sofirn SP33 V3 Super Bright Flashlight 3500 High Lumens, USB C Rechargeable Flashlight with Powerful LED, for Camping Hiking Walking

My newest addition to the Sofirn family is the SP33v3. I've got the v1, and the new niceties of the v3 had me curious, so of course I had to get one. :DThe light comes in a colorful orange and black, but otherwise nondescript, retail box. It has the Sofirn logo and visuals, and a sticker on the back gives the product name. Inside is a formed clear plastic tray housing the light and all goodies, as well as a multilingual product manual insert. Included are a glassine envelope with lanyard and extra O-rings, the usb-C charging cable, and adapter sleeve to be able to use an 18650 cell in a pinch. The version I got (kit) comes with a nice 5000mAH 26650 cell in Sofirn livery. I haven't checked/tested the cell in an analysing charger yet, but all Sofirn cells I got to date have met or exceeded the rated capacity, so I have no doubt this one also clocks in at least 5000mAH.The SP33 is a single 26650 light which is a bit thicker than typical 18650 lights. The difference is that 18650 cells are 18mm in diameter, whereas 26650 cells are 26mm in diameter, which sounds like a big difference but not really. The SP33 is a meaty light with good heft to it, but fits *very* comfortably in the hand. It's heavier than most 18650 lights, and while I wouldn't everyday-carry one in a pants pocket, it certainly would be doable in a jacket pocket, or kept as an around-the-house light. In fact, the diameter and placement of the sideswitch gives it near-perfect "hand-feel". Anyone who's got a WK30 or similar light knows this quite well.The SP33 uses a 3V version of the Cree XHP50.2 and a FET driver. That means that output is unregulated and drops proportionately as the cell voltage drops, but potentially allows more output in "turbo" with a fully-charged cell. Me personally, I prefer regulated output (as in the v1 and probably the v2), even if maximum output isn't as high. If you keep the cell fully charged and need/use "turbo" levels often, you'll like the v3 better. I believe that's 3500lm for the v3 vs 2500lm for the v1/v2, so the choice is yours.The beam from the '50.2 is pretty smooth, but still exhibits the "Cree rainbow", ie, white hotspot, yellow corona, bluer spill. It's not too bad, though, and doesn't have any bullseyes or other artifacts. White-wall hunting, it's noticeable, but in real life, not really. Brightness in a light this size is quite impressive. Use ceiling-bounce and hit turbo, and it's as bright or brighter than flicking on the room lights. Rated 3500lm? I believe it. :DThe UI isn't a "standard" one like Narsim or Andouille, but for simple operations it's close. I went right to ramping vs stepped, because it's just a naturally wider range of output, and you dial in the brightness you want. In stepped mode, the jump is from 1lm on moonlight to 150lm on low. If you want only, say, 10-20lm, then 1lm would be way too low, and 150lm way too high. So ramping lets you get the perfect amount of light you want/need.A quick rundown of the UI in ramping mode is that it's simple click-on and click-off. Doubleclick gets you to turbo, tripleclick to strobe, and quadclick will switch between ramping/stepped if on, else locked-out if off.In stepped mode, you click on, then hold the button to cycle between low/medium/high. Press'n'hold from off for moonlight, doubleclick for turbo.In ramped mode, you can *directly* run the full gamut from moonlight to turbo via ramping. Clicking on, the light often eats a press'n'hold, so if the light doesn't brighten/dim when you do it, just let go and press'n'hold again and it will. I haven't found if it's a timing issue (eg, having to wait 3sec or whatever) or some other reason, but just keep that in mind.The SP33 comes with a variety of goodies. As above, there's a lanyard, extra O-rings, usb-C charging cable, and 18650 adapter sleeve. The manual recommends only 26650s and 21700s, but 18650s can be used in a pinch. Just don't (you read that right: *don't*) use protected cells whose protection circuits can cut out if you crank it up to turbo. The light has built-in protection, so protected cells are unnecessary.Fit and finish on the light is great. Flawless ano, no dings anywhere, not even a hint of dust behind the front glass, etc. A nice stainless-steel bezel crowns the front of the light. Diamond-cut knurling is grippy without "bite". The '50.2 is perfectly centered in the reflector. The button, Sofirn name + model, and the bacon-in-a-triangle symbol are all aligned, all nice attention to detail.Directly opposite the switch is the charging port covered with the usual rubber flap. It's nice and thick, not flimsy at all, and seems to seal well with a nice firm press. The switch light flashes red while charging, turns blue when finished. Simple!The light tailstands quite nicely, and the recess at the end would fit a nice beefy 1" magnet in case you'd want it to stick to metal surfaces.All in all, wow! :D Great light, built-in charging, hella bright as well, and while I'd sacrifice some brightness to get full regulation, lumen-hounds will certainly appreciate the extra 1000lm. Add to that full ramping from moonlight all the way to turbo, and you got a great all-around light for house, car, *anywhere*. Color me impressed. :D

The original SP33 was a great flashlight but Sofirn continues to improve their models. Much has been changed with version 3. That includes the body, reflector, UI, output, charging system, and compatible batteries.I have a good number of Sofirn lights. I’ve never received a faulty one and have never had one fail. All are well-built with flawless machining and anodizing, well-cut square threads, and a solid feel. The SP33V3 is no exception.The online description is misleading. Features are missing. Light levels are incorrect as of this writing. Hopefully, Sofirn will have that corrected as you read this. However, the manual is excellent and I’m rating the light, not that description. I’ll give the correct the light level data and discuss features not covered. I will not dwell on information correctly covered online. You can get it there.The light has 5 light levels , not 4, and are different than listed online. The levels, lumens and runtimes are: (1) Moonlight/1/31 days (2) Low/150/26 hr. 36 min. (3) Med/450/9 hr. 21 min. (4 )High/1600/2 hr. 21 min. (5) Turbo/3500/ 1 hr. 53 min. It does have strobe. It has step down thermal protection. Note: Time in step down is counted until output falls below 10% of rated output. That’s why Turbo has such a surprisingly long runtime.I really like the UI. The light has memory…it will remember the last setting used. The light turns off and on with a single click. While on, hold the switch down and it steps up from low to high and then repeats. The higher quality Sofirn lights, such as the SP33V3, have a lower setting mode and Turbo. For the lower setting (moonlight)… from off, hold the button down and it will access it. Double click from either off or on and you have Turbo. For both levels a single click reverts to the previous setting. The light also has a ramp mode. 4 very rapid clicks while the light is on and you change modes between ramp and step. Hold the button down in ramp mode and you can select any light level you want…from 1 to 3500 lumens. To change the direction of the ramp, simply release the button and hold down again. 3 quick clicks gives strobe.It comes with an adapter for 18650 batteries. Flashaholics, me included, will likely have a good collection of 18650s…so you’ll already have spare batteries.I expected that version 3 would use the SP33 body for the upgrade. Not so. It has a new bezel which is longer in length…and thinner in cross section making for a slightly larger diameter reflector. The front cooking fins have been moved forward allowing a broader area for the switch…making it easier to find. The cooling fins are also deeper for improved cooling. The charging port is directly opposite the switch. This, again, makes the switch easier to locate by feel. The body is also a couple of millimeters shorter in length and a few grams lighter in weight but that is of little consequence.This light has some heft to it…it’s about twice as heavy as most tube lights and 50% larger in diameter. In the hand, it’s a comfortable slip-free carry with its well textured grip. It’s not a light to carry in your pocket. It lends itself to hand carry, backpack carry, or use at a fixed base such as in a camp or a home. Sofirn apparently shares that opinion as they do not offer a belt clip or holster. However, I have found that, although a bit bulky in carry, it will fit in the XTAR holster for 6 to 8 inch lights.The version 3 has a shade over 900 ft. of throw…that’s an increase of 190 feet over the original SP33. The XP50.2 is a large LED. With the SP33V3 reflector diameter and design, it results in a large amount of flood. It truly will light up your entire backyard…and then some…even ifs a big back yard.. The hotspot is relatively large but the massive output on turbo still yields plenty of throw. Both SP33 versions indicate a color temperature of 6000-6500k. However, my light is noticeably more of a neutral than the cool beam of my old SP33.I have a high quality lithium battery charger so never felt the need to have USB charging. However, after purchasing the Sofirn SC31, I began to appreciate the advantages. While traveling, I always carry a USB cable and power supply for my smart phone. To no longer have the need to carry a dedicated charger or extra batteries for my light is a major plus.I have only one nitpick and that’s the 1 lumen moonlight setting. For relatively close in work, it’s near useless and the next highest setting at 150 lumens is too bright. I would much prefer a setting in the range of 5 to 15 lumens. Granted, the moonlight does help preserve night vision but 5 lumens does a pretty good job as well. However, with ramp mode, you can still find a level that works so it’s far from a major issue.The “Wow” factor definitely deserves a mention. 3500 lumens is nearly 3 times the output of a standard automotive high beam headlight. It’s truly impressive!The SP33V3 is a major upgrade with many added features. It has a huge output and the increase in throw over the old SP33 is readily apparent. It costs a bit more, but, even without the 1000 lumen boost, I would still consider the upgrade to be a worthy investment. It’s a winner!

First impression was poor. But this light isn’t bad at all for the price. 4 months into owning this light and only problem really is the rubber charger cover won’t stay in so it’s no longer water proof/resistant. And always have to try to keep it out of the dirt and snow and all that. But other than that this light is still very bright has wide flood. Just wish it had a zoom feature but it does throw pretty far. Great light for the price if your looking for a decent cheap light that’s pretty bright. If your looking for something better for around the $100 and up range I would highly suggest getting a fenix brand light. Any of the 1,000+ lumen lights will blow you away! Take my word for it I am a flashlight fanatic and I am very picky. Fenix will always be my favorite brand for lights and you’ll see why if you go and buy one. AND fenix has great customer service and fast response. 👍👍