Nitecore Flashlights

Most Nitecore lights fall into a few named series, and the series tells you more than the lumen figure. Nitecore has made lights since 2007 and now sells headlamps, power banks and other outdoor electronics alongside them, which shows in how many of its newer flashlights charge from USB-C, report charge on a display or double as a power source.

The flat EDC series is the current flagship line: the EDC23, EDC25, EDC27, EDC27 UHi, EDC29, EDC31, EDC35 and EDC37 all use a built-in cell, most pair dual rear switches with a small output readout, and they climb from 2500 to 8000 lumens. The Precise P series (P10i, P20i, P20iX, P27iX) is the duty and tactical line, built around Nitecore's own i-series 21700 batteries and tactical rear switches. Around those sit the slim MH12 Pro and the dual-fuel MT2A Pro, which runs on a 14500 or ordinary AAs; the quad-emitter i4000R and the EX7; the NU25 and NU25 MCT, HC60 V2, HC60 UHE, HC65 and HC65 MCT headlamps; the TIKI, TIP SE and TIP3 keychain lights; the LR60 lantern; and the TrailSight. Eight of these, the P20i, EDC27, i4000R, NU25, HC60 V2, HC65, TIP SE and LR60, are discontinued.

Owners called the NU25 the default ultralight backpacking headlamp at 45 grams, credited the HC60 V2 with a centered, well-balanced head, and liked the TIP SE's two-button shortcuts while complaining that its unrecessed buttons dropped it into DEMO mode; all three are out of production, with the NU25 MCT and HC60 UHE still listed. Heat is the common thread on the high-output models. Owners of the original EDC27, since replaced by the EDC27 UHi, report it running very hot even at 1000 lumens, the MH12 Pro holds turbo for about 22 seconds, and the EDC23 caps turbo at ten. The other complaint is batteries: owners of the discontinued P20i note it took only CR123A pairs or the proprietary i-series cell, which charges only inside the light, and owners of the i4000R, also discontinued, say the same about its special 21700.

That battery split is the thing to settle before buying. A sealed-cell EDC or keychain light is finished when its battery wears out, and Nitecore's own warranty reflects it: lights without batteries get 60 months of free repair, but those with built-in batteries get 24, after a 15-day replacement window and before a limited lifetime warranty. A P-series light outlives its cells but ties you to Nitecore's i-series 21700s rather than any standard cell.