Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight Review

Nitecore’s MH12 V2 flashlight is available and incorporates at least one new feature that should be welcome! Read on for testing and thoughts!

Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight Specs and Features

Here’s a link to the Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight product page.

Versions

There is just one version of this model. Of course, this is V2, so there’s a previous generation of the MH12, and there is quite an array of lights in that series.

Price and Coupon

Nitecore Store has these for $79.95 (referral link right there). It’s probably the best place to get these right now!

Short Review

This is a fine light with the included upgrades – 21700 and USB-C charging. It’s very long though, which is something to consider.

Long Review

The Big Table

Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight
Emitter:	Cree XP-L2
Price in USD at publication time:	$79.95
Cell:	1×21700
Turbo Runtime	High Runtime
LVP?	Yes
Switch Type:	Both
Quiescent Current (A):	?
On-Board Charging?	Yes
Charge Port Type:	USB-C
Chargetime
Power off Charge Port with no Cell?	?
Claimed Lumens (lm)	1200
Measured Lumens (at 30s)	925 (77.1% of claim)^
Candela per Lumen	9.7
Claimed Throw (m)	202
Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s)	385lux @ 5.54m = 11816cd
Throw (Calculated) (m)	217.4 (107.6% of claim)^
All my Nitecore 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

Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight
Nitecore 5000mAh NL2150 21700 cell
Charge cable (USB to USB-C)
Cell adapter – 21700 to 18650
Pocket clip
Lanyard
Spare o-ring
Spare rubber switch cover
Belt mount
Manual and papers

Package and Manual

The image shows the packaging of a Nitecore MH12 v2 flashlight, featuring 1200 lumens, USB-C charging, and a 5000mAh rechargeable battery. The box also mentions a 5-year warranty and highlights next generation technology.

The back of a Nitecore MH12 V2 flashlight box is shown. The packaging lists features, technical specifications, a product image, company information, website, and a QR code, all on a wooden surface.

Build Quality and Disassembly

A black Nitecore MH12 flashlight stands upright on a wooden surface with a blurred wooden fence background. The flashlight has a textured grip and visible labeling on the body.

A black, cylindrical flashlight stands upright on a wooden surface with a blurred wooden fence in the background. The flashlight features a textured grip and a switch on the top.

A black tactical flashlight stands upright on a wooden surface outdoors. The flashlight features a textured grip, side button, and warning symbol near the base. The background is blurred.

A black, cylindrical flashlight with a textured grip stands upright on a wooden surface, with a blurred, brownish background. The flashlight features a side button and a slightly raised tailcap switch.

Build quality is good. Pretty standard Nitecore fare here. The main/first thing you’ll probably notice here is that this light is long. Maybe it’s to be expected and it’d certainly be ok in the belt loop, but this isn’t a light you’re going to pocket.

The knurling is good. Not overly aggressive, but sufficient.

My charge port seemed a little bit off center but this did not affect functionality at all.

The tailcap has a big thick spring. Note here that the switch is held in place with an aluminum retaining ring – so it should be easy to swap out the switch cover if you need to do so.

The head end also has a spring.

Only the tailcap is removable. The threads here are small but square-cut and anodized. They’re good threads – no issues here!

The bezel is crenelated, so light escapes during head stands. I was unable to remove this bezel, though. Same for the head as a whole – it doesn’t come off the cell tube.

Size and Comps

Officially 158mm long, 25.4mm in head and tube diameter, and 27.2mm in tail diameter. The weight is 84.5g.

A black flashlight lies horizontally on top of a two-dollar bill, both placed on a weathered wooden surface outdoors.

A black flashlight is placed vertically on a wooden surface next to a two-dollar bill laid flat, showing the relative size of the flashlight compared to the bill.

A close-up, top-down view of a black cylindrical object placed vertically on top of a blurred U.S. one dollar bill on a wooden surface. The text “ZEROAIR.ORG” is visible along the left side.

A black flashlight is placed horizontally on top of a two-dollar bill, which is lying on a weathered wooden surface.

A person wearing an orange wristband holds a black flashlight in their left hand outdoors, with a blurred green background.

A person wearing an orange wristwatch holds a black flashlight in their right hand against a blurred outdoor background. The flashlight has visible text and details on its body.

A person wearing an orange wristband holds a black flashlight in their right hand with a grassy background visible.

A person with a light skin tone wearing an orange wristwatch holds a black flashlight in their right hand against a blurred green and brown outdoor background.

A small red flashlight and a larger black flashlight are standing upright side by side on a wooden surface with a blurred wooden fence in the background.

Two flashlights are shown lying side by side on a wooden surface, viewed from the front. The left flashlight has three LED bulbs, while the right flashlight has a single central LED bulb.

Retention and Carry

Likely the main means for carry of the MH12 V2 will be this belt clip. It’s very … official – it has a clear intended purpose and it works well for that. The belt loop has an adjustment point, for good secure carry.

I confirmed with official photos that the light goes into the holster bezel down (since I’ve gotten this wrong in the past). This way the light can still be used.

A close-up side view of a black Nitecore flashlight holster with a clip, placed on a weathered wooden surface. The background is blurred.

A close-up side view of a black rectangular electronic device, possibly a battery or charger, placed on a wooden surface with a blurred background.

A small black plastic clip with an open, U-shaped design is resting on a wooden surface. The background is blurred and the word ZEROAIR.ORG is faintly visible on the left side.

Close-up view of a black plastic or metal clip lying on its side on a wooden surface, with the background softly blurred. The text “ZEROAIR.ORG” is faintly visible on the left side of the image.

The next option is the pocket clip. It’s a steel friction fit clip and has a few placement positions. They’re all practically in the center of the light though, so the difference is minimal.

The deepest carry option is the one seen below. The light is so long though, that this is still a well-balanced carry.

A close-up of a black, cylindrical flashlight standing upright, featuring a textured grip, a pocket clip, and a button on top, with a blurred background.

A close-up of a black textured flashlight standing upright on a blurred background, showing its metal clip and top button.

The clip also has a couple of holes that allow for lanyard placement.

Another option for lanyard attachment is on the tailcap, through a dedicated hole. This is the more secure location for the lanyard.

Power and Runtime

The MH12 V2 is powered by a single 21700 cell. The right cell is included. It’s a button top 5000mAh 21700 and has Nitecore branding.

It’s not the typical Nitecore hexagonal button though. Neither good nor bad… The anode has Nitecore’s name.

A yellow cylindrical battery lies on its side on a weathered wooden surface, with the positive terminal facing the camera. The battery label is partially visible.

A yellow cylindrical battery labeled NITECORE lies on its side on a weathered wooden surface. The image focuses on the batterys metal end, with the label and background blurred.

Also included as an option is this 21700 to 18650 adapter.

The cell goes into the light in the usual way – positive terminal toward the head.

Here are a couple of runtimes. Note that no “Turbo” mode is listed – “High” is the highest option. One possibility for this reading a bit low (77% of claim) is that the bezel is crenelated and some of the light was escaping out of the system and not being captured by the testing apparatus.

On the bench power, low voltage was indicated with a fast switch flash at 2.9V, and the light was completely (and electrically) off at 2.7V. In runtimes, the switch seemed to blink slowly at first, then fast before shutting off. I didn’t see that on bench power though, so I’m not sure what voltage the slow blink happens.

Charging

The light also has built-in charging, by way of a USB-C port in the head. It’s covered by a press-in rubber boot. The fit here is quite secure.

A black flashlight lying on its side on a wooden surface, showing a close-up of the body with a USB port covered by a rubber flap and certification markings.

A close-up view of a black flashlight lying on a wooden surface, showing its USB charging port with the rubber cover open and CE markings visible next to the port.

As stated above, the port in there is just a bit off-center, but the function was just fine.

Nitecore includes a cable – USB to USB-C. Note that it’s not USB-C to USB-C…

A coiled black USB-C cable secured with a black and yellow Nitecore-branded strap rests on a weathered wooden surface.

A coiled black charging cable with a USB-A connector and a USB-C connector resting on a wooden surface. The focus is on the ends of the cable.

I performed two charge tests but below you’ll see only one. My excel lacks the 1000000gb of ram needed to graph two of the lines you’ll see below.

I can’t really explain why the charge drops out so much like this. It’s not so bad, because the 5000mAh cell charges in 4.5 hours. But it’d probably be moderately faster if this wasn’t the case. The light will charge USB-C to USB-C but it doesn’t seem to be PD. It does seem moderately faster though.

While charging, the indicating switch blinks. When the charge is complete, the switch is steady blue.

Modes and Currents

Mode	Mode Claimed Output (lm)	Claimed Runtime	Measured Lumens	Tailcap Amps
High	1200	3h45m	925	2.95
Mid	300	8h	310	0.54
Low	55	46h	56	0.10
Ultralow	1	1500h	~	~

Pulse Width Modulation

Mode order – low to high – but there’s no PWM. This is most likely “sawtooth” or something like that. Not noticeable.

Oscilloscope screen displaying a mostly flat yellow waveform near the zero line, grid background, and measurement settings below showing 0.1V per division vertically and 2ms per division horizontally.

Oscilloscope screen showing a yellow rectangular waveform signal, with voltage set to 1V per division and a time base of 2ms per division. The display shows grid lines and measurement indicators.

A digital oscilloscope screen displays a yellow waveform signal centered on the grid. The settings show 2V per division vertically and 2ms per division horizontally. The status reads Waiting in the top right corner.

Oscilloscope screen showing a mostly flat yellow waveform with minor noise, set to 5V per division vertically and 2ms per division horizontally. The status bar shows HOLD and Waiting.

Here’s a shorter timescale, for a better look at the sawteeth.

Oscilloscope screen showing a mostly flat yellow waveform near the zero line, with settings including 10mV per division, 50 microseconds per division, and a vertical offset of -1mV. The status reads “HOLD” and “Waiting.”

Oscilloscope screen displaying a yellow waveform with regular peaks and troughs on a grid. The settings show 0.2V DC, 50 microseconds per division, and automatic mode enabled.

A digital oscilloscope screen displays a periodic yellow waveform with peaks and valleys. The horizontal axis shows 50 microseconds per division; the vertical axis shows 2 volts per division.

A digital oscilloscope screen displays a mostly flat yellow waveform near the center, with minimal noise. The settings show 5V per division, 50 microseconds per division, and a DC coupling. The screen reads HOLD and Waiting.

Here you can see a “baseline” – a chart with almost no light hitting the sensor.

Then there’s the Ultrafire WF-602C flashlight, which has some of the worst PWM I’ve seen. It’s so bad that I used a post about it to explain PWM! Here are multiple timescales (10ms, 5ms, 2ms, 1ms, 0.5ms, 0.2ms) to make comparing this “worst” PWM light to the test light easier. That post also explains why I didn’t test the WF-602C at the usual 50us scale.

User Interface and Operation

There are two switches on the MH12 V2. The first is a mechanical tail switch. The cover has a Nitecore “N.”

The second is an indicating e-switch on the head. It’s exactly opposite the charge port.

There are two mode groups. Daily (default), and Tactical. Here’s a user interface table for Daily!

State	Action	Result
Off	Click Tail Switch (TS)	On (Mode Memory^)
Off	Hold TS	Momentary Memory
Off	Click Side Switch (SS)	No action
On	Click TS	Off
On	Click SS	Mode Advance (Daily: Low toward High) (Tactical: High toward Low)
Off	Holt SS and Click TS and continue holding SS for ~5s	Mode group change (indicated by fast blinking switch) Upon release, the light will turn on.
On	Hold SS	Daily: Strobe then Beacon then SOS (then back to Strobe) Tactical: Strobe (only – no other modes in this group)
Any Strobe	Click SS	Return to previous steady output
Off	Hold SS and Click TS – release both	Battery indication (Blinks ones digit, then pauses, then blinks tenths digit). Upon release, the light will turn on.

^ Four main modes plus strobe can be memorized in Daily. In Tactical, only High and Strobe can be memorized.

LED and Beam

In the MH12 V2 is a Cree XP-L2 V2. The light utilizes a reflector. The depth of the reflector accounts for some of the light’s size, too – it’s a pretty deep reflector. This provides a good hotspot but allows spill as well.

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 completely black image with the text ZEROAIR.ORG written vertically on the left side. There is no distinguishable subject or details visible.

A dim, circular white light is centered against a dark black background, gradually fading outward. The text ZEROAIR.ORG appears vertically on the left side.

A circular white light is centered against a black background, creating a gradient halo effect. The text ZEROAIR.ORG appears vertically along the left side of the image.

A bright, circular beam of white light is projected onto a plain wall, creating a gradient from white at the center to gray at the edges. The text “ZEROAIR.ORG” is visible along the left side.

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

Test light on left, as usual. Two modes this time.

A white flashlight beam and a smaller green beam are projected onto a dark wall. The text ZEROAIR.ORG is faintly visible along the left side of the image.

Two circular flashlight beams, one bright white and one dimmer, are projected onto a dark door. The website text ZEROAIR.ORG appears vertically on the left side of the image.

I compare everything to the Killzone 219b BLF-348 because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!

Conclusion on the Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight

What I like

Good build quality
Nice complete package
Uses USB-C for charging
Fairly good use of the indicating switch

What I don’t like

No USB-C output
Light is very long

Notes

This light was provided by Nitecore for review. I was not paid to write this review.
This content originally appeared at zeroair.org. Please visit there for the best experience!
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Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight Review

Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight Review

Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight Specs and Features

Versions

Price and Coupon

Short Review

Long Review

The Big Table

What’s Included

Package and Manual

Build Quality and Disassembly

Size and Comps

Retention and Carry

Power and Runtime

Charging

Modes and Currents

Pulse Width Modulation

User Interface and Operation

LED and Beam

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

Conclusion on the Nitecore MH12 V2 Flashlight

What I like

What I don’t like

Notes

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