5.11 Tactical & IVUS Energy Innovations Partner To Introduce Battery-Free Flashlight
5.11 Tactical, a specialist in law enforcement technologies, introduced the Light for Life UC3.400 flashlight. Unlike other flashlights, which use traditional batteries, the Light for Life uses new ultracapacitor technology developed by IVUS Energy Innovations, the makers of Flashpoint™ Power Technology. The companies state that the new flashlight will revolutionize the portable lighting category. The UC3.400 is said to provide the longest uptime and to have the fastest recharge on the market.
In only 90 seconds, the UC3.400 Flashlight will go from dead flat to a full charge. This quick recharge allows the light to always be ready. In just 90 seconds, the Light for Life UC3.400 will be fully charged and ready to produce another 120 minutes of light. Whereas most flashlights begin to lose strength after they are initially turned on, the Light for Life last for 60 minutes at 90 lumens, cycling down to 25 lumens for 30 minutes and finally 15 lumens for 30 minutes.
Unlike traditional rechargeable battery systems that develop memory or degrade (holding less and less charge after each use) and have a life expectancy of 500 – 1000 charge/discharge cycles, the Flashpoint Power Technology system is rated for 50,000 charge/discharge cycles with virtually no degradation. Through 50,000 cycles, company testing shows that the Flashpoint system will still retain 96% of its peak capacity. Powered by 3 LEDs rated for more than 50,000 hours (that’s 40 hours a week, for more than 24 years) means that there is nothing to replace.
The Light for Life is currently priced at about $20 to $40 above the industry standard flashlight for law enforcement, which runs on rechargeable nickel cadmium batteries and need to be replaced every year and a half. The replacement costs $20 to $80 each. While the standard flashlight and the Light for Life both run for approximately two hours, the standard flashlight takes about eight hours to recharge, while the Light for Life takes only 90 seconds.
The 11 1/2 inch Light For Life is priced at $169.00.
