Nitecore MH25GTS Flashlight Review

The Nitecore MH25GTS is a “multi-hybrid” flashlight that offers medium-range throw, and a bit of tactical flair. Read on for testing!

Official Specs and Features

Here’s a link to the Nitecore MH25GTS Flashlight product page.

Versions

There’s only one version of the MH25GTS.

Price

This light is $110 at nitecorestore.com.

Short Review

This is a good light, but a bit long. Charging takes a long time, but is stable and has a good profile.

Long Review

The Big Table

Nitecore MH25GTS
Emitter:	Cree XHP35 HD
Price in USD at publication time:	$110.00
Cell:	18650
Turbo Runtime	High Runtime
LVP?	Low
Switch Type:	Both
Quiescent Current (A):	–
On-Board Charging?	Yes
Chargetime
Power off Charge Port with no Cell?	No
Claimed Lumens (lm)	1800
Measured Lumens (at 30s)	1600 (88.9% of claim)^
Claimed Throw (m)	304
Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s)	854lux @ 5.542m = 26230cd
Throw (Calculated) (m)	323.9 (106.5% 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 MH25GTS Flashlight
Nitecore NL1835HP 3500 mAh 18650
Charge Cable (USB to Micro-USB)
Nylon pouch
Lanyard
Pocket clip
Spare o-ring
Manual and paperwork

Package and Manual

Nitecore’s standard package!

A yellow and black box labeled MH25GTS High Performance Dual Fuel Tactical Flashlight USB Rechargeable from the Multitask Hybrid Series, shown from above on a wooden surface.

A close-up of the back of a Nitecore MH25GTS flashlight box on a wooden surface, listing features and manufacturer details, with an image of a gloved hand holding the flashlight.

A black and yellow flashlight box shows specifications: 1800 lumens max output, 304m max distance, 23100 candela max intensity, 1m impact resistance, and 2m waterproof, with icons illustrating each feature.

Here’s a pdf of the manual.

Build Quality and Disassembly

No complaints about the build quality of this light. It’s pretty standard Nitecore quality.

A black tactical flashlight stands upright on a wooden surface, with textured grip sections and the label WUBEN visible on the body. The background is blurred.

A black, textured tactical flashlight stands upright on a wooden surface, with a blurred brown background. The flashlight has a knurled grip and visible grooves for handling.

A black tactical flashlight with a textured grip and a button near the head is standing upright on a wooden surface. The background is blurred. The flashlight has a warning label for heat near the lens.

A black tactical flashlight stands upright on a wooden surface with a blurred brown background. The flashlight features a textured grip and a CE marking label on its body.

The knurling is a little grippier, which will be good for gloved use.

The head has an adequate cooling surface area, too.

The insides are the same as the other MH GTS series light I reviewed, the MH12GTS. Since charging is through the tailcap, there are a little bit of fancy electronic bits to facilitate that.

A close-up view of a flashlight with its tail cap removed, showing the exposed battery contacts and internal springs on both the flashlight body and the tail cap, resting on a wooden surface.

A close-up view of a disassembled black flashlight lying on a wooden surface, showing its threaded end, a disconnected battery cap, and the inside contact point.

Also because of the charging, there’s an inner sleeve in the cell tube. This tube can’t be removed without removing the cell tube from the head, which I found to not be possible. (Maybe it’s glued).

Both the head and tail have thick, long springs. This would confirm the belief that this would make a good tactical light.

Size and Comps

Officially

Length 150 mm / 5.9 in
Head Size 34 mm / 1.33 in
Weight 124 g / 4.37 oz

A small black flashlight stands upright on a blurred one-dollar bill, placed on a wooden surface. The website ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM is visible along the left edge of the image.

A black tactical flashlight is placed horizontally on top of a two-dollar bill, which rests on a wooden surface. The flashlight is slightly longer than the bill’s width.

A black tactical flashlight is placed next to a two-dollar bill on a weathered wooden surface. The flashlight is roughly the same length as the bill. The words ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM appear on the left.

The Convoy S2+ is not a short light, and the MH25GTS dwarfs it. Of course, it has a different feature set, but still, it’s unreasonably longer.

Retention and Carry

Nitecore includes a standard nylon pouch. The light fits primarily bezel up.

A close-up of a black textured nylon pouch with a flap, resting on weathered wooden boards. The pouch has reinforced stitching and a small fabric loop. The words ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM are visible along the left edge.

A black, textured nylon pouch with a D-ring at the top, placed vertically on a weathered wooden surface. The pouch is closed and stitched with visible threading.

A black flashlight is secured inside a black fabric holster with a Velcro flap, resting vertically on weathered wooden boards. The flashlights power button and warning symbol are visible.

The lanyard attaches on the tailcap, or on the tactical ring. The pocket clip also has holes that would allow lanyard connection.

A black flashlight lies on its side on a weathered wooden surface, photographed with the lens focused on the tailcap and the background blurred.

A close-up of the textured tailcap and body of a black flashlight, shown vertically against a blurred brown background. The image focuses on the knurled grip and flat base of the flashlight.

And finally, the pocket clip. This attaches only on the tail end of the light, (and the cell tube isn’t reversible). It’s a friction clip and leaves almost two inches of tailcap sticking out of the pocket.

In the photo of the pocket clip below, also note: the tactical ring is removable (and removed here), and the charge port cover isn’t staying in.

Power and Runtime

The MH25GTS is powered by a single 18650 cell, which is included. This is a quality cell, labeled the “NL1835HP” and claims 3500mAh, with a max discharge of 8A. Button top or flat top and protected/unprotected cells should work fine in this light. (It’s also possible to run this light on 2 × CR123, 2 x RCR123.)

On Turbo, the output initially hits around 1700 lumens (short of the claimed 1800) and at 30s drops down to around 1600 lumens. At 4 minutes, the Turbo output has dropped to under 1000 lumens and stays there for much of the remainder of the runtime.

High looks approximately like Turbo, but with better regulation, and slightly lower output at just under 900 lumens.

In both cases, the light never actually shut off fully, but did have a very low output. In both cases, this was around 3V.

Charging

The MH25GTS also has onboard charging, through a micro-USB port in the tailcap. Like the MH12GTS, this is a waterproof port.

A black tactical flashlight lying on its side on a weathered wooden surface, with the focus on the textured tail switch and a visible USB port cover.

A hand lifts the rubber cover of a black flashlight to reveal a micro USB charging port. The flashlight rests on a weathered wooden surface.

Charging proceeds at around 0.65A and takes much too long. The charge graphs look great, because charging is extremely consistent. Also the cell is testing well over the 3500mAh claim, which again, is good (“well over” because I’ve logged Ah at 5V).

One huge complaint about this light is that the plug for the micro-USB port doesn’t stay in very well at all.

Nitecore also includes a nice charge cable (USB to micro-USB).

User Interface and Operation

There are two switches on the MH25GTS. The first is a mechanical tail forward clicky switch. It’s a nice rubber button, and fairly resistive.

The other switch is a side, indicating, e-switch.

It’s not proud at all, but the light is built so that there’s plenty of reveal for good access to the switch. It’s an indicating switch, and when the switch indicates, it’s very noticeable, and even in it’s illumination.

A close-up of a black Nitecore MH25S TS flashlight standing upright on a wooden surface, showing the textured grip and branding on the head of the flashlight.

Close-up of a black Nitecore MH25GTS flashlight standing upright on a wooden surface, showing the textured grip, side button, and part of the manufacturers label.

The user interface is much like many of Nitecore’s other dual-switch lights but I think adds some features that are interesting.

Here’s a user interface table!

State	Action	Result
Off	Click Tail Switch (TS)	On (Mode Memory including Strobe)
On	Click Mode Switch (MS)	Mode advance (L>H direction)
Off	Hold MS, Click TS	Ultralow
Off	Depress TS	Momentary Mode Memory
On	Depress TS	Momentary Turbo
On	Double click MS	Strobe
Strobe	Long click MS	Strobe advance (Beacon>SOS>Strobe)
Strobe	Click MS	Return to regular modes (mode memory)
On	Click TS	Off
Off	Press MS	Power Indication on indicating switch

Power indication is as follows (and is typical for Nitecore):
1. 3 Flashes represent battery level above 50%
2. 2 Flashes represent battery level below 50%
3. 1 Flash represents battery level below 10%

Modes

Mode	Mode Claimed Output (lm)	Claimed Runtime	Measured Lumens	Tailcap Amps
Turbo	1800	30m	1600	–
High	950	2h	900	–
Mid	240	5h45m	215	–
Low	70	19h	82	–
Ultralow	1	250h	–	–

Due to the inner sleeve/charging function of this light, I wasn’t able to test the amps. I tried a bunch of ways, and I could just never get it to work with my setup.

LED and Beam

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 mostly black image with very little visible detail. The text ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM appears vertically along the left side.

A soft, circular white light glows at the center of a dark background. The text ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM is written vertically along the left side of the image.

A bright white circular light source creates a halo effect against a dark background. The text ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM appears vertically on the left side of the image.

A bright, circular beam of white light is projected onto a dark surface. The light gradually fades to darkness toward the edges. The text ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM is visible along the left side.

A bright, circular white light beam with a smooth gradient projected on a dark surface. The watermark ZEROAIR.WORDPRESS.COM appears on the left side. Part of a ceiling fixture is visible in the top right corner.

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

Conclusion

What I like

Complete kit light
Meets throw claim
On-board charging is very consistent and stable
Dual switch user interface is fairly good
Indicating side switch is reasonably well used

What I don’t like

Falls short of output claim
On-board charging is very slow
Charge port cover doesn’t want to stay put

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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