NEXTORCH T7L

NEXTORCH T7L LEP tactical flashlight review

Introduction:

I admit this is the first NEXTORCH flashlight I’ve gotten my hands on, and I can assure you that I was positively surprised at the quality! I was expecting a bit of a lower grade, but it exceeded my expectations. Hopefully, the pictures in this review will do justice!

After reviewing a couple of other LEP flashlights, I came across the Nitetorch T7L. A pocketable flashlight with 1100 meters of throw, at least, that is what they were claiming. In this review, I’ll test it, and see if it can actually achieve these numbers.

What you’ll get:

The package is actually pretty straightforward and not very exciting. A cardboard box with a few accessories.

  • NEXTORCH T7L
  • Lanyard
  • USB charge cable
  • O-rings
  • Warranty card
  • 18650 2600mAh battery
  • Optional: V5 holster (only optional)

NEXTORCH T7L Specifications

Brand / ModelNEXTORCH T7L
LED/LEPClass 3B Laser
Lumens400m
Beam distance1100 meters
Battery config.1*18650
MaterialAluminum
Modes2
Blinkies1
ReflectorN/A
WaterproofIPX7
Review dateMay 2020

Handling of the light

The NEXTORCH T7L has only 1 switch. It’s a forward clicky and is used for power and mode switching. Later on, I will explain a bit more how this works.

The tailcap switch is shrouded about 100 degrees. from 1 angle you can actually rest your thumb onto the switch. This is a great feature because you can still let it tailstand as well as comfortably pressing the switch.

It includes a pocket clip that is attached just underneath the tailcap. It’s a snug fit and only removable when you unscrew the tailcap. Neat feature!

Its size isn’t very small, nor very large. And since its a 18650 flashlight, the body is relatively narrow at its thinnest point. But it does feel a little slippery because there isn’t any real knurling on the body tube. I would improve that if I were Nitetorch to make a nice torch even nicer!

NEXTORCH included a V5 polymer holster that fits on your belt. But they also have an optional TS41-L remote switch.

Build Quality, knurling, threads, and anodization

I was expecting something a little less quality. But NEXTORCH really surprised me. All edges and parts are smooth and unsharp. Even the coating is matte and looks+feels like any other premium brand. There is however 1 thing though, its body has no knurling. This can make the light relatively slippery even though the matte finish helps improving its grip.

All parts fit well together and threads + o-ring came were lubed. Min arrived with only 1 O-ring, but it looks like another O-ring should fit the threads and make it even more waterproof.

Its waterproofness is rated at IPX7, which means it should be submersible to 1 meter, according to their manual.

The pocket clip was already installed when I received it. Removing the pocket clip left some damage on the coating, unfortunately.

If you don’t like carrying it in your pocket or on a lanyard, you can get the NEXTORCH V5 polymer holster. NEXTORCH included one in the package to review.

The NEXTORCH V5 is a 360 degree rotatable holster for on your belt. It fits flashlights with a diameter between 1″to 1.25″. Please look at the following pictures to get a better idea!

LEP, Lens, Bezel, and Reflector

A Laser Excited Phosphor flashlight it is and not an LED flashlight. This means that it has a Class 3B laser installed and not a regular Cree LED for example. This makes it a real ‘thrower’ and tactical flashlight at the same time!

Although people refer to these flashlights as White Lasers, they actually don’t have a white laser within them. They are blue lasers, that are reflected on white phosphor to make it look white. That’s why the term White Lasers could be a bit misleading.

The bezel and head are glued so you can’t open it up without using force or a lot of heat. And since LEP flashlights are likely hard to finetune, I am not going to open it up just to find out that I broke it. The beam is more yellowish than white, just like with the other LEP flashlights we tested.

Maybe some stainless steel parts would have made this flashlight even more unique and beautiful. Quality-wise it’s on par with the bigger brands.

Dimensions:

  • Length: 150.8 mm /5.937 ”
  • Head diameter:   34 mm / 1.341”
  • Body diameter (narrowest): 22.8 mm / 0.898”
  • Filter opening: 23.6 mm / 0.929″

Weight: 

  • Without battery: 148gr / 5.22oz
  • With battery:  195.2gr /6.89 oz

LEP Flashlights

Size compared to other LEP flashlights

From left to right: Acebeam W30Weltool W4Jetbeam RRT M1X raptor, Jetbeam M1X wp-rxNo-brand 26650 LEPNEXTORCH T10L, Jetbeam RRT M2S, Jetbeam M2S WP-RXWeltool W3 PROFenix TK30NEXTORCH T7LAcebeam W10 gen2.

Driver & User Interface:

The user interface is really easy and straightforward. 1 click for on, and when on you can switch between High and Low with a half-press. Double half-press will bring you in strobe.

You can only enter Low mode while the light is in High. You can’t get to Low mode from the off position.

Modes:

  • High and Low

From OFF:

  • Half-press: momentary On (High mode
  • Single-click: High mode
  • Double click: Off

From ON:

  • Half-press: Cycle between High and Low
  • 2 quick half-presses: Strobe
  • Single-click:  Off

Mode memory:

  • No, it will always start on High.

Blinky modes menu:

  • Yes, 2 half-presses from ON to enter Strobe.

Low battery warning:

  • Not really.

Lock-out mode:

  • Not necessary with a mechanical switch

PWM:

  • Yes, visible in Low mode, when you wave the flashlight very fast up and down. Not really visible when using it in normal situations.

Firmware / UI Conclusion:

The UI is very straightforward. 1 click for ON and half presses to switch modes. Easy peasy.

Batteries and charging:

The NEXTORCH T7L comes with a 2600mAh battery (1INR19/66) and a charge cable. The charge cable has a proprietary port so you can’t just replace the cable. This type of charge port might actually be much more waterproof than the average USB C or Micro USB ports on other flashlights. That might be the reason for choosing this type. On their website, NEXTORCH also says the same port is used for their remote switch, so that might be another reason. Waterproof and 2-in-1 port.

I tested the battery capacity with a discharge current of 1A and got: 2505mAh. Not too bad for a 2600mAh battery. Take a look at the screenshot below of the discharge curve. The maximum charge speed is 1.87A with my 2A USB charger. If you have a more powerful USB charger you might be able to get 2A charge current.

You can see a blue light blinking near the switch when the battery is charging. It stays lit when the battery is fully charged.

The charge duration is about 2 hours and 20 minutes with the included charge cable. When you connect the charger while the light is actually turned on, the charger will start charging. When you take off the charging cable the light will directly turn on if the switch is still turned on. So there is some sort of protection built-in! Also, when the battery runs out completely, the protection kicks in. Most chargers can’t charge the battery that way. You either have to jump the battery or use the flashlight charge system, which works directly.

The T7L accepts button tops, flat tops, protected and unprotected cells.

Performance:

All of my readings were taken from a fully charged NEXTORCH 2600 mAh battery.

Amp measurement:

Amps were measured with a Fluke 77III, at the tailcap with solid copper wires

  • High  5.0A at startup.

Lumen measurements:

All output numbers are relative to my homemade Integrating Sphere. It is now set up with an Extech SDL400 Lux Meter for measurements. For extremely bright flashlights (above approx. 5000 lumens) I am adding an ND filter, either a Kenko PRO1D ND-16 filter. The base measurement is done with a Convoy S2+

Lumens were retested in May 2023 because some important details were missing.

ModeSpecsAt turn on30sec
Low45 lm5354 lm
High400 lm554523 lm

I also measured High at 60sec (517 lm), 90sec (511 lm), and 120sec (506 lm).

Runtime:

The runtime still uses the earlier measurements.

After 2 minutes and 5 seconds, the output drops to 125 lumens. The total runtime is 2 hours and 22 minutes.

Low starts off around 50 lumens and is most of the runtime somewhere between 20 and 40 lumens. The total runtime is 4 hours and 14 minutes. The light turns off automatically.

Throw measurement:

Measurements were taken both indoors and outdoors with a professional Hagner E4-X Lux Meter. I took measurements at both 10 meters and 20 meters.
Using the high mode only, I get:

  • Outdoors (10m): 437,000 cd =  1322 m / 0.82 miles / 4338 ft
  • Outdoors (20m): 428,000 cd = 1308 meters / 0.81 miles / 4293 ft

NEXTORCH used very conservative numbers, both with lumens and max beam intensity! It even outthrows the Fenix TK30!

Beamshots

For the following beamshots, I used a Canon EOS 5D Mk2 with 100mm lens, ISO1600, .5sec shutter speed, F4.

The first tower is 450 meters away, the second tower is about 650 meters away.

You can see that the Noctigon K1 and Speras T1 both outthrow the T7L, but they have a much larger head. The T7L does a phenomenal job compared to the famous Fenix TK30.

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

Overall conclusion

Pros:

  1. Very well built
  2. High quality
  3. Plenty of throw (1200+ meters)

Cons

  1. Price
  2. Output drops significantly
  3. Proprietary charging system, USB would have been better? At the cost of waterproof and different use for remote switch? Tough choice.
Author Marco
Author Marco

Overall Rating: Good

It’s hard to find anything wrong with the NEXTORCH T7L, except for a high PWM on Low (which is much better than low PWM) and maybe the proprietary charge cable. But the battery can be charged in any Lithium-Ion charger so that’s no big deal. The build quality is on par with the big boys in the market and it even beats the Fenix TK30 at maximum intensity and beam distance. 

NEXTORCH T7L for sale

Not for sale anymore.

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