb lights. The bonus this light has over others is that it also has a "Strobe" and "SOS" mode. Just hold down the grey button on the side for 2 seconds and it switches to "Flashing modes" for emergency situations. As bright as this thing is, you would have no trouble being spotted from a rescue ship or aircraft. The "Turbo" setting at 115 lumens is blinding to the eye and if pointed up at a white ceiling in a dark room, lights up the entire room as if the regular lights are on. It's waterproof and impact resistant. You can't go wrong with this light. I love the pocket clip and tactical button on the bottom for quick on/off (as opposed to other lights where you have to turn the head to get it to come on). Oh and it also has a rigid edge on the front for breaking glass in an emergency situation. The lanyard that comes with it is even better quality than I've seen on other lights. It fits in the pocket and hand nicely and is about the size/thickness of Black Magic Marker (but slightly shorter).I feel this is the perfect 'save your a** light'. You will want to carry it everyday. If you want something small to carry on your keychain that is the same quality (just less features)... I highly recommend the Fenix E05 (takes 1 AAA battery) and is not much bigger than a AAA battery but is VERY VERY bright at 27 lumens. Hope this review helps.

This light is beautifully made, bright, easy to use and perfect size. So why didn't I give it five stars?Two reasons, both of which I knew about before buying it.1.) The light can't stand on its tail. During a recent power outage I found myself using a different light for an "around the house" light because the other light could tailstand. The ability to place the other light down on end made it very convenient to carry around.2.) The "low" mode isn't low enough. If using the light to tiptoe around the house at night, I would like a lower low.Other than these two quibbles

It's a good flashlight, but for this price range you would expect it to work even in colder temperatures.From the start, this flashlight had problems with some of its internal connections - it won't work unless you screw it extremely tight.But after only a year of moderate use, it has stopped working below 10C / 50F. I'm not sure how you manage to create a flashlight with that problem, but I can't use it during winter / autumn /spring any more.