Cyansky H3 V2 Flashlight Review
The Cyansky H3 V2 flashlight is an updated H3 that still offers white, red, and green output and runs on one 21700 cell. Read on!
Note From The Editor
Somewhere along the way, after this post was initially published on 7/4/2023, it got totally deleted from the site. I’m not sure how or why that happened, but it happened multiple times over the course of a few years. I’ve rewritten it with some effort, but note that this isn’t really a new post, nor is there any new data herein. So if you see this post on the republish date, I hope you still enjoy it! (I still have 3 or so more posts like this that I will repost on slow days!)
Official Specs and Features
Here’s a link to the Cyansky H3 V2 flashlight product page.
Versions
There’s just one version of the Cyansky H3 V2 flashlight, but of course, there’s a previous generation, too. I tested the Cyansky H3 flashlight a couple of years ago.
Price
The Cyansky H3 V2 looks to be listed for $99.99. That price includes the cell shown in this post. I can’t find the H3 V2 on cyanskystore.com, so I’ll link to another store that sometimes sends lights: FlashlightGo.com.
Short Review
The Cyansky H3 V2 has a very interesting implementation of red and green filters. I love that I am not required to carry around lens covers, and still have access to red and green (as well as the default white). The interface is nice, and the build quality is good.
Long Review
The Big Table
| Cyansky H3 V2 Flashlight | |
|---|---|
| Emitter: | Luminus SFT-40-W |
| Price in USD at publication time: | $99.99 at flashlightgo.com |
| Cell: | 1×21700 |
| Turbo Runtime Graph | High Runtime Graph |
| LVP? | Yes |
| Switch Type: | Both |
| Quiescent Current (mA): | – |
| On-Board Charging? | Yes |
| Charge Port Type: | USB-C (on cell) |
| Charge Graph | |
| Power off Charge Port | – |
| Claimed Lumens (lm) | 1600 |
| Measured Lumens (at 30s) | 1368 (85.5% of claim)^ |
| Candela per Lumen | 59.11 |
| Claimed Throw (m) | 575 |
| Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s) | 2700lux @ 5.939m = 95234cd |
| Throw (Calculated) (m) | 617.2 (107.3% of claim)^ |
| Claimed CCT | – |
| Measured CCT Range (K) | 6600-8000 Kelvin |
| Item provided for review by: | Cyansky |
| All my Cyansky reviews! | |
^ Measurement disclaimer: I am an amateur flashlight reviewer. I don’t have $10,000 or even $1,000 worth of testing equipment. I test output and such in PVC tubes!! Please consider claims within 10% of what I measure to be perfectly reasonable (accurate, even).
What’s Included
- Cyansky H3 V2 Multi-color Hunting flashlight
- Cyansky 5000mAh 21700 (with USB-C Charging)
- Lanyard
- Nylon carry pouch
- Spare tailswitch cover
- Spare o-rings (2)
- Charge cable (USB to USB-C)
- Manual and some paperwork
Package and Manual
Build Quality and Disassembly
It’s very interesting how the red and green output is achieved. There’s a very small disk just below the reflector and above the emitter that can be rotated by a collar just under the head. This rotation is easy and smooth and has detents.
The bezel has a shape that allows light out when headstanding. I am not sure if this is stainless or not, and I was unable to remove it by hand.
The tailcap has a minimal (but adequate) grip for removal.
Threads on the tailcap are very thick and beefy. They’re anodized, square-cut, and moderately long. The spring in the tailcap is also very beefy. In my review copy, the double spring seems to be twisted and doesn’t look pretty but does function just fine.
The head end also has a spring.
Size and Comps
Size:41.4 x 25.4 x 171 mm
Weight: 160g (excluding battery)
If the flashlight will headstand, I’ll show it here (usually the third photo). If the flashlight will tailstand, I’ll also show that (usually in the fourth photo).
Here’s the test light with the venerable Convoy S2+. Mine’s a custom “baked” edition Nichia 219b triple. A very nice 18650 light.
Also above on the left is a new feature light!! Laulima Metal Craft sent this titanium Todai for some size comparison photos like the ones above. Laulima has bunch of incredible items. I’ve tested one (the Laulima Metal Craft Hoku) (the official site for Hoku is here) that was a Friend Fund Friday review. I was impressed enough by that Hoku that I bought a Laulima Metal Craft Diamond Slim (also in tumbled aluminum) (review is upcoming!) These lights by Laulima have impeccable build quality and not only that, they’re quite configurable. There are some (great, actually) default configurations, but Joshua Dawson (of Laulima Metal Craft) is open to ideas and emitter options and the like. I haven’t reviewed this Todai, but I have to say, it feels absolutely fantastic and I love it thus far. (Notably, I love how warm and eggy those emitters look through the TIR.)
Retention and Carry
The primary means for carrying the Cyansky H3V2 is the included belt sheath. It’s not a “pouch” in the sense that it covers the whole light – the sheath doesn’t cover nearly the whole light. But it works for what it is.
The H3 V2 will fit in the sheath in only one direction and can be carried only bezel-up. Otherwise, it’ll fall out of the sheath.
Also included is a lanyard. It’s a very simple lanyard, which attaches through two holes in the tailcap.
The holes on just one side do mean that tailstanding is possible, but the rubber switch cover on the mechanical switch protrudes just a little too far for this to work!
There is no pocket clip.
Power and Runtime
The Cyansky H3 V2 is powered by a single lithium-ion cell. Cyansky includes an appropriate cell – a 5000mAh 21700, the BL2150U.
As far as usage goes, this is a standard button top 21700. It has some additional features, which I’ll cover below. This is the same cell that’s used in the other Cyansky 21700 cell lights. My flat top 21700’s don’t work in the H3 V2!
The cell fits into the H3 in the usual way – positive terminal toward the head.
Here are a couple of runtimes. The output drifts down from the initial high of around 1416 lumens to the stepdown at 1300 lumens. Output after that is very flat.
Medium is very flat and stays at around 135 lumens for hours and hours.
While the light is running, the indicating e-switch is lit. It blinks red as a warning when the cell voltage is low – around 3V.
Charging
As stated, the cell has some other features too. There’s built-in USB-C charging, by way of a USB-C port on the positive terminal end.
Another feature is a little indicating LED near the positive terminal of the 21700. When charging, this indicator is red. When charging is complete, the indicator is green. Otherwise, the indicator is not on at all.
An appropriate cable is included – USB to USB-C.
Charging proceeds at a fairly slow 1.5A or so, which is well under 0.5C for this 5000mAh cell. The time required is around 3.5 hours, and the terminal voltage seems to be consistently 4.19V, a very good termination voltage.
Modes and Currents
The amperage is just repeated for all the output colors since the light changes only with a filter.
| Mode | Mode Claimed Output (lm) | Claimed Runtime | Measured Lumens | Tailcap Amps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turbo | 1600 | 2h | 1368 | 6.60 |
| High | 800 | 4h | 710 | 2.07 |
| Med | 150 | 16h | 135 | 0.29 |
| Low | 30 | 66h | 27.5 | 0.05 |
| Eco | 2 | 400h | 2.23 | [low] |
I am unable to measure lumens on these other colors, so I have no estimate here.
Pulse Width Modulation
No mode utilizes pulse width modulation.
Click here to 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
Two switches are used for control of the Cyansky H3 V2, just like in the original version. First is the mechanical tail clicky. It’s a forward clicky, which allows momentary actuation. This switch also serves as a mechanical lockout to prevent any parasitic drain on the cell.
The switch cover is big but the switch itself is normal-sized. It’s not terribly thick, so you can feel the actual switch underneath. The clicky is very clicky and the action is low.
The second option for operation is the e-switch on the side near the head. This switch is metal(ish?) and very proud. Also, it doesn’t compete with anything else, so it’s very easy to find without looking.
The user interface is not complicated. Here’s a UI table!
| State | Action | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Off | Click Tail Switch | On (last used mode, except strobe) |
| On | Click Tail Switch | Off |
| Off | Click Side Switch | No action |
| On | Click Side Switch | Mode advance L>M>H>T |
| On | Hold Side Switch | Strobe (the manual doesn’t cover this!) |
| Strobe | Click Side Switch | Return to previous mode |
| Any | Rotate lens bezel | Change color (The order is, when turning clockwise: White, Green, Red) |
LED and Beam
The emitter is a Luminus SFT-40-W. A deep and smooth reflector is used here. At the very bottom is the emitter. When in “white” mode, there’s another tiny reflector very close to the emitter.
Each of the colors has a colored lens to cover the tiny reflector. It’s the same emitter for all the color options – the emitter doesn’t rotate, only the lens cover rotates.
Open the Pod bay doors, please, HAL.
LED Color Report (CRI and CCT)
With regard to the white output, the H3 V2 is cool to very cool white. Starting (ECO) at around 6600K, the light drifts all the way up to 8000K on turbo. CRI is low, at under 70.
Green won’t always render with the software I use. Just know that they’re both very red and very green, respectively!
Beamshots
These beamshots are always with the following settings: f8, ISO100, 0.3s shutter, and manual 5000K exposure.
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.
I compare everything to the KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b BLF-348 because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!
Conclusion
What I like
- A novel way to administer colored-lens output
- Modes meet the claimed output level
- The included cell seems to be high quality
- USB-C charging on the cell works well
- Well-regulated levels (the only exception being turbo)
What I don’t like
- Very cool white output
- Low CRI
Notes
- 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! Feeding flashlights is expensive! And funding Fun Fund Friday even more so. I deeply appreciate your support!