Fenix TK35UE 2018 Flashlight Review

The Fenix TK35UE 2018 is an interesting flashlight that uses a Cree XHP70 emitter and has onboard charging for the two 18650 cells. Read on!

Official Specs and Features

Here’s a link to the Fenix TK35UE 2018 Flashlight product page.

Versions

I believe this is the only version. I expect there will be some kit versions available, which will include the Fenix brand cells I have here.

Price

Price has not been announced. Expected to be around $150.

Short Review

The TK35UE is really quite a light. Better-than-rated throw and very good onboard charging with dual switches. This is a nice light! The tint could be better, but such is the nature of many Cree emitters.

Long Review

The Big Table

Fenix TK35 2018
Emitter:	Cree XHP70
Price in USD at publication time:	~$150
Cell:	2×18650
Turbo Runtime
LVP?	Soft
Switch Type:	Dual
On-Board Charging?	Yes
Charge Port Type:	micro-USB
Chargetime
Power off Charge Port with no Cell?	No
Claimed Lumens (lm)	3200
Claimed Throw (m)	300
Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s)	762lux @ 6.249m = 29756cd
Throw (Calculated) (m)	345.0 (115% of claim)^
All my Fenix 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

Fenix TK35UE Flashlight
Nylon pouch
Micro-USB charge cable
Manual
Lanyard
Spare o-ring
18650×2 (depending on your kit)

Package and Manual

Fenix ships this light in a nice cardboard box. Lots of printing, with modes and features on the back. Comprehensive packaging.

A Fenix TK35 2018 Ultimate Edition flashlight box on a wooden surface, showing the flashlight image, key features, and three small sample photos demonstrating its light beam in different environments.

A close-up of a product box side displays several yellow labels with black icons and text showing flashlight settings, including light output, beam distance, and runtime. The background is weathered wood.

The back of a Fenix TK39UE flashlight box displaying technical parameters, specifications, performance charts, and product details against a wooden surface background.

A close-up side view of a rectangular box with images of a flashlight on it; the box has an orange top and is placed on a wooden surface.

The manual is also good. There’s a nice switch diagram and, like the box, a bunch of specs and features. The manual does seem to really want the user to use Fenix brand cells. I don’t believe they’re special in any way, but they are charged in series – something to bear in mind.

Build Quality and Disassembly

This is a very high quality light. The in-hand feel is just great. The anodizing is nice quality, there’s a nice heft…. just feels like a good light.

A black Fenix TK35UE flashlight stands upright on a flat surface, with textured grip and logos visible on the body. The background is blurred and out of focus.

A black, ribbed handheld flashlight is standing upright on a wooden surface, with a blurred outdoor background. The side of the flashlight displays some small white symbols.

A black flashlight stands upright on a wooden surface. The words Global Review are printed vertically on the flashlight. The background is out of focus.

There’s not a lot of heatsinking on the head. Since the cells are side-by-side the body is oblong, and quite comfortable to hold.

A black flashlight labeled Global Review rests on a wooden surface, with sunlight casting shadows across the scene. The flashlight is angled with the lens facing left.

A black Fenix TK09 V2.0 flashlight rests on a wooden surface outdoors, with light reflecting off its metallic lens. The background is blurred.

Since the cells are held in place with a …. cell holder… that of course comes out very easily. The electronics of that are held in with just Philips screws. The head bits are held in by a plastic retaining ring. In fact there’s plastic all the way around the driver, surrounding the [beefy, short] spring. The other terminal isn’t through the threads as with some lights. There are three little springy contacts perfectly designed to contact the cell holder. The anodized threads are thick and square-cut, and perfectly lubed. They’re very smooth (until I dropped the head and got some sand in there, but that’s my own stupid fault.)

Two disassembled flashlight tail caps are placed on a wooden surface, showing their internal components, including springs and contact points, with blurred background.

A close-up photo of a disassembled cylindrical electronic device with three main components: a battery holder with metal contacts in the center, and two end caps with electrical connectors on either side, placed on a wooden surface.

A close-up of the threaded top section of a black metal flashlight body with the words Global R partially visible on the side and a blurred background behind it.

The tail switches are serviceable too. They’re held in place by two hex screws, which, when removed, allow the parts so slide out through the tube.

Size

Officially 164.5mm x 48 mm (head) x 43mm (body), and 286g (without cells).

This is a bit of a large light. The head is big, the reflector is deep, and it’s a side-by-side 18650 light.

A black Fenix TK35UE flashlight is placed horizontally on top of a US two-dollar bill, both resting on a weathered wooden surface.

A close-up, top-down view of the barrel of a black handgun pointed downward at a U.S. one-dollar bill placed on a wooden surface. The image is slightly out of focus around the bill.

Retention

Fenix includes a pouch unlike any I’ve seen before. There’s a half pouch, with a bit of retaining velcro at the top. The light will only fit in the holster one way (bezel up). The velcro is “quick release” with a nice tab for easy access. The holster can connect to the belt in the usual way.

A black flashlight is secured in a black nylon holster with a Velcro strap, resting on a weathered wooden surface. The text zeroair.wordpress.com is visible along the left side of the image.

A black flashlight in a black nylon holster with a hook-and-loop flap, mounted vertically against a weathered wooden background. The text zeroair.wordpress.com is visible along the left side.

The lanyard attaches on the tail of the light, through this hole. There’s a hole on both sides.

There is no pocket clip.

Power

The TK35UE is powered by two 18650 cells. There’s a cell holder which puts the cells in series – the emitter in this light requires this much voltage. As a result the cell tube can’t be used with just one cell; there’s not enough voltage to run the emitter. (This is called “forward voltage” – the Vf of the XHP70 is 5.8 (in the 6V version – there’s also a 12V version).

Below are the cells that Fenix provided for the review. I believe there will be a kit which should include these cells.

The cell tube is the same type plastic as Nitecore F1/F2 chargers (for example). It’s marked with the proper cell direction. The negative terminal has a fairly beefy spring and a ‘protected’ positive terminal which disallows flat-top cells. As a matter of fact, the length of the bay really needs quite a long cell. Definitely button top, but probably also protected cells will fit best. This cell holder is directional. The clicky button on the top of it goes on the side of the rubber boot switch (this is the mechanical clicky.)

A cylindrical plastic battery holder with visible metal contacts and a USB port at the base, standing upright on a wooden surface.

A black cylindrical battery holder standing upright on a surface, with a visible spring at the top and plus and minus polarity symbols inside. The background is blurred.

A close-up of a cylindrical black plastic battery magazine with visible metal contacts, standing upright on a wooden surface. The background is out of focus. Text on the image reads ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM.

A cylindrical battery charger holding two yellow Fenix 3400mAh 18650 batteries is placed vertically on a wooden surface. A USB-C port is visible at the base of the charger.

A yellow Fenix 3500mAh rechargeable battery is inserted into a black cylindrical charger standing upright on a wooden surface. The charger has a visible USB port at the base.

I tested the highest two modes, with the cells Fenix provided. Both are cooled runtimes.

Turbo drops off fairly quickly but it is temperature responsive. As the temperature goes down, the output will go back up. The high mode, on the other hand, is rock solid for nearly 3 hours.

Charging

Even though these cells are in series, the TK35UE has onboard charging. Normally it’s a terrible idea to charge Li-ion cells in series, but it seems Fenix has an appropriate battery management system built-in. Below is a chargetime, from the end of the runtime on High. Strangely the current creeps upward during the CC phase – I don’t have a good explanation for that. Either way it’s a fine graph, and a peak of around 1.7A across the 2 cells is certainly respectable (and from just USB, too.) You’ll note that the “3500mAh” cells aren’t really testing at 3500mAh, which is no real surprise.

Each time the light is turned on, the indicating e-switch will show the battery level, as follows (quoted from the manual):

Green constant on: saturated
Green flashes: sufficient
Red constant on: poor
Red flashes: critical

The light has a low voltage warning in the same way as above – when there’s low voltage (during operation) the e-switch will flash red. Also per the manual: “The flashlight is programmed to step down automatically to a lower brightness level until Eco output is reached. To ensure normal use, the flashlight will not turn off until the battery level runs out or once the battery over-discharging protection activates.” So, either use protected cells, or monitor your cell voltage carefully. This is what I call soft LVP.

User Interface and Operation

There are actually three (3) ways to interact with this light. First there’s a mechanical rubber forward clicky button (seen at left below). Beside this is a metal indicating e-switch. Surrounding the e-switch is a paddle, which has three options.

The user interface is fairly intuitive. Here’s how Fenix introduces the switches:

The big one is the tactical switch.
The small one is the functional switch.
The toggle switch is for mode switching.

The toggle switch allows three modes. Tactical, outdoor, and lockout.

Tactical mode:
Tactical mode is the leftmost (solid circle) on the toggle switch.
The mechanical switch brings the light on to turbo. Soft pressing will achieve momentary turbo; fully pressing will achieve constant turbo. Hold the e-switch for >1s for strobe. Hold the e-switch for another second (while in a strobe) to get to general mode, where only Turbo is available. (In Tactical, only Turbo and Strobe are available [but there are two ways to get to Turbo]).

Outdoor mode:
Outdoor mode is the center option on the toggle switch.
Click the mechanical switch to turn the light on (momentary is available too). The light will come on to mode memory mode (any of the 5 regular modes, not strobes). Modes cycle with the e-switch from L>H. Hold the e-switch >1s for strobes. Click the e-switch once to cycle the strobes, and hold it >1s to return to General modes (where it will return to the previously used mode).

Lockout mode:
Lockout mode is the rightmost option on the toggle.
If the mechanical switch is clicked to the “on” position, the indicating e-switch will give an indication of the battery level.

In either Tactical or Outdoor mode:
Hold the e-switch for momentary strobe. If in strobe by this means, the mechanical switch may be clicked for constant strobe.

Modes

Mode	Mode Claimed Output (lm)	Claimed Runtime	Mode Measured Lux
Turbo	3200	1h30m	64900
High	1000	3h40m	19650
Med	350	10h50m	6940
Low	100	38h40m	2220
Eco	20	152h	350

LED and Beam

A Cree XHP70 is used here. I confirmed with Fenix that this is not the XHP70.2. It’s a big emitter, in a big light. The reflector is orange peel.

The beam has both a lot of spot and a good bit of spill. And it’s really, really bright (duh?)! The reflector is surprisingly deep for this type of light, which accounts for the respectable throw.

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.

A faint, circular, white light appears in the center of a dark background. The words ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM are vertically aligned on the left side of the image.

A flashlight beam creates a circular spot of white light on a dark surface. The background is mostly black, and the text ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM appears vertically on the left side.

A circular beam of white light is projected onto a dark wall, creating a bright center with a soft, fading edge. The watermark “ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM” is visible along the left side.

A bright white circular spotlight shines on a light-colored wall; two ceiling light fixtures are visible in the upper right corner. The text ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM appears vertically on the left.

A bright white flashlight beam is projected onto a plain wall, creating a circular pattern with a lighter center. Two ceiling light fixtures are partially visible in the upper right corner.

Tint vs BLF-348 (KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b version) (affiliate link)

I keep the test flashlight on the left and the BLF-348 reference flashlight on the right.

Conclusion

What I like

Output is great
user interface is versatile
Indicating switch
On-board charging works well and has respectable speed

What I don’t like

Not the most current Cree XHP70.2 emitter
Tint is much too cool
I’d love for the light to be a little smaller

Notes

This light was provided by Fenix for review. I was not paid to write this review.
This content originally appeared at zeroair.org. Please visit there for the best experience!
Use my amazon.com referral link if you’re willing to help support making more reviews like this one!
Please support me on Patreon! I deeply appreciate your support!