Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The Coast HP1 runs on one AA battery. You can use a lithium ion (14500) for more output as well. For ten dollars, this is a great light. Why not five stars then? Well... The light is made of aluminum, which is anodized black. The anodization is Type II, and the black scratches off very easily. I mean, I used a soft metal (non-marring) caliper arm to attach an O-ring for more grip, and that scratched it. The LED is an R2 (I'm pretty sure) which is good for throw, but there's no reflector in this light. Since it's a zoomie (adjustable flood-to-throw using an optical lens which slides forward or backward) the "throw" isn't as good as it could have been with a reflector. The tailcap is also a little bit "mushy" in that there's some, well, mush in it until it clicks on. The lanyard hole is too small for any split ring I have, and I have some small split rings for flashlights. That's the bad. Now, the review... The light is 4" long and 1" wide at the head. At the body and tailcap, it's about 0.8" (4/5") in diameter. It weighs 3.8 ounces with an alkaline battery. It can use any AA size: alkaline, lithium, carbon zinc, NiMH, or lithium ion (14500). I tested mine with alkaline and lithium ion, and I used ANSI standards; the results are below. Runtime to 10%, Duracell Coppertop alkaline (2200 MaH): 3 hours, 39 minutes. Runtime to 10%, UltraFire 14500, 900MaH: 58 minutes, but it got very hot. I thought it might melt the plastic lens. Runtime to 10%, Rayovac NiMH 1400 MAH: 2 hours, 11 minutes. The output was as follows, starting after 30 seconds of being on: Duracell Coppertop alkaline: 96 lumens. UltraFire 14500 lithium ion: 193 lumens. Rayovac NiMH: 66 lumens. So, the 220 lumen claim is a little optimistic, but that may have been taken right when the light was turn on, or right when the 14500 battery was taken off the charger. Still, at 193 lumens, it's bright for its size. At no point did the light get too hot to hold, and there was no damage from running it for almost an hour on the 14500: no melted lens, no melted tailcap parts, no dying switch, no nothing. The head can slide back-and-forth to zoom in or out: slide the head out to get a farther beam, but not as much flood. Pull the head into the body, or at any point in between, to get a smoother beam that's not as focused. It works well, but I found it to be too slick; the zoom is too loose. I had to put some O-rings on the body to prevent the head from sliding back too easily, and it's not much better. Also, when zoomed all the way in, a lot of lights will project a square in the center, being the zoomed-in LED itself. The HP1 doesn't do that. It's not perfectly round, but it's a lot better than the other ones. The tailcap screws on easily, and has the appropriate O-ring. The switch is plastic and screws in. The switch is just one mode, on or off. It's a forward clicky, meaning you can press it softly for momentary light, or just press it until it clicks for constant light. A tiny lanyard hole is drilled in, but it's too small to be of any use to me. The body is a nice size and texture, with aggressive gunstock checkering machined in. The pocket clip attaches via two Torx (T-6) screws, and allows for a bezel-down carry. It can be removed, but not moved to any other position. It's just fine as far as tightness and placement: about 3/4" of the light sticks out of the pocket when inside. The overall quality is good on this one: O-rings where they should be, no splotched or chipped anodizing, no gouges in the knurling, no machining marks, the metal is thick enough to not dent on the first few drops, nothing loose that's not supposed to be, none of the stuff you find on the cheap China lights you get at the dollar store. For ten bucks, buy a few. Stash one in your backpack, one in your car, one in your gym bag, etc. These are some of the best flashlights you can get for the price.