Home StreamLight The Fenix UC35 USB Rechargeable EDC Flashlight: The Full Nick Shabazz Review

The Fenix UC35 USB Rechargeable EDC Flashlight: The Full Nick Shabazz Review

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This light is the best EDC Flashlight I’ve found. It’s ridiculously bright, it’s got a decent interface, it’s small, and it’s rechargeable with a boring old Micro-USB cable.

Put simply, it’s a very bright little gem.

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20 COMMENTS

  1. My UC35 was stolen 🙁 someday I'll buy another. My first high quality light and I loved it. I used it at my job as a vehicle inspector and just the third brightness setting lit up an engine bay beautifully. And for those who like their EDC gear to be helpful in self defense scenarios, the "turbo" mode is more than bright enough to blind someone enough to buy you some time to do whatever you need to do to fight or get away. I believe that this is a great light for just about anyone.

  2. Being perhaps as geeky about lights as you are about knives, I can find some ugly here:

    * The beam itself. It doesn't look that way on your camera, but the UC35 typically has a bluish cool white tint with pretty poor color rendering. Great color rendering is hard to come by on major-brand lights, but neutral white tint, which looks closer to sunlight is getting reasonably common.
    * The low mode isn't very low. You'd be surprised at how nice it is to have a mode under a lumen in absolute darkness.
    * There's no way to go directly to low or high from off; you can only start in the last-used mode.
    * There's a timed stepdown on high. Most newer lights of this caliber use a temperature sensor and only reduce output if they're overheating.

    That's not to say the UC35 is a bad light. It's pretty good, and absolutely awesome in comparison to what you'll find in most retail stores. It's not as good, however as a Thrunite Neutron 2C or TC12. Using an external charger opens up more options, like the very pocketable Zebralight SC63w using the same 18650 battery.

    Also, your TK15 can use the UC35's 18650 battery, or any other 18650 battery. It doesn't have internal charging of course, but you can still cut your operating costs by using that as the main battery. Most 18650s also have more capacity than two CR123s.

  3. Two reasons I dislike strike bezels: they tear up bags and pockets if they rub against the fabric and good luck defending yourself in court if you must use it as a kubotan. You obviously got that light to hurt somebody with it because it has a sharp, pointy end.

    I'd rather avoid the drama.

  4. I have had this light since it was first released. The build quality of the UC35 is amazing even for the already high standards of Fenix. Waterproof even with the micro USB flap open is awesome! It will charge any 18650 you can stuff into it. The heat sinking on the UC35 is better than on the PD35 due to all the extra metal behind the head where the micro USB port is. Look closely and note how Fenix designed in sloping thick cooling fins around the micro USB portion of the light. Usual nice crisp Fenix tail switch. Usual dead on manufacturer output specs. The ugly-its pretty long for the PD35 class of lights and the GITD side switch needs to be charged to glow…otherwise it is actually a stone cold classic

  5. Nick, Greatly enjoy your videos on knives and flashlights. I bought the UC35 after seeing your video. Like the light except for one thing: the 960 level output seems to be only nominally brighter than the 480 level after using the light for not a long period. I still haven't had the red light come on to indicate a low battery. I'm disappointed that I've got a flashlight that's basically a 500 lumen light on the top level. Has this been your experience?

  6. I do the poor-man's version of this: a single-cell 18650 power bank topped with an LED flashlight head, both from eBay for a total cost of CAD $3. Add your own 18650 cell (salvaged from a laptop battery pack for free). Not only do you have a pretty able flashlight, but you can charge your cell phone if you need to.
    http://www.ebay.ca/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2047675.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.TRS0&_nkw=Super+Bright+Mini+USB+LED+Spotlight+Torch+Flashlight&_sacat=0
    http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Portable-USB-Mobile-Power-Bank-Charger-Pack-Box-Battery-Case-for-1-x-18650-/262236902865?var=&hash=item3d0e8995d1:m:m4y1d234qBzalcb22In1lDg

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