LTE Tactical Lighting Zoomy Review

The LTE Tactical Lighting Zoomy is a recognizable design. There’s a tail mechanical clicky, and the light runs on both AA and 14500 cells.

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Official Specs and Features

Here’s a link to the LTE Tactical Lighting Zoomy product page.

MSRP

No MSRP except what the price is on amazon.  It’s about $8 for two (but I don’t really recommend paying that much for them!)

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Short Review

The build quality on these is not great, and the tint is bad (that is, blue).  Technically the zoom feature works but the light is not bright and so a regular (non-zoomy) light with more modes would still be a better choice.

Long Review

The Big Table

LTE Tactical Zoomy
Emitter:	Q5
Price in USD at publication time:	$8
Cell:	1×14500
LVP?	?
Switch Type:	Mechanical
On-Board Charging?	No
Claimed Lumens (lm)	300
Claimed Throw (m)	182
Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s)	394lux @ 5.474m = 11806cd
Throw (Calculated) (m)	217.3 (119.4% of claim)^
All my LTE Tactical reviews!

 

LTE Tactical Zoomy
Emitter:	Q5
Price in USD at publication time:	$8
Cell:	1xAA
Runtime
LVP?	?
Switch Type:	Mechanical
On-Board Charging?	No
Claimed Lumens (lm)	300
Claimed Throw (m)	182
Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s)	180lux @ 6.06m = 6610cd
Throw (Calculated) (m)	162.6 (89.3% of claim)^
All my LTE Tactical reviews!

^ Measurement disclaimer: Testing flashlights is my hobby. I use hobbyist-level equipment for testing, including some I made myself. Try not to get buried in the details of manufacturer specifications versus measurements recorded here; A certain amount of difference (say, 10 or 15%) is perfectly reasonable.

What’s Included

• LTE Tactical Zoom flashlight
• Primary AA Alkaline cell

Package and Manual

I received two boxes taped together – the Amazon listing is two lights for the price….

There is no manual.

Build Quality and Disassembly

Unfortunately, the build quality on this light is fairly low.  The light rattles no matter how well you tighten things – the zoom head is always a little loose.  The anodizing is a very cheap kind and looks low quality.

The knurling on the body and head are my favorite kind of knurling, which is a “diamond pattern” but with a flattened head.  The knurling on this light doesn’t give much grip whatsoever, though.

There are plastic parts in the tailcap, and the switch does not look user-serviceable, either.

The emitter appears to be surrounded by a thin aluminum … shelf?  I think this serves as a bit of reflector

Size

94mm (or 101mm) x 26.5mm.

For an AA light, it’s not all that small.  But for a zoomy?  Probably pretty average.

Retention

There’s a screw-on pocket clip.  It’s thin metal but of reasonable quality.  However the clip pants to the “fins” part of the body of the light, which will be bad for pants pockets and the like.  The clip is held in place by what looks to be Torx screws.

No other means of retaining this light is included.

Power

This zoomy light can use either an AA cell (Alkaline or NiMH) or a 14500 Li-ion.  I used it primarily with Eneloop, but I tested it with 14500 as well.  The runtime below was performed with an Eneloop.  I stopped the runtime because I do not know if the light has low voltage protection.  The cell was at 1.2V when I terminated the test.  I’ve had Eneloops go much lower, but at this point the light had stepped down anyway.

One primary AA is included with the package.  It seems to be of low quality.

User Interface and Operation

There’s a single mechanical clicky on the tail end of the light.  The zoom works by sliding the head of the light away from the body.  This action requires two hands but works like all zoomy lights, so it’s acceptable.

The user interface is simple.  Click for High.  Half-press to change the modes.  There are three modes:  High, Low, Strobe.  There are no hidden modes.  The zoom works in any mode, by sliding the head out from the body.

I’ll give points to the light because I really like the orange clicky – It’s very orange and … I like that.  However the clicky does not seem to be serviceable, and there are actual plastic parts in the tailcap.

LED and Beam

LTE says this is a CREE Q5 emitter.  I believe that refers to a Cree XR-E Q5, but I’m not entirely sure.  I’m also not sure that this is a genuine XR-E Q5 if that’s even what it’s supposed to be. I can say that it’s a very small die emitter.  1mm x 1mm (roughly).

The [approximately] spherical lens that is used to focus the light is plastic and can scratch easily.  It is fairly well hidden behind the crenelated bezel, but it will definitely see some wear, and probably not age well at all.

Beamshots

These beamshots always have the following settings:  f8, ISO100, 0.3s shutter, and manual 5000K exposure. These photos are taken at floor level, and the beam hits the ceiling around 9 feet away.

Tint vs BLF-348 Reylight Pineapple

Random Comparisons and Competitive Options

Any other zoomie like this would compare.  These lights are all the same.  Cheap and replaceable, and disappointing.

Conclusion

What I like

• The clicky is like clicking a pen and is rewarding in that way
• Orange boot
• Actually hits its throw number (but that gets an asterisk*)

*The throw, in this case, is a projection of the emitter, which is …. I mean it’s throw but?

What I don’t like

• Zoomie is not useful
• Modes are bad (always starts on high? really?…. “tactical” ok I get it…)
• Parts rattle
• Very low build quality
• Rebrand of all the other zoomies just like it
• Not even good as a host for mods

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Notes

• This light was provided by LTE Tactical for review. I was not paid to write this review.
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