swoeste's Full Review: Dorcy International 3.85 Watt Luxeon Led Aluminum ...
I recently posted a review about the Dorcy 6-Watt LED flashlight. If you're trying to decide (as I was) if you want the 6-Watt or the 3.85-Watt version, reading both reviews may be useful to you. Simply put, while they're both good flashlights, the Dorcy 3.85-Watt flashlight is not quite what I want.
I bought the Dorcy 3.85-Watt flashlight, in part, to compare it to the 6-Watt version which I already had. Was it almost as bright? If not, was the price difference (and other features) enough to compensate for a dimmer flashlight? In large part, I'd have to say "no".
First, the good features. The Dorcy 3.85-Watt flashlight has a much longer battery life than the 6-Watt version. The 3.85-Watt flashlight will easily give about 3 hours of light fairly close to the starting brightness with a fresh set of batteries. That beats the 6-Watt version by at least an hour. However, as they say, it's 6 of one, half-dozen of the other, or, to be specific, the 3.85-Watt flashlight takes 6 AAA batteries, while the 6-Watt version only takes 3. So? You'll need to buy more batteries for it than the 6-Watt version. And, the 3.85-Watt version is heavier and longer than the 6-Watt version. While the 3.85-Watt flashlight is small, it will not easily (or at all) fit into a small pocket, like your shirt or pants. So, without sounding totally dumb, you'll probably have to carry the 3.85-Watt flashlight around.
Next, another good feature is the screw cap on the rear of the flashlight is easy to put back on; it does not have the slightly "touchy" fit that the screw cap on the 6-Watt version does. That makes changing a set of batteries both easier and faster.
Also, the price of the 3.85-Watt version is much cheaper than Dorcy's 6-Watt LED flashlight; it sells for about $10 less on Amazon.com
Last, but not least, for the good features, the 3.85-Watt flashlight is fairly bright, but significantly less than the 6-Watt flashlight. It does have a beam that is consistently bright from center to edge. However, I would also guess the 3.85-Watt flashlight's beam does not have as great a range as the 6-Watt version.
And for the negative features? Before I start, I'll admit that some of things I see as negatives are at least in part preferences; you may not see them as negatives, but at least I'll give my reasons.
First, the flashlight is not as bright as I'd like it to be, especially for one that uses 6 batteries. I'd be perfectly happy to trade a little battery life for a little more light. Related to the 6 batteries needed, I find loading and unloading the batteries from the holder to be a bit frustrating at times. Why? For some reason, about every half-dozen times or so I replace the exhausted batteries with fresh ones, the flashlight will not work. Yet when I check the batteries, they are all snug in the holder, and their positive and negative poles are all placed correctly. I have to remove all the batteries, then put the same ones back, though in different parts of the holder than where they were before, to make the flashlight work.
The 3.85-Watt version also lacks the flattened portion on the flashlight tube the 6-Watt version has, meaning the 3.85-Watt flashlight is much more likely to roll off a flat surface.
So, while there is nothing really wrong with the Dorcy 3.85-Watt LED flashlight, I'd rather have the 6-Watt version. Maybe you would too.
High power 3.9 Watt LED 80 lumens of light output Lifetime bulb- never replace bulb Projects 100 ft. beam of light Aluminum construction, Weight: 1.35...More at Amazon
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