Wuben E7 Flashlight

Wuben continues to make a pile of flashlights, and they're often going on sale. My wife decided to pick up three E7s as practical gifts this Christmas, and I got to peek and play with them a bit. The E7 isn't new by any means, but this is my first chance to look at one, so here goes.

I'll frequently be making comparisons to Wubens' X0 model, as the two lights are the same form-factor and similar in operation; however, the X0 has a few more features but less output.

General Specifications

• 60.6x24x28 (2.38x.94x1.1 inches) (not including the belt clip, with belt clip 60.6x31x28)
• 80g / 2.82oz, IP68 (2 meters / 6 feet underwater for 1 hour)
• Drop resistance is stated at 1.5 (5 feet)
• Turbo mode output is specified to output 1800 lumens, 132 meters / 433 feet of throw, and 4356 candelas of output.

What's in the box??

In the simple packaging, you get the light itself, a 1100mAh Wuben-branded 18350 lithium battery, a 60cm / 2ft A to C charging cable, a simple wrist lanyard, two spare o-rings, and a manual.

The battery is shipped in the flashlight with a small blue plastic insulator to prevent the light from turning on inside the packaging, so you need to open the tailcap and remove the plastic insulator before using the light. I always recommend charging things fully before using them; however, the battery was reasonably well charged out of the box.

Body Style

Like their X0 model, the LEDs on this light fire out from the side. You hold the light up to view ahead of you, but the belt clip and tail magnet make it easy to secure the light and aim it in the intended direction. While you can use it like a normal flashlight, the E7 excels at being clipped onto something. Unlike the X0, the E7 has an actual usable belt clip, which is strong enough to be secure but flexible enough to attach to anything vertical. Note that if you want to use this light on a hat or as a headband, the clip itself will not do that, as the light will be facing directly down (or up); however, Wuben does sell an inexpensive headband that the light can clip into.

Otherwise, the body is rather stylish, with lots of industrial lines and fittings, but is smooth with no sharp edges, which could damage a pocket.

Since I have three different styles of E7 here, I can compare the color and finish. The Black and Army Green versions are very smooth and feel like anodized aluminum with laser-cut markings. The Khaki version, however, has a very slightly rougher texture to it, and while the markings still appear to be laser cut due to the color of the body, the markings blend into the color of the light itself, making it almost look like it has no markings on it at all. I'm not sure, but the Khaki version looks painted, which could make its finish less durable, but at the same time, scratches would likely show up less on the Khaki color, given the very low contrast of the laser markings.

Amazon sells the Army Green model, which I do not see on the main Wuben site, as well as the Khaki and Black models, all with 6500K LEDs. Amazon also carries the 5000K model, which they call "Medium White" in reference to its 5000K LEDs.

The mode button is finished in the same color as the main body, but feels and sounds as if it is hard plastic. The rest of the body is rather thick aluminum, and the flashlight as a whole feels light enough to be an EDC light, yet substantial and beefy enough to take some abuse. Being a square shape, it's not quite as comfortable in a pocket as a typical round flashlight, but I have carried the Wuben X0 EDC for long periods, and it just takes some getting used to.

Modes

This light is pretty easy to use, like most Wuben lights, and gives you the most useful features in the simplest way. To turn the light on, you simply press the button, and it turns on to the last primary light mode you used: Low, Medium, or High. It also has a Turbo, Strobe, and an SOS mode; however, it has no "Moon" or extremely low output mode, which can be handy to get around in the dark without disturbing other people. This light also does not have any custom light output settings like some of their other lights, like the X0, have. Note that in all modes, both LEDs are active.

I'm not sure what method is used to drive the LEDs at lower outputs; however, I can see no flicker, so if it's PWM, it is at a very high refresh rate. I've also seen a few folks say that this has a rather good driver, so in general, you're not going to be disappointed in the light output quality even on Low mode.

Press once to turn the light on to the last mode you used. It will then cycle through the 3 modes (Low, Medium, High) with a long-press (1s) of the button. Turbo and Strobe or SOS modes are never remembered; the light always turns on in Low, Medium, or High with a single press of the button.

• Low (5 lumens, 60 hours of runtime)
• Medium (150 lumens, 4.5 hours of runtime)
• High (400 lumens, 1.3 hours of runtime)

Turbo Mode

Turbo mode is 1800 lumens and is stated to run for 1 minute at this level of output, then it drops to 800 lumens for 1 minute, and after which it will switch back to High. The body of the flashlight gets warm, but not hot. The lens, however, gets extremely hot, extremely fast, and you would not want it against your body in Turbo. The same thing is true for the Wuben X0 on Turbo. In contrast, my OLight Baton 3 on Turbo, the entire head of the light gets hot enough that you would not want to touch it for long.

Turbo mode is accessible with two quick presses when the light is on or off, so it's a nice touch that accessing Turbo mode is done in a consistent way. When you are in Turbo mode, to return to the previous mode, you again use two quick presses.

If you're in Turbo mode and hold the button for 1s, it sets the light back to Low, regardless of what mode (L, M, H) you were in before. Seems odd to me that it doesn't just return to the previous mode, but I could call it a feature, I guess.

Strobe mode

Three quick presses of the button will set the light into strobe mode, whether the light is on or off. Strobe has an interesting feature that utilizes both LEDs to alternate the strobe pattern. For about 2s, it strobes both LEDs at the same time, then for 2s it alternates between the LEDs. This makes the strobing visually different and could draw greater attention than a consistent strobe. Strobe mode is specified to output 1000 lumens.

SOS Mode

While in strobe mode, if you press the button three times, it will enter SOS mode. SOS mode is specified to be 200 lumens.

Lock out

Four quick presses of the button will lock the light out, but this also makes it much slower to use, and I rarely use lock-out on an EDC flashlight, as I want to have it always ready to go when I need it. If it's a secondary light in a backpack, lockout is a good option, however.

When you lock the light out, it flashes the main LEDs three times to indicate that it has locked. If you attempt to turn the light on, it flashes the LED in the button itself 3 times, indicating it is locked. It is unfortunate that they did not make it flash 4 times to remind you that it requires 4 quick presses to unlock.

No amount of pressing or holding on the button will make the light come on when it is locked until you unlock it.

When you unlock the light, it always defaults back to the Low output setting.

Long-press when off

Fortunately, a long press (more than about half a second) from off does not turn the flashlight on. This is a smart feature and will reduce accidental activations in the pocket or in a pack. I have seen lights in the past that a long button press will turn the light on, either after a short period of continued pressing or after releasing.

Beam pattern

With this light having two LEDs, you would almost expect to see two hotspots in the beam pattern; however, they seem to be very slightly angled, or their TIR lens is designed to make them converge into a large, floody blob. By floody, I define this as having a large hotspot, but also having a large amount of the light distributed as a flood. A large portion of the light output is directed in an almost 180-degree flood pattern in front of the light, both horizontally and vertically, effectively lighting everything in front of the face of the light.

This makes this light excellent for seeing the ground in front of you with excellent definition; however, it is not ideal for illuminating something at a distance, even with 1800 lumens. Wuben claims 132 meters / 433 feet of throw; however, you'll want a different light if you really need to throw a tight beam of light a long distance.

In my experience, a floody light is ideal for an EDC. Too much throw and you don't have enough light around the beam for seeing around you, and too much flood eliminates all throw of light, limiting how far you can see. This light does hit the sweet spot for how much it throws as well as how much it illuminates around you.

LED Color

The light color output seems to be extremely consistent across all modes, unlike some flashlights that have color tints to them, which look worse in Low and sometimes tinted differently in higher modes. This model is offered in both 5000K (cool white, but slightly warm) and 6500K (cold white) varieties, so make sure you pick the right light for your application. The 5000K model will improve color rendition, while the 6500K model will have more punch and throw farther. I can not measure the light color directly, but to my eye, the 6500K models I have here are all a very clean, pure white color with no obvious tint at any output level.

I do not have the 5000K model to compare against; however, that model is specified to also be using Osram P9s and otherwise has the same features and light output.

Battery indicator

When you turn the light on, an LED illuminates inside the button that indicates the battery state of charge. A solid blue light indicates that the battery is 90% or higher, blinking blue is between 40% and 90%, solid red is between 15% and 40%, and blinking red is below 15%.

High and Turbo modes are not available when the light is blinking red. As with all lithium chemistry batteries, I suggest that you recharge anytime you see it indicating red to prolong the lifetime of the battery.

Battery

An 18350 battery is supplied with the light, but swapping it out is as simple as removing the tail cap. Always use protected cells, and be sure to insert the battery with the positive side in.

Note that while this is rather close in size to a CR123/RC123, it is not, but a 123 battery will work in the light. It is not likely recommended, but in a pinch, this seems to work fine. If you need to do this, I recommend you limit your light output modes and know that battery life will be significantly less, as 123 cells have about half the capacity of an 18350.

I have seen some posts that using an unprotected battery and inserting it backwards can damage both the battery and the flashlight. I highly recommend you stick with protected 18350 cells except in an emergency.

Tail cap

The tail cap threads on securely and smoothly, has an o-ring for weather sealing, and has a rather strong magnet which allows you to position the light on a metal surface at any angle. Fit and finish are nice on the tail cap; however, it does not seem to align with the main body of the flashlight. I have three examples here, and none of them align perfectly. On one of them, the lanyard attachment point is about 10 degrees clockwise from the clip, the second one is 30 degrees clockwise, and the third is 300 degrees clockwise. It does not affect the functionality of the light, but could bother folks who are detail-oriented.

The tail cap does have a hole for a lanyard, but it is exceptionally small and rather difficult to attach the included lanyard.

Belt clip

The belt clip feels strong, yet flexible enough to attach to a belt, pocket, shirt, backpack strap, or anything you need. It's also low profile and smooth enough not to want to remove it, but in case you do, it can be removed with a T6 Torx bit. It secures the rubber dust cap for the USB port; however, I would recommend leaving it in place, as it only adds 5mm to the depth of the light and is rather practical to have.

Water resistance

The light is specified to be IP68, or 2m / 6ft underwater for up to one hour. This effectively means you can use this light in any situation or weather, and even to a limited amount underwater; however, it would not be recommended to use this kind of flashlight for even shallow swimming or diving.

It is not specified if the rubber cap that fits into the charging connector is part of the water resistance or is primarily designed to protect the connector, but I would recommend keeping it closed when not charging the light.

Accessories

The light comes with a simple wrist lanyard and belt clip, but Wuben also offers extension tubes in matching colors to convert the light into an 18650 battery cell light, a headband that the light can clip into to make it a headlamp, and, a motion sensor to control the light by motioning with your hand. I do not have any of these accessories, but I may get the headband in the future and will update this review if I do.

I do want to mention, however, that I've seen a lot of negative reviews of the motion sensor saying that it drains the battery within weeks when not in use because the sensor itself stays active 100% of the time. If you use the sensor, I would recommend unplugging it from the flashlight when not in use.

Beam Patterns

Here are a few shots of the E7 beam pattern. As always, it's difficult to demonstrate in images what a beam pattern looks like in real life, but you can get an idea of how wide the flood is. You do not get a great sense of the hot spot in some of the images, but hopefully enough to get a sense of what it will look like in real life.

Beam patterns on desk

Beam pattern outdoors

Coming soon. TK

Wuben X0 Comparison shots

Conclusion

Like the Wuben X0, the E7 puts out a ton of usable light, has a very usable belt clip and magnetic tail cap, but is still somewhat awkward to use as a normal flashlight. My experience with Wuben lights I own is that they do have exceptional standby time, but I do worry that if not recharged occasionally when my wife or kid needs to use the light, the, battery will be drained. But it is compact enough to disappear into a purse or a glove box, and I have no doubt about the build quality that this light will work for many years to come.

This is neither a paid nor sponsored review. I normally don't mention this for every post, but since I have done sponsored Wuben reviews in the past, I wanted to make it clear that this one is not. My wife got three of these cheaply to give out as Christmas presents, and let me get my hands on them first.