This Acebeam E75 (affiliate link) was provided by Acebeam for review.

Overview

The Acebeam E75 is a general-purpose floody flashlight with a 21700 battery, USB-C charging, a strong magnet in the tailcap, excellent efficiency and color quality. It struck me as a bit boring when it was first announced, but it's the best kind of boring; it does its job very well with no surprises and easily justifies its price.

Most people will find the E75 too large for carry in a pants pocket, but it's a good size for a jacket pocket or backpack. The beam is on the floody side, but provides adequate throw for most general use situations on higher modes. The color temperature is on the cool side, but the color rendering is excellent, and the look resembles midday sunlight. It will get warm in the process, but it's capable of maintaining its 1526 lumen high mode for over 100 minutes until the battery runs out, but there's plenty of warning from the colored LEDs surrounding the switch.

It's hard to find anything to complain about with the E75, but I'll try: the button doesn't provide much tactile feedback, and unprotected cells can rattle, or disconnect if the light is shaken vigorously. I love it when my worst complaints about a flashlight are such minor issues.

It's rare I get to write this: the Acebeam E75 is outstanding.

Specifications

Spec	-
Battery	1x21700
LED	Nichia 519A, or unspecified cool white LED
Color temperature	5873K
Color rendering index	96
Max output	4195 lm
Max throw	214 m
Max sustainable output	1526 lm
Max output at 50% battery	2651 lm
Best efficiency	190 lm/W @ 221 lm
Candela per lumen	2.6 (very floody)
Length	129mm
Head diameter	35mm
Weight	145g
Weight with battery	217g
Water resistance	IP68 (2m submersible)
Charging	USB-C
Low Voltage Protection (LVP)	Yes, 2.7V
Lockout	Mechanical and electronic
Approximate price	$100
Rating	★★★★★ (outstanding)

Highlights

• Very efficient
• Excellent color rendering
• Balanced beam profile
• Great build quality
• Strong magnet

Lowlights

• Unprotected flat-top batteries can rattle and break contact
• Button feel is mushy and unsatisfying

Details and technical analysis

Versions

The E75 comes in black, grey, green, and teal with a choice of Nichia 519A or unspecified cool-white LEDs. This is the teal, 519A version.

Accessories

The E75 comes with a battery, USB A-C cable, spare O-rings, spare USB port cover, and lanyard. Optional, and highly recommended for their trivial cost are red and white traffic wand style diffusers.

Modes and user interface

Modes

Mode	Estimated lumens	Estimated throw (FL1 meters)
Moonlight	1	3
Low	51	23
Med1	221	47
Med2	639	80
High	1526	127
Turbo	4195	214

User Interface

State	Action	Result
Off	Click	Last-used (L/M/H)
Off	Hold	Moonlight
On	Hold	Cycle L/M/H
Any	Double-click	Turbo
Any	Triple-click	Strobe
Turbo	Double-click	Last-used
Off	Hold 3S	Lockout
Lockout	Hold 3S	Moonlight

There is a mechanical lockout by slightly loosening the tailcap.

Output, runtime, and efficiency

Tests were conducted using a Samsung 50S 5000 mAh 21700 battery. I should note some of these lumen readings seem a little optimistic to me.

Turbo on the E75 has an unusual soft start, taking a few seconds to reach full output. A casual user might think it's not as bright as it really is.

Mode	Estimated lumens	Time to 80%	Time to 50%	Time to 10%	Efficiency (lm/W)	Current (mA)
Moonlight	1			1.2 months	41	6
Low	51			3.0 days	180	69
Med1	221	15.7 hours	15.7 hours	17.2 hours	190	277
Med2	639	4.1 hours	4.1 hours	4.5 hours	149	823
High	1526	114 minutes	114 minutes	2.4 hours	161	2373
Turbo	4195	1.4 minutes	1.9 minutes	2.0 hours	159

The E75 compares well to other floody lights using 5000 mAh batteries:

Light quality

Readings are taken from the center spot diffused with DC Fix diffusion film using an X-rite i1Pro spectrophotometer.

Mode	Color Temperature	Tint Duv	CRI	CRI R9 (deep red)	CRI R12 (deep blue)
Moonlight	5589K	0.0018 (slightly green)	95.8	97.6	75.8
Low	5722K	0.0028 (moderately green)	96	95.1	75
Med1	5820K	0.0033 (moderately green)	96.1	94.8	75.4
Med2	5873K	0.0029 (moderately green)	95.5	93.2	75.7
High	5982K	0.0025 (moderately green)	94.7	89.6	76.1
Turbo	6233K	0.0001 (neutral)	95.1	93.2	78.4

The 519A option is advertised as 5000K, but I think these are actually the 5700K bin. I usually prefer a little warmer, but the color rendering is so good I won't complain.

Beamshots

Turbo, high, and Zebralight SC64c LE as my standard reference light:

Tint versus BLF 348, Zebralight SC64c LE, and Skilhunt M200 v2 519A

Batteries and charging

The E75 can use any 21700 Li-ion battery of reasonable quality. It's intended for protected cells and the springs are a little short with unprotected cells. Shaking the flashlight can result in rattling, and the cell can disconnect. A magnet on the negative end can improve the connection, but it's important to align it with the polarity of the tailcap magnet. An 18650 with a third-party spacer can be used in a pinch.

Charging is via USB-C and takes about 3.5 hours. Standard C-C cables work with the E75.

This is not the most efficient way to get a charged 21700 into the E75:

Size and ergonomics

The E75 can be carried in a pants pocket if necessary, but I think that's best reserved for times when its large battery and strong performance will be required over a smaller flashlight. The screwed-on pocket clip is very sturdy, and I have carried it in a pants pocket for a short time, but I think most people would find it better suited to a backpack or jacket pocket.

Goose for scale:

In the hand, the E75 provides a reliable grip and is easy to use with gloves on. The button, surrounded by raised ridges is easy to find, but not very satisfying to press with its short travel and minimal feedback.

Modification potential

The steel bezel had just a touch of threadlocker holding it in place, but wasn't terribly hard to unscrew, allowing access to the reflector and emitters. The emitters are wired with two in series (6-volt nominal), so it would be possible to use 6-volt LEDs on a different board.

I did the first thing most hobbyists do to modify 519As and removed the domes. This results in more rosy tint, warmer color temperature, more throw, and less output. Interestingly, the R9 score is reduced a little and R12 is improved.

Mode	Color Temperature	Tint Duv	CRI	CRI R9 (deep red)	CRI R12 (deep blue)
Med1	3902K	-0.0047 (very rosy)	96.8	83.9	83.4
Turbo	4551K	-0.0053 (very rosy)	96.9	90.6	85.4

Maximum output (at 30 seconds) is reduced to 3690 lm and throw increases to 271m (18383cd). That's 5 cd/lm, which is still somewhat floody, but more balanced. Beam artifacts are slightly increased, but not bad. Here it is with the BLF 348: