[candle lamp]

Eagletac has recently released the D25 clicky series which use a tailcap switch to control on-off and change modes. There are totally 5 models with a XM-L U2 emitter for standard feature and other emitter options such as XT-E R5, XP-G S2, XP-G R4(NW), XM-L T6(NW) available. The model for review is a D25C XM-L U2 version.

Manufacturer Specifications from Eagletac's website :

1. Dimensions
• Head Dia. : 0.78 inches (20mm)
• Body Dia. : 0.78 inches (20mm)
• Length : 2.9 inches (75mm)
• Weight : 1 ounce (29grams)
2. LED
• Cool White CREE XM-L U2 LED
3. Battery Type
• 1xCR123A
• Compatible battery size
- Diameter : 16-16.9mm
- Length : 34-34.9mm
4. Operating voltage
• 0.8V - 3.2V
5. Max output
• LED lumen : 397 (750 LED lumen with 16340 li-ion battery.)
• OTF lumen : 277
6. Lens
• Impact resistance waterwhite glass lens
• Anti-reflective(AR) coating on both side
7. Circuit
• A950RC
• Efficiency : up to 90%
• Constant current regulation (non-PWM) for all output modes
• Turbo boost technology
8. Reflector
• Very light orange peel aluminum reflector
9. Material
• HAIII hard anodization aerospace aluminum
10. Waterproof
• IPX-8 standard
11. Output and Runtime
• Four brightness levels
- Led lumen : Turbo(397)/High(260)/Med.(29)/Low(1)
- ANSI FL-1 lumen : Turbo(277)/High(182)/Med.(22)/Low(0.5)
- With moon-mode setting disabled, lowest output will increase by about 6 times, to 4 lumen, and the second lowest output will double, to around 65 lumen
• Runtime
- Runtime : Turbo(0.9)/High(1.6)/Med.(10)/Low(150+) hours
• Seven hidden auxiliary outputs
- Strobe/Strobe(Var)/Flash(Hi)/S.O.S.(Fast)/S.O.S./Becaon/Flash(Lo)
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D25C comes with user manual, warranty card, spare o-ring, mil-spec paracord lanyard, very good quality nylon holster with a flip with a snap button.
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The hard(type III) anodizing is a glossy black and no flaws on my sample. There are identification labels on the head only. All labels (i.e. manufacturer name, logo on one side and mode change mark, model name on the opposite side) on the head are sharp and clear, and very small in bright white against the black background. The diamond-shape knurling is present over most of the battery tube, with a band on the head. This enhance grip and makes the head easier to twist single-handed. The polished stainless steel pocket clip is held on with two M2 hex screws on the one side of the base. It is a very sturdy clip. To remove it, M1.55 hex key is required.
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The light has 2 parts (i.e. head and battery tube).
The stainless steel pocket clip works as a good anti-roll device as well.
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The light has a flat and shallow stainless steel bezel with a very dark gray color. There are two cooling fins for heat dissipation near knurled band on the head. The positive battery contact has a circular raised lip (or bump) which works as a mechanical (or physical) reverse polarity protection. The light uses AR coating lens and the sky blue hue is reflected on it.
The aluminum reflector has a very light orange peel pattern. My first view of it appear as if it's a smooth reflector. It is perfectly polished with no noticeable finishing flaws and well-centered XM-L U2 LED sits at the bottom of the reflector cut.
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The knurling on the battery tube is not too aggressive nor too smooth. It provides a nice grip like head. There is a negative contact spring on the tail end which holds the 16340 battery in place and prevents rattle. The tailcap switch boot has a Eagletac logo stamped into it. It is a reverse clicky. The rubber switch cap is recessed within the tail end. The switch has a good feel to touch and has short travel with moderate tension. There are also two holes and one slot on the tail lip for lanyard attachment. The wall thickness of the inside tube is reasonably thick, but looks thin at the front of the tube.
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The screw threads are trapezoid, and not anodized. So no head lock-out is possible due to the head twisty feature for mode changes. The threads are smooth with no cross-threading or squeaking on my sample.
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The light can tailstand perfectly with lanyard attachment without any problem.
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From left to right, Panasonic CR123A, Fenix E15, Xtar Wk21, Eagletac D25C, Sunwayman M11R, Solarforce L2M.
As you can see the picture, D25C is relatively small size of the lights in this class in spite of a tailcap switch attached.
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It is good size to hold and can be used as an EDC light.
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The CR123A & RCR123A fit in the tube without a lot of free space.
Overall build quality is very good.
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The net weight of the light is 30g. The weight including 1xCR123A and 1xRCR123A are 46g and 48g respectively.
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The D25C comes with a very nice & rigid built nylon holster with a flip with a snap button. It prevents the light from moving or sliding inside the holster.
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User Interface

The light supplies really wide choice of user interfaces. To understand them requires a little time and effort. But it's not so difficult. Let's see it.
Press the tailcap switch until it clicks to turn on the light. (i.e. press and release for on). Press the switch again until it clicks to turn off the light.

There are two output groups (i.e. Group 1 & 2).
With the head tighten, you get group 2. With the head loosened, you get group 1. With the light on, slightly (or half) pressing & releasing the switch will advance you to the next output in each group.

1. Group 1 :
With the head loosened, slightly pressing & releasing the switch cycles the output in the following order.
Low -> Med. -> High -> Low -> Med. -> High -> Strobe I -> Strobe II -> Beacon I -> Beacon II -> SOS I -> SOS II -> Low-Flash -> cycle

The user manual says the following sequence.
Low -> Med. -> High -> Low -> Med. -> High -> Strobe I -> Strobe II -> SOS I -> SOS II -> Beacon -> Low-Flash -> cycle

The Eagletac website describes the following sequence.
Low -> Med. -> High -> Low -> Med. -> High -> Strobe I -> Strobe II -> Flash -> SOS I -> SOS II -> Beacon -> Low-Flash -> cycle

I think the user manual and Eagletac website incorrectly define the output sequence of the group 1.

With the head loosened (i.e. in group 1), you get the programmable features available in two groups such as moonlight output and mode memory.
The moonlight output means you can dim the output levels of the group 1.

The moonlight output [on] is accessible by switching the light on with the head loosened, then perform a sequence of tightening/loosening of the head 3 times.
If you perform the above sequence once again, you can return to the moonlight output [off].
From my test of the moonlight output, the reduction of the brightness between the moonlight output [on] and [off] isn't significantly decreased except the low output. I will explain it later on again.

The mode memory (which enabled the light to turn on at the last used output level) can be enabled or disabled if you want. This is done by performing switching the light on with the head tightened, then perform a sequence of loosening/tightening of the head 3 times.
[In addition dated on 12.06.06], I've checked the mode memory several times. The mode memory of my sample doesn't work on either group 1 & 2. It is available on group 1 (or head-loosen state) only. If I have mode memory turned on, my sample always remembers the last mode I used on group 1, but it doesn't memory the last mode on group 2. [12.06.06]

2. Group 2 :
With the head tighten, slightly pressing & releasing the switch cycles the output in the following order.
Turbo -> Strobe ->cycle
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PWM



The light shows no sign of PWM at turbo, med., low and moonlight low output levels. But I can see slightly flickering at high level, but can't see it visually in practical use. This is detected by waving the light. (I detected the flickering at high with the live view LCD monitor of my digital camera as well.) It's strange there is flickering at high level only, although manufacturer claims constant current regulation for all output levels. I notice that there is no buzzing sound at any levels.
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Runtime



D25C steps down on turbo after around 3~3.5 minutes runtime. This is a common feature on a number of heavily-driven lights to protect from overheating. The runtime for 50% output of turbo & high on 1xCR123A are appr. 54 mins and 94 mins respectively in my test. The runtime at turbo & high is 72 mins & 113 mins respectively.
I didn't test a runtime on 1xRCR123A due to high discharge. (i.e. LED lumen is 750 at turbo with a RCR123A as claims, it means the light will consume currents at least more than 2A.)

Regulation is maintained nicely through turbo & high level of output on 1xCR123A. High is lower than step-down level of turbo by around 16%.
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Moonlight On & Off

As I said earlier, there is not much difference in brightness between the moonlight output [on] and [off] except the low output. I placed the light meter at a test distance 30 cm from the lens of D25C. Results are reported in lux. Measurements were taken 3 mins of turning on the light. Here are the results.




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Beamshot

1. White door beamshot (about 50cm from the white door)
- ISO100, F/3.5, 1/125sec, Auto white balance
- Battery used : Panasonic CR123A


The beam tint on D25C is cool white leaning very slightly towards the color spectrum green hue around the hot spot, but not by much. It seems that the overall beam quality is good.
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2. Indoor beamshot (about 3.5m from the target)
- ISO100, F/2.8, 1/4sec, Auto white balance
- Battery used : Panasonic CR123A


- Turbo
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- High
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- Med.
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- Low
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[Addition of the following beamshot, 12.06.09]
3. Indoor beamshot (about 7m from the target)
- ISO100, F/2.8, 1/2sec, Auto white balance
- Battery used : AW RCR123A, Panasonic CR123A


-Control Shot
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- Turbo (CR123A)
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- Turbo (RCR123A)
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[12.06.09]




* D25C was supplied by Eagletac for review. (Thanks for your support. Christina!)