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Light comes packed in an attractive and flashy box in reflective silver. A small plastic window on the side shows the light, and everything is held in place by a plastic tray inside the box.
Body:The LD01 has a polished stainless steel, black and olive finish throughout, however it's not a mirror finish as shown in the manufacturers official product pictures. There are some minor marks on the surface finish which seems like a step down compared to the regular anodized finish of other aluminum Fenix lights. The plus side to this is that scratches on the finish won't be as obvious. The threads on the head and battery tube mate together very well. They're well machined and do not grind or cross-thread, there should be no problem switching modes via head twists single-handedly. An o-ring sits just behind the threads on the battery tube for moisture seal as well. There is a spring at the bottom of the battery tube, this means that the battery will not rattle when the head of the LD01 is loosened in the off position. Externally the battery tube has a hex shape cross section with six flat faces. These flat faces do well in providing grip with such a small light. Right at the rear end of the battery tube are two lanyard holes. The LD01 is also able to tail stand without problems.
Bezel/Head: The LD01 has a smooth bezel, a rubber o-ring sits between the bezel and lens which provides a moisture seal. The lens used in the LD01 is made of toughened AR coated glass, as with all Fenix lights. The LD01 uses a smooth aluminum reflector which is tiny which keeps the tubular form factor of an AAA light. The finish on the reflector is well done, nice polished and smooth. The LED sitting at the bottom of the reflector is slightly off-center as can be seen from the image to the right. The entire head of the LD01 is made of two pieces of stainless steel adhered together. The exterior of the head is pretty simple with only a band of knurling present. This helps with grip and useful in a twist activated light such as this.
Output: The LD01 has 3 output modes.
The following output tests were done with a Rayovac
Alkaline AAA cell.
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Level
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Lumens
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Lux
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Runtime hrs. (advertised)
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LED Med
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27
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290
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3.5
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LED Low
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10
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107
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8.5
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LED High
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80
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861
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1.0
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All throw readings are in Lux
at one meter. The numbers in parenthesis are for comparison
in the Comparison
Charts.
The small reflector does an amazing job of producing a focused from considering it comes in such a small form factor. The hot spot has a slightly darker center region. There's a soft corona just outside the hotspot, which itself is surrounded by a slightly darker ring. The corona is slightly lopsided due to the off-center reflector.The beam's color temperature on my sample is a very nice neutral white, leaning slightly towards the cool side when running brighter levels on a 10440 cell.
The LD01 is able to function on a 3.7V 10440 li-ion cell while still maintaining it's different output levels. Output on High is incredibly bright when running on a 10440 cell. This also means that you have to be careful of over-heating due to the small size of the LD01, heat will build up pretty fast. Runtime performance on an AAA cell is good in terms of both runtime and regulation.
Fenix advertises the LD01 as being able to provide a visually consistent output without any PWM effects. During my tests however, there was visually noticeably PWM effect on both Medium and Low brightness levels. Fenix advertises the LD01 to last up to 8.5 hours on Low, though I doubt it can achieve this even on a lithium AAA cell.
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Battery Type
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Low
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Medium
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High
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10440 320mAh LC |
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|
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AAA 800mAh Eneloop |
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Runtime Plot: All of the runtime data is courtesy
of, and used with permission from, Roger H. (a.k.a.
Chevrofreak on CPF). Thanks, Roger, for allowing the
use of your work (it saved me a huge amount of time
and effort, for sure)! He completed runtimes with L92
lithium cells, 900mAh rechargeables and regular alkaline
cells for each of the three output levels.
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Time
to 50% Starting Ouput
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Battery
Type
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Medium
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Low
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High
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| 10440 320mAh LC |
48 min
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1
hr 57 min
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0
hr 10 min
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| AAA 800mAh Eneloop |
2
hr 02 min
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3 hr 50 min
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55 min
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All
data © Roger H. (Chevrofreak) - used with
permission
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Switch: The head of the light is
the switch. Tighten for on, loosen for off. To access
the different modes, turn the light off and quickly
back on again within 1.5 seconds. If it remains off
for 2 seconds or more it will turn on in the first mode
(medium).
Seals / Water Resistance: The light is protected
from the environment by an O-ring and a sealed bezel.
Fenix advertises the light as "waterproof"
with no specific depth rating. I would call it "dunkable"
but not "diveable". I would recommend lubricating
the O-ring with a teflon based lubricant. This may be
found in many hardware stores (and Radio Shack) in a
precision applicator and is often labeled as "Super
Lube". I find it works extremely well.
If it gets wet inside, just disassemble as much a possible
without tools and let it dry before using again.
Ergonomics: Nothing special to report here,
except that it is very small and easy to carry in the
pocket or on a keychain.
Batteries: For batteries, this light is approved
by the manufacturer for use with AAA alkaline, rechargeable
NiMH and AAA lithium L92 cells. All others are at your
own risk. The input voltage for the Fenix is 0.8V to
3.3V only.
To change out the battery: unscrew the head, drop out
the old cell, place in new cell observing proper polarity.
Reattach the head and you're ready to go.
Accessories: Several accessories are included
with the light. Inside the box you will find a spare
O-ring, key ring and a pocket clip.
What I Liked: Waterproof, Tough/impact
resistant, Bright, Easy battery change, Multiple output
modes, Output modes are 50% brighter (or more) than
earlier models with similar runtimes, Lightweight, Stands
up
What I Didn't Like: Battery life
a little short with alkalines, much better with NiMH
and lithium AAA.
Picky Little Things: None
Conclusions: The Fenix LD01 is a
superb little pocket light. With the addition of the
Cree LED, greater light output has been realized relative
to previous models, without decreasing runtime. NiMH
or Lithium are the way to go to power this light, but
alkaline AAA will work just fine as a less-expensive
option.
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China