Acebeam T27 Review

Flashlight Review – Acebeam T27

Lets admit it..  most of us are a bit of “gear geeks”..  at least I know I am. Yes, we own a budge of different flashlights for our light tools,work, hobbies, our everyday etc, but we always look very interested when something new and interesting comes up.. There is always space for more!  And although I m more of the “you dont need much to create something” I agree also with the saying “every tool has its use, and in the right time it will make your life so much easier…” Thats what my grandpa used to say.. and he had really a million tools..  Anyway.. enough with the stories..  this is a review.  A review of  the Acebeam T27, from a light painting perspective..

 

Disclaimer

The flashlight was send to me for a honest review by the manufacturer ACEBEAM.  I receive no commission from sales or any sort of affiliate links. You can find the flashlight here.

 

First impression

No matter what happens later on, the first impression is always very important..   I have to say although I never heard the brand ACEBEAM before, I was positively impressed. Firstly it arrived pretty fast , 3 days from China to Finland.. thats nice.  Then it comes in a  nice orange black box, everything neatly inside..  reminded me of apple products in a way.  Finally and most important, the moment you hold the flashlight in your hands you ll get what I mean..  The feel is just about right..  solid,  quality stuff!

What is in the box

Ok , so lets have a look what was in the box.

• one Acebeam T27
• one  holster  ( nice quality…)
• one IMR21700NP-510A Li-ion battery
• one 18650 battery adapter
• one USB-C cable with output capability
• lanyard
• two o-ring replacements
• rubber button cap
• warranty card
• user manual

 

Design and optics

The T27 is a tactical long throw flashlight.  It has both a side switch and a tactical tail one with direct access to turbo.

With a head of 7 cm is definitely too big to fit any conventional light painting adapter which automatically kind of limits its use for light painting. You can use it basically to illuminate areas, and its specially good at middle to long distances , if you wish to light up something quite accurately.

Its beam is very concentrated in the middle and its stated to reach 1180 meters on turbo mode. Although I didn’t do any scientific test about that , I did test the lights output with a friends Olight R50 which has the same peak lumens 2500 and a similar beam.  The beam of the T27 was a bit more tight so the it was  brighter in this test.  This beam is an asset but could also be a limitation , depending on what you are trying to do.  I m not sure if the manufacturer has any diffusion filter for the lamp but that would be something really helpful , converting this light to a more versatile beam when needed.

User interface

The user interface of the T27 is pretty straight forward.

on the side switch:

you click ON you click OFF

you click and hold (when ON) – toggles through LOW ( 150 lumens )  , MID ( 550 lumens ), HIGH ( 1400 lumens )

double click goes to TURBO ( 2500 lumens )

triple click STROBE ( 1400 lumens )

Click and hold from OFF – goes to ULTRA LOW (1 lumen)

Click and hold for more than 3seconds – locks the side switch. Same way to unlock it. While its locked you can still access the tail switch.

If the T27 would be suitable for lightpainting tools I would have been complaining about not direct access to strobe mode… but its not, so the user interface is fine for other use.

 

Battery and runtime

The T27 uses a single IMR21700NP-510A Li-ion  High Drain Rechargeable Lithium Battery ( comes with the flashlight ) with 5100mAh .  It can be also operated with a single 18650 with the included adapter, or 2x CR123 using the same adapter. They provide the USB-C cable ( with output build in to act as a power bank) but unfortunately no USB charger plug, which to be honest I never understand why brands exclude those..

Finland in the wintertime with temperatures below zero is really not a reliable place to measure battery runtime. According to the manufacturer, the 21700 can last from 1,6 min ( 2500 lum Turbo mode) to 30 hours in low mode. See image below

Plus – Minus

Here are some plus and minus for the flashlight

PLUS +

• Construction quality
• High output in a relatively small profile
• Specialized beam , good for illuminating medium distances with some precision
• Fast charging
• Acts as a usb powerbank with the included cable

 

MINUS –

• Head too big for any commercial light painting adapters
• No changing plug ( Usb-c included )
• Not on the cheap side
• Lack of diffuser

 

Final thoughts

All in all the Acebeam T27 is an interesting quality flashlight. Even though you cannot use it for light painting tools, it can become handy as a “medium-big” light. With its small profile and quite high output, it would be a nice addition to someone’s arsenal.

I leave you with a light painting image I did with this light ( with an orange gel and a  diffuser from another flashlight in some parts.. 😉 )