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The smartphone in your pocket probably has a flashlight, and it’s probably pretty good at shining about 3 feet in front of you. But you can get far better illumination, versatility, ergonomics, and durability with the ThruNite Archer 2A V3, a flashlight that has a lot in common with its costlier competitors.
We settled on this model after spending four weeks in the New Hampshire woods with 26 flashlights, draining almost 80 batteries, researching the topic for over 55 hours, reading through countless threads at a number of flashlight enthusiast forums, and speaking to a man who has personally reviewed almost 200 flashlights.
Fenix PD36R Pro Flashlight
The Fenix PD36R Pro is the latest evolution of our favorite overall flashlight on the market. A slightly upgraded model of the also-great PD36R, the PD36R Pro has one big difference that is better, and that is the dual tail switches. The system works like this: One larger tail switch turns the light on and off. The other toggles through the five brightness modes, or, if the light is off, activates the strobe function for self-defense. In the dark, with gloves, or whenever, it’s incredibly easy to manipulate the switches and get the output you want in seconds.
If you prefer the lighting control mounted on the body of the light, the standard PD36R is still available. But I suspect most users will love the upgraded PRO model.
Beyond user experience, the runtime is phenomenal. With the new PD36R PRO in Eco (30 lumens) mode, you can achieve a solid 42 hours of runtime. If runtime is your primary concern, the non-PRO version of this light has a much longer runtime, but lower overall output.
For casual users (occasional camping trips and short bursts of high-output modes), that should amount to months between charges. Our tester has gone more than 2 months without recharging this flashlight with regular usage.
Speaking of modes, the PD36R PRO ranges from a low-end 30 lumens up to a searingly bright 2,800 lumens. At that 2,800-lumen turbo mode, you can easily see objects at 1,247 feet. That’s more than enough for most use cases for recreation in the outdoors. And impressively, the PD36R PRO can maintain that brightness for 3.5 hours.
With an IP68 waterproof rating, it can withstand being underwater up to 6.5 feet for 30 minutes. It’s also dustproof and shock-resistant. One feature I love is how you can easily manipulate between tactical (and strobe-enabling) functions.
Beyond the specs, this is a perfect hand-size flashlight (5.74 inches long, 1.04 inches in diameter) with user-friendly functions. Turn it on and off at the large tail switch, press the smaller tail switch to adjust power, and check the LED near the USB-C charging port when turning the light on for a battery-level indication.
Overall, I think the PD36R PRO is the best flashlight on the market today.
ThruNite Archer 2A V3
The ThruNite Archer 2A V3 has the widest range of brightness settings of any AA-battery-powered light we tested, including a very dim mode that allowed us to read a map (without destroying our night vision) and a bright setting that illuminated trees 500 feet away. Like many of the best flashlights, this light has a two-button interface that lets you easily toggle through the brightness levels one-handed. The blinding strobe mode is useful in an emergency—but the Archer 2A V3’s design makes it easy to avoid activating the strobe during regular use, an advantage over most competitors. The Archer 2A V3 also boasts a number of other features found on more-expensive lights: It doesn’t roll on a flat surface, it stands upright on its rear end, it can survive a 1-meter drop or full immersion in water—try that, smartphones—and it has a memory function as well as a momentary-on feature that turns the light on and off with a half-press of the rear button. Its two-AA-powered beam pattern produces such good overall visibility that, even after trying all the other lights, we reached for this flashlight first when we headed into the woods.
Manker E12
If the ThruNite Archer 2A V3 is not available, we also like the Manker E12. This light is very similar to the Archer 2A V3, down to the two-button interface and the four brightness levels. It also shares the nice wide-angle beam, the momentary-on function, the memory feature, the anti-roll body design, and the full waterproof rating. The only significant difference is that the E12’s lowest setting is brighter than the Archer 2A V3’s, and we really preferred our pick’s ability to go very dim. Plus, the Manker usually costs a few dollars more than our pick.
ThruNite TC15 V3
We have also looked at rechargeable flashlights, and not surprisingly, the ThruNite TC15 V3 USB rechargeable flashlight hits the same balance as the Archer 2A V3, offering high-end features at an entry-level price. The TC15 V3 is just barely bigger than the Archer 2A V3, but at the high setting it’s twice as bright with a similar run time. It has a one-button interface that allows for instant access to both the brightest and dimmest settings. The included USB charging cord plugs directly into the flashlight, unlike on the majority of rechargeable flashlights, where you have to remove the 18650 battery for charging. The TC15 V3 typically costs between $50 and $60, at the lower end of rechargeable lights.
The downsides of the TC15 V3 are universal across rechargeable flashlights. First, once the battery is drained, it takes time to fully charge again (in this case roughly three hours), so bringing a rechargeable flashlight back to life isn’t as quick as simply swapping out AA batteries. Also, if the battery drains during a power outage, you can’t use the light anymore unless you have an independent power source to recharge (or additional 18650 batteries). Rechargeable lights are great and offer a lot of convenience, but for the above reasons, we still prefer AA-battery-powered flashlights for our main recommendation. This latest version of the TC15, the V3 model, has an improved pocket clip and replaces the original TC15 as our also-great pick.