Brinyte E18 Pheme

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Brinyte E18 Pheme specifications

Brand/model	Brinyte E18 Pheme
LED	Luminus SST40
Max. Lumens	1,200 lm
Max. Beam intensity / distance	12,500 cd
Battery config.	1*18650
Onboard charging	USB-C (USB-A to USB-C)
Modes	5
Blinkies	Strobe, SOS
Reflector	TIR optic
Waterproof	IP68
Review date	May 2022

Brinyte has branched out and entered the world of EDC flashlights by releasing the elegant and stylish E18 Pheme. The company has been around since 2006. They are known for their tactical and hunting flashlights.

I am curious to see what influence Brinyte’s experience with hunting flashlights will have on their new EDC range.

Package quality.

The flashlight came in a plain cardboard box with thick layers of foam to protect the contents.

The following was included in the box:

• Brinyte E18 Pheme
• Brinyte 18650 3000mAh cell
• USB-A to USB-C charging cable
• Pocket clip
• Lanyard
• Spare o-rings
• Manual

The E18 Pheme feels lightweight and slender. There are no sharp edges. It easily fits in my pocket and it has not accidentally turned on in my pocket after using it for a few weeks.

I like how the raised bezel and switch accentuate the location of the switch and help prevent the E18 Pheme from rolling on a surface. I can feel for the bump in the dark to identify where the button is.

It is comfortable to hold the E18 Pheme with the tailcap pressed against the palm of my hand. A modern design has been used for the lanyard hole where the hole is hidden away in the side of the tailcap with no protruding sharp edges.

The tailcap is flat and the flashlight is easy to tailstand. A lanyard will not get in the way of tailstanding due to the hole being on the side.

The magnet in the tailcap is barely strong enough for the flashlight to be mounted to the side of my fridge (it slipped a few times).

The two-way pocket clip is reversible for deep carrying and it feels secure.

Polygonal knurling on the tube and tailcap give the E18 Pheme an elegant and stylish look while adding grip.

The body is made of aluminium and it has a matt black finish. Deep blue bezels give the E18 Pheme some character as a Brinyte branded flashlight.

Threads for the tailcap are very smooth. They are square cut, anodized and well lubricated. The anodized threads allow the E18 Pheme to be mechanically locked out by unscrewing the tailcap slightly.

The spring in the tailcap does not add too much pressure and there is no spring in the head. It is easy to unscrew and screw the tailcap back on while changing the cell.

An unprotected flat top 18650 battery might rattle from side to side while shaking the flashlight with considerable force but I did not manage to disconnect the power. 

The charging port cover is a bit difficult to put back in.

Warranty Policy:

1. 30-day free replacement: If your BRINYTE flashlight is defective in material and/or workmanship under normal use within 30 days from the date of purchase, we will replace or repair it with proof of purchase; If the model is discontinued , we will replace it with a similar updated model (all the shipping cost is afforded by seller);
2. 2-year free repairs: BRINYTE provides free warranty repair for 2 years (1 year warranty period for accessories) from the date of purchase with proof of purchase. Except for consumables, such as O-rings, lanyard, etc. (Buyer is in charge of the shipping cost for sending back to seller, seller is in charge of the shipping cost for returning);
3. Limited lifetime warranty: If repair is required beyond the warranty period, Brinyte will not charge fees for labor costs associated with the repair. The total repair free is assessed according to the cost of the replaced materials (Buyer is responsible for all the shipping costs);
4. Please first contact your local merchant for warranty claims for prompter after-sales service. BRINYTE will provide service support to the merchant. If you fail to get in touch with your local merchant, please leave a message on our official website (www.brinyte.com).

Note:

1. Except the products and accessories listed above, other products or free offers provided by brinyte are not covered within this warranty policy. This warranty does not cover consumables or normal wear-and-tear. It also does not apply to any products or parts which have been subject to modification, misuse, abuse, accident, improper maintenance, unauthorized repairs;
2. To make a warranty claim, please provide the proof of purchase; if it can’t be offered, the warranty period will be  calculated from the factory delivery time;
3. Brinyte Technology Co., Ltd. reserves the final right to interpret and modify this policy.

Brinyte has selected the popular Luminus SST40 emitter and combined it with a TIR optic for throw.

A blue aluminium bezel appears to be press fit and it is holding a TIR optic in place. The head, with the TIR optic, can be unscrewed easily to reveal the emitter and MCPCB.

The beam is green on lower modes and neutral on Turbo. There is a hint of blue and green around the outer edge. And the TIR optic produces a flowery pattern.

I used an Opple Light Master Pro III (G3) to take Correlated Colour Temperature (CCT) and Colour Rendering Index (CRI, RA of R1-R8) measurements with the E18 positioned one metre away.

I measured a CCT of 5300K to 5638K and a CRI range of 61.9 to 65. The Delta u, v (DUV) started out at 0.0137 (green) on Moon and reached 0.009 (close to neutral) on Turbo.

• Length: 11.57 cm / 4.56 inches
• Head diameter: 2.38 cm / 0.94 inches
• Body diameter: 2.27 cm / 0.89 inches

Weight: 

• Without cells: 57.3 grams / 2.02 oz
• With cells: 105.7 grams / 3.73 oz

EDC Flashlight comparison

The E18 Pheme is slimmer and shorter than a Convoy S2+, and it has built-in USB-C charging.

From left to right: VezerLezer ED10, Brinyte E18 Pheme, Sofirn SC31 Pro.

From left to right: ZebraLight SC64w HI, Brinyte E18 Pheme, Convoy S2+

Available modes: Moon, Low, Mid, High, Turbo

From OFF:

• Press and Hold: Cycle Moon-Low-Mid-High-Turbo
• Single click: On (mode memory)
• Double click: Turbo
• 3 clicks: Strobe

From ON:

• Press and Hold: Cycle Moon-Low-Mid-High-Turbo
• 1 click: Off
• Double click: Turbo
• 3 clicks: Strobe
• 4 clicks: Off (not mentioned in the manual)
• 5 clicks: Turbo (not mentioned in the manual)
• 6 clicks: Strobe (not mentioned in the manual)

Mode memory:

• Yes, except Strobe and SOS

Shortcuts:

• To Moon: Press and Hold from Off, Double click from Turbo
• To Turbo: Double click from any mode (except blinkies and lock-out)
• To Strobe: 3 clicks from anywhere (except SOS and lock-out)

Low voltage warning:

• The switch has a power indicator LED that turns green or red when the flashlight is on.
• Green: Power is between 30% and 100%
• Red: Power is between 10% and 30%
• Red flashing: Power is less than 10%

Strobe/blinkies

• 3 clicks to enter Strobe mode. Another 3 clicks to enter SOS mode.

Lock-out mode: 

• Activate and deactivate Lock-out mode by clicking five times from off.
• The flashlight will flash twice to confirm that Lock-out mode has been activated or deactivated.

PWM

• It looks like there is a bit of visible PWM on High and Turbo.

Additional info on the UI: 

• Cycling through Moon-Low-Mid-High-Turbo is a little bit slow.

A button top Brinyte 18650 3000mAh cell was included inside the E18. The cell arrived with a voltage of 3.88V, and it was isolated with a piece of plastic to avoid parasitic drain.

A capacity of 3036mAh was measured using Capacity Test mode at 500mA with a Vapcell S4 Plus.

An unprotected flat top Samsung 30Q 18650 cell and a button top protected 18650 cell each fit. The manual mentions that CR123A and 16340 batteries cannot be installed in the E18.

I discharged the cell to 2.86V and then charged it in the E18 Pheme. The cell charged at 1A for 4 hours 36 minutes. The current dropped gradually over the last 3 hours and charging ended at 4.17V. A capacity of 3019Ah was measured using a Ruideng UM25C.

Power supply compatibility:

• USB-A to USB-C works.
• USB-C to USB-C does not work.

To take lumen measurements, I built a lumen tube and forked bmengineer’s project RuTiTe to add support for a VEML7700 light sensor and MCP9808 temperature sensor with help from Owen. Calibration lights from maukka were used.

To measure the current, I used a UNI-T UT139C at the tailcap.

The included 18650 cell was used.

Mode	Amps at start	Specs	turn on	30 sec	10 minutes
Moon	0.02 A	5 lm	8 lm	8 lm	8 lm
Low	0.11 A	35 lm	50 lm	50 lm	49 lm
Mid	0.33 A	115 lm	143 lm	141 lm	140 lm
High	1.20 A	450 lm	508 lm	498 lm	483 lm
Turbo	3.70 A	1,200 lm	1,205 lm	1,068 lm	557 lm

Parasitic drain:

• 0.81 mA

Runtime graph

The E18 switched off when the Brinyte 18650 3000mAh cell reached around 2.89V at the end of each runtime test.

I like how Brinyte have included a breakdown of the output and duration of Turbo in their specifications (i.e. 1200 lumens for 2 minutes and then 550 lumens for 110 minutes). Their estimates line up with the Turbo runtime test that I performed.

Turbo hit 1205 lumens initially, dropped to 1034 lumens at 2 minutes, dropped to 571 lumens at 4 minutes, dropped to 548 lumens at 1 hour 30 minutes, dropped to 428 lumens at 2 hours, and then it switched off shortly after at 2 hours 11 minutes.

High started at 508 lumens, slowly dropped to 466 lumens at 2 hours, dropped to 421 lumens at 2 hours 28 minutes, and then sharply dropped in output until it switched off at 2 hours 40 minutes. The original estimate was 450 lumens for 2 hours 50 minutes.

Mid achieved about 140 lumens for 2 hours 16 minutes. The original estimate was 115 lumens for 10 hours and 30 minutes.

Low and Moon were tested for 10 minutes. I stopped those runtime tests because they are estimated to last for days.

Throw numbers: 

I took lux measurements with a UNI-T UT383BT. Moon was measured at two metres and Low, Mid, High and Turbo were measured at five metres.

Brinyte has only mentioned throw figures for Turbo.

The included 18650 cell was used. I charged it up to 4.19V before measuring Turbo.

Mode	Specs	Candela measured	Metres	Yards
Moon	–	76 cd	17	19
Low	–	450 cd	42	46
Mid	–	1,575 cd	79	86
High	–	6,325 cd	159	174
Turbo	12,500 cd	15,650 cd	250	273

The candela measured was slightly higher than expected.

I went to a local park and aimed the Brinyte E18 Pheme at a tree 70 metres away while using Turbo.

A small tree 15 metres away clearly lit up and a larger tree 70 metres away partially lit up. The beam was slightly narrow with a smooth and practical hotspot due to the TIR optic.

I have taken comparison shots with two other EDC flashlights that also have a Luminus SST40 emitter (Olight Warrior Mini 2 and VezerLezer ED10). These each have a reflector instead of a TIR optic and the spill is much wider.

Beamshots were taken using a Sony RX100 Mk2 using 3.2”, f3.2, ISO 100, 5000K WB.

Disclaimer: This flashlight was sent to me for review at no cost by Brinyte. I have not been paid to review, nor have I been holding back on problems or defects.