The photo above shows the light set to Turbo mode, illuminating street signs 1/4 mile away.
Two months ago, we purchased a Nitecore Tip SE rechargeable keychain flashlight. Since then, we’ve taken it camping several times, in addition to using it each morning when walking our dogs. We wanted to share this review, in case anyone else is considering purchasing one.
Full Disclosure – We did not receive any compensation or free products for this review. This post does contain an affiliate link to the Nitecore Tip SE.
Key Details:
- Battery – Non-replaceable Lithium Ion
- Weight – Less than one ounce
- Luminous Intensity – 4 settings – 1/30/180/700 lumens
- What’s in the box? Nitecore Tip SE, bonus keychain flashlight, instructions, key ring clips.
Things We Like Best About The Nitecore Tip SE
Size – First off, unlike some so called “keychain” flashlights, you barely notice it’s there on the key ring. About 1/3 smaller than our Ford F-150’s keyfob, and weighing only a fraction of its weight, the Nitecore Tip SE is a perfect size to fit on a key ring. With a handy clip, it also fits nicely on a ball cap, or on smaller belts.
Powerful Little Light
The Nitecore Tip SE has four intensity modes. Low, Mid, Normal and Turbo. On low, it puts out only 1 lumen, which is fine when you just need a bit of light for a task, but don’t want to light up the entire campground. On the middle setting, it puts out a respectable 30 lumens – good enough for most camping tasks. On high, with 180 lumens, you’ll have enough light to see a fair distance down a path on a dark night. On Turbo, that’s where you’ll be amazed at just how powerful it is, with 700 lumens.
Battery Charging and Run Time
We routinely use the Nitecore Tip SE when walking our dogs, for a half-hour at a time, early in the morning. When used on the normal, high setting, not turbo, we find it’s still ready to go after a week worth of walks, and is just as bright as on day one. We haven’t tried using Turbo mode for the entire duration, but suspect it wouldn’t last as long. The manufacturer claims 50 hours of run-time. We assume that’s on the lowest one lumen setting. The non-replaceable battery is lithium ion and should have a long life.
Demo Mode
Having charged it, but not yet read all the instructions, we found that it kept shutting off after only thirty seconds. This was because it came factory-set to Demo mode. To exit or enter Demo mode, all you have to do is press and hold both mode and power buttons simultaneously.
Easy Access to Light Modes
One of the handiest features of the Nitecore Tip SE is being able to hold down the mode button, when the light is on, (in any mode) to enter Turbo mode. This is very handy when you need lots of extra light, or to signal someone at a distance. Thankfully, the Nitecore Tip SE comes without strobe mode, which can be a very annoying feature on some EDC flashlights.
Easy Power Monitoring and Charging
One of the features we like the most about the Nitecore Tip SE is how easy it is to monitor battery life. A short-press of the mode button will cause the battery indicator to flash. Flashing three times means it’s above 50%. Flashing twice indicates below 50%, and flashing once means it’s below 10%. This little flashlight recharges crazy fast via a USB-C cable, and the indicator glows green when it’s ready.
The Bottom Line?
There are more powerful EDC (everyday carry) flashlights out there, but for under $30, one that’s this handy to place on a cap bill or carry on a key chain is really hard to find. With HA III Hard Anodized aluminum body and IP54 weatherproofing, it’s rugged enough to be carried in a variety of environments.
Aside from the 700 lumen Turbo mode, the fact that it’s USB-C rechargeable, meaning we lo longer have to worry about replacing AAA batteries, was the feature that really knocked this one out of the ballpark for us.
What Could Be Improved On?
One downside to the Nitecore Tip SE is that it’s only IP54 water-resistant, not waterproof. The USB-C charging port is hidden behind the clip, but that part’s not weatherproof. If you’re looking for a waterproof EDC flashlight, this part might be the deal breaker. Also, it would be nice if the clip was metal, instead of plastic, but so far it’s held up.
Verdict: For a really powerful, versatile, easy-to-charge key chain flashlight, it’s really hard to beat the Nitecore Tip SE.
Update – 01/25/2024
One of our Nitecore Tip SE flashlights developed an issue where it would not shut off. We contacted the manufacturer and they suggested leaving it on until the battery drained down, then recharging it. This did not solve the issue, so we requested a replacement. We were referred to the U.S. distributor, Nitecore Store through their website at nitecorestore.com and we explained the issue we were having. Within a few days we had a replacement flashlight in hand.
