[carrot]

(this review to be considered for submission to the reviews sub-forum)

Reviewer's note: Special thanks to the great guys at Dorcy for donating this light for review, as well as sponsoring another great CPF event, FCW-6.


(More photos, plus hi-res versions at gearcarrot.com)

Dorcy is not a company you hear very often in the discussions of flashlight enthusiasts. In my opinion, this is a mistake. Dorcy is a company devoted to bringing very good lights at excellent prices to the market, which, while not necessarily appealing to the aficionado, are well-made, thoughtfully designed, and offer good performance and exceptional value.

I received the Dorcy LED Dynamo for review and I was pleasantly surprised by its quality. This is a dynamo light that stands well apart from much of the junk offered on the market. It has three white LEDs focused by a plastic lens and puts out more than sufficient light to navigate in the dark or do other tasks that may require a flashlight and runs long enough on a few minutes of cranking that you can actually get stuff done. A few minutes of cranking provides several times that in runtime, so it is quite effective and not the least bit a joke as many other "human-powered" lights on the market are.



When I first turned on the Dynamo I was quite surprised at how much light it puts out. It will illuminate a 20 x 20 foot area at 40 feet quite sufficiently to make out details and is probably still useful at even longer distances, which I did not test.



Interestingly enough, the lens is designed to emit a little bit of light at the side, making this a good choice for someone looking for a handheld that enhances side visibility. It is actually shaped a good bit like a wide variety of bike lights that are on the market, and vaguely fish-shaped which makes it comfortable to hold and crank. On that note, the crank feels sufficiently sturdy enough that there is no large concern of breaking it so long as you are not especially rough with it.



The Dorcy LED Dynamo also has a second mode where it blinks the three white LEDs and two red LEDs on the side as a sort of signal or beacon mode. It is noticeable from a good distance away and from three out of four sides so it should prove effective should the need to get attention arise.



The instructions on the Dorcy say you should crank it a few minutes every three months, presumably to prevent the internal rechargeable battery from dying, which is a good thing to instruct consumers, but somewhat questionable as many buyers will probably want to chuck it in an emergency kit and promptly forget about its existence until it is convenient to remember its presence.

A huge bonus about this light is that it is supposed to be waterproof and also floating, making this truly a superb emergency kit light. It also has a convenient lanyard attachment point to ensure you do not drop (and subsequently lose your light).

Those who are looking for a crank light to add to their kit or emergency kit would do well to consider the Dorcy LED Dynamo. It's a solid little light, priced fairly (MSRP $14.99) and certainly does the job.

Recommended.