WOWTAC A4 V2 Ultra-Thrower USB Rechargeable Flashlight, LED Flashlight 1895 High Lumens Handheld Tactical Flashlight with CREE XHP35 HI 617 yards for Camping,Emergency(26650 Battery Included) -CW

WOWTAC A4 V2 (NW)Unfortunately Amazon is mixing the V2 version with the original reviews.This is a review of the V2 version.The short versionA compact thrower with an excellent included battery and a simple UI.Half star off for the poor charging port cover.Half star off for the very hard to find power button.A good buy in a coat pocket sized 26650 thrower.The long version.An almost EDC thrower. A coat pocket light that can double as a hand warmer/branding iron.I got this light on Amazon when it was on sale at the end of Jan 2020.A friend of mine was looking for a budget thrower and I showed him the WOWTAC A4 (first version) that used 2x18650 cells.It was a “Shut Up And Take MY Money!” moment.Unfortunately that version is no longer available.I saw the WOWTAC A4 V2 and it looked like it was a 26650 version of the first light. And the price was right. So into the shopping cart it went.When it arrived I found that my assumption was incorrect. The head on the V2 version is nowhere near as large or deep as the first version.It comes in a cardboard box with a foam cutout for the light.Included are spare O-rings, extra USB cover (nice), 5000mAh WOWTAC branded battery, Micro USB charging cable, instruction sheet, and the ubiquitous lanyard strap.Size125mm (4 15/16”) long32mm (1 ¼”) wide at the body48mm (1 7/8”) wide at the head40mm across the lens (1 9/16”)34.5mm (1 3/8”) wide at the button area.It weighs 8.3Oz with the included battery.The LED is a CREE XHP35 HI. I picked the NW color.A shot shows the head, tube, and cap.The threads are square cut. Notice the threads on the front of the tube are anodized but the threads at the tail are not. The light is locked out by unscrewing the head.The threads and O-ring were dry and needed lubing.The double springs at the tail cap make closing the light a challenge with the included 26650 (“26700”) battery. You can see the scuff marks on the bottom of the cell from just a few openings.Most will simply leave the cell in there and use the charger.There are good thick brass contacts on the PCB in the head.USB Port is covered. It’s not isolated from the insides. The cover comes off easily. Loose the cover and you better stay out of the rain. I’m not a fan of this design.What’s it like?It’s nice and compact and fits my hand quite well. I’d call it a coat pocket light. It’s just a little too big for a pants pocket carry. It tail stands with ease.2 pics shows the Sofirn SP36S, WOWTAC A4 V2, WOWTAC A4 (first version)The A4 V2 is almost the same dimension as the Sofirn SP36S (3x18650 cells). But slimmer in the body and lighter weight.It’s not nearly as long or wide as the original A4.Another shot shows the Convoy C8, WOWTAC A4 V2, Refreshing beverage, and BLF Q8The C8 has the same head diameter and is slightly longer. It about matches the pop can in length.The power button is just a hair above being flush with the body.The button is quite small. It’s a soft translucent material (silicon?) that lets an internal LED shine through.The power switch LED turns on when the light is on. Except when in firefly mode – then it’s off.The switch LED is very dim. It is almost invisible in daylight.The color changes to indicate battery state. Blue for charged, red for low battery.This doubles as a charge indicator. Red for charging, blue for charged.It flashes purple to indicate abnormal charging (according to the instructions).This is a light that fails the bare hand test. In the dark it is almost impossible to find the switch by feel. The original A4 had a metal switch that was way easier to find.This light cries out for an option to have the power button illuminated all the time.The UIThe A4 V2 has the standard WOWTAC UI.From off - Press and hold for Firefly (power LED stays off).From Firefly – Press and hold to cycle Low, Med, High (Power LED indicates charge).From off – Click to go to the last mode (L-M-H). It has memory except for Turbo, Firefly, or Strobe.Double click from any mode to Turbo.From Turbo – Double click for strobe.From any mode – Single click for off.This is a quite usable UI that’s easy to learn and intuitive to grasp just by playing with the light.MeasurementsThe battery measured 3.92V as it came from the box. The battery was locked out by the head being unscrewed.Included is a shot of an 18650 Sanyo GA vs WOWTAC "26650"The battery is just a hair over 70mm long. It has a slightly protruding top. I assume there is a protection circuit in there someplace.The extra long battery fills the tube to the brim. An unprotected flattop 18650 will work in an adapter tube. A 21700 should work also as the included battery is that same length.While charging the light using the included cable, I measured just over 2A when using a QC3 USB power source.When the charge finished, I saw no current being passed to the light.When the charge completed I measured 4.16V on the battery.So the charge cutoff quits at a safe voltage.The cell tested 5398mAh with a resistance of 28mOhms.This is considerably better than the 5000mAh spec.Good job WOWTAC.LUMENSMy home built lumen box is wildly inaccurate with throwers. Here is what the manufacturer claims.Firefly – 0.5 Lumens, 208 daysLow – 28 Lumens, 89 Hrs.Medium – 205 Lumens, 12 Hrs.High – 1050 Lumens, 8min + 150minTurbo – 1890 Lumens, 3min + 140minTo me Firefly seems brighter than 0.5 Lumens. It’s so throw(y) It’s hard to judge.Low and Medium also seems a brighter than spec. High seems close or a still a bit brighter. Turbo seems a bit overrated but once again close to spec.RuntimesSee the two run time graphs. One shows the first 23m. The second is the full runtime.On Turbo (RED) The light holds Turbo well and only dims a bit.It starts dropping out of turbo at 2m 15s and fully steps down to around a 1000Lm at about 3m 30sThe light quit at: 1H 19mI gave it a double click after the first stepdown just to see what happens.It returns to Turbo and then steps down again.The light was close to the 3m stepdown as listed by WOWTAC.I only got 79m of total run time.WOWTAC lists 143m.I don’t know how much the extra kick into Turbo altered the outcome, but it should not make that much of a difference.On High (Green trace).Stepdown starts at 20m 45s and fully steps down at 21m 10s or soThe light starts to dim quickly at about 1h 56mIt turns off just short of 2H.Once again the light seems well regulated holding high then stepping down.It’s interesting that the specs say high will last 8m before stepdown. That’s not what I observed.Total run time was not close to the 8m + 150m listed in the specs.But mine stayed on high for far longer than the 8m WOWTAC claims.Low VoltageWhen the battery discharges to a point the light just shuts off.Notice the slight dimming then nada. No light at all.Pressing the button again gets you nothing. No light at all.If you break the connection by loosening the head and retightening it the light will function again.It won’t hold high for any length of time. Low or Medium can be used to get someplace safe to charge or replace the battery.I measured 3.22V on the battery after the light decided to quit. So it seems WOWTAC wants to protect the cell from deep discharge (a good thing).PWMA light is useless if the PWM is nasty. The WOWTAC A4 V2 has none.Included is a shot of the Low mode scope trace.On Turbo, Med, Low all I see is a DC offset, with some driver ripple just seen on the trace in Low.In Firefly mode the scope reveals an interesting waveform. The light is still running a DC offset.But look at the strange goings on. In my very limited experience with lights - this is new to me.I can’t detect it when using the light.TempsUsing my moderately calibrated hand to test temps. - It get’s HOT!There is no way anyone is holding onto the head area during a Turbo or High mode run.What’s it Look Like?The instructions claim 80K candela with 565m throw.There is a shot comparing it to the original A4 the hotspot is not as sharply defined. I suspect the original version would reach out further.The NW of the V2 is noticeably warmer than the CW of the original. I like the warmer tint better. The color difference is not as dramatic as in the photo.Beam Spread (2 pics)Taking a look at the beam profile I see just short of 90 degrees of spread in the spill area with a bit outside of that in an artifact. The hotspot is a tight 15 degrees or so.Conclusions?Other than the impossible to find in the dark switch, I like the light.(But you should not need a light to find the switch on your light!)It could use a better USB port seal.The “Are you in Turbo or is my hand on fire” mode is something we have to live with in pocket rocket lights.I really really like the first version of this light with the 2x18650 cells. I wish it was still available with a NW. The long slim tube is very easy to hold and the larger head handles the heat better.The V2 version is quite the thrower for such a compact light.I’m keeping this one.All the Best,Jeff

Got mine today. Well........it does what it is supposed to. Bright, throws really well. 2 minor complaints. 1 The battery tube is too long for unprotected cells. Must use magnets with flat tops or hope button tops are long enough. Cells must be closer to 70mm than 65mm. A spring in the head instead of a direct contact pad would have solved this. Their batteries fit, imagine that. I have some because I bought 2 A3's. I actually ordered 18700's (XTars) today just for this light. Not a big deal for me, I had the magnets also. 2- The beam is oblong up close. Maybe the diode is off center or the reflector is not symmetrical. Minor issues to me. For $40 I would recomend. Beware of the battery issue.

First off I own a ThruNite Catapult V6 (fantastic light) which I believe this was patterned after. Advantages; the Wowtac A4 V2 is a slightly smaller form factor. Second advantage, Price. I bought this on sale here at Amazon for what turns out to be be 46% less than the V6. Even at regular prices the A4 V2 is 34% less expensive. Price point for a very comparable light is the biggest advantage that the Wowtac has.Those are the two advantages The A4 V2 over it's daddy the V6. The A4 V2 is only slightly less bright with slightly less reach. (Wowtac claims 1895lm, throw 564 the V6 is 1700lm, throw 750 meters) but the V6 is brighter with a longer reach this can easily been seen on comparison videos found on YouTube.Now the only caveat. They had to save money somewhere. Fit and finish on this is not as nice as the more expensive ThruNite Catapult V6. Something easily seen between the two in quality department. The side switch on the V6 is metal with a clearly seen bright LED. The button on the A4 V2 is rubber, has an LED but it is very very dim.Bottom line, the Wowtac A4 V2 is a very capable light, of good quality. If you need a compact thrower at a budget price this is just the ticket. At this price point I can recommend this little powerhouse.NOTE: Another reviewer from 2018 wrote about battery physical size being critical. "The battery tube is too long for unprotected cells. Must use magnets with flat tops or hope button tops are long enough. Cells must be closer to 70mm than 65mm" I bought mine in Dec 2019 and putting unprotected 26650 of 65mm length worked fine. Perhaps the former problem has been fixed?

I purchased this light and when it arrived it was defective BUT THIS WAS NOT A PROBLEM I RETURNED IT AND PURCHASED ANOTHER ONE.When the second light arrived 2 days later I was thrilled by the brightness and the search type medium to narrow spot the light throws. This flashlight is worth every penny of what it sells for . never mind that you need to purchase batteries and a charger it is still a bargain compared o other lights throwing similar types of beams. Even with the highly concentrated narrow to medium-sized spot on this light it also cast less intense light around the center spot making it perfect for hiking, walking, and anything I would want a flashlight for.This is a value-priced very long-throw spotlight beam flashlight that will light up the night brightly, rated light output is not exaggerated. I have to be careful not to shine it on homes in order to keep the neighbors happy. It really is that bright. My entire family loves this light and it gets the attention of our barking dogs who go right in the house when it comes on. It is bright so NEVER SHINE IT IN A PERSONS OR ANIMALS EYES UNLESS YOU ARE BEING ATTACKED. Buy this and enjoy it for a long time.After having used this light for many months (years) I know the company made a huge error in discontinuing the A4 Version one. I like mine so well I wanted to purchase more but they are no longer available. This is a sad situation on my end that should be corrected with the light going back onto the market. I DO NOT THINK THE OUTPUT OF THE NEW A4-V2 WILL STAND UP TO THE ORIGINAL A4 FLASHLIGHT.

This thing sure chucks out a pretty serious amount of light for a small torch.