ORB 3W LUXEON TORCH
Orb 3W Luxeon Torch, retail $97.29 (£50)* (www.theorb.co.uk)
Manufactured by The Orb (www.theorb.co.uk)
Last updated 12-10-12
* IMPORTANT: Pricing is accurate as of 03-03-07. Please visit the Currency Calculator for the latest currency conversion rates from British pounds to US dollars.
(In reference to the package I received today from the UK):
{sung like the Foreigner song "Feels Like the First Time"}
Feels like a flaaaaaash-liiiight...feels like a FLAAAA-aaaash-liiiight!!!
Feels like a flaaaaaash-liiiight...feels like a FLAAAA-aaaash-liiiight!!!
From the makers of the Fliklite comes the Orb. The Orb is a VERY sweet looking LED flashlight ("torch" for UK viewers). It looks a lot less like a woman's kegal excersizor than the original Fliklite does. It comes in an all-aluminum body, with a mineral glass window protecting the light-emitting goodies in the end.
Speaking of "light-emitting goodies", a 3-watt Luxeon LED at the bottom of a shiny, smooth reflector provides a large amount of light when you need it, and a tritium glow tube provides a very small amount of light to help you find the Orb when it's switched off.
The switch is also very different and unusual: a magnetic thingie on the lanyard itself fits into an opening on the back of the flashlight to turn it on. Having no moving switch components or any switch components going through the flashlight body means the Orb is waterproof and submersible too.
SIZE
To use the Orb, load it with batteries first if necessary (see below).
Slide the lanyard through the opening on the flashlight's tailcap until the thick metal part goes into it. This turns the flashlight on. A powerful rare-earth magnet on this piece will keep it centered in the opening until you want it out.
To turn the Orb off, pull on either side of the lanyard at the tailcap until the metal cylinder/magnet assembly slides out of the tailcap opening.
See, that's all there is to it. 
This can be a bit confusing at first, because there is no conventional switch or twist-on bezel. If you forget how to turn your Orb on, refer to this web page or to the handsome canister your Orb came in.
This is a magnetic reed switch, so if you break and lose the included lanyard, you'll have some trouble thereafter turning the Orb on and off. So if the lanyard somehow comes off, please do your best to find it.
To change the batteries in your Orb, unscrew & remove the tailcap, throw it in the {vulgar term for feces}bole, yank that silver handle on the cistern down, and flush it away...O WAIT!!! YOU'LL NEED THAT!!! So just set it aside instead. 
Tip the two used CR123A cells out of the barrel and into your hand, and dispose of or recycle them as you see fit.
Insert two new CR123A cells into the barrel, button-end (+) positive first, and screw the tailcap back on. Aren't you glad you didn't flush away that tailcap now?
There's a spring in the tailcap that *could* come out; be sure you don't vaccume it up if it does. Your Orb will not work without it.
If it comes out, press it back into the tailcap over that metal washer-shaped thing, wide-end down. Press it firmly, and it should stay in place.
Measures 713mA on my DMM's 4A scale.
There is a 2.2 ohm resistor in the tailcap, so do not measure current the usual way by removing the tailcap and placing the meter probes on the case and on the (-) battery terminal; you might let all of the magic smoke out of the LED if you do. Be sure the tailcap is part of the circuit when you measure.
Photograph showing the custom CPF (Candlepower Forums) engraving and the serial number.
The serial number on mine is 009 if the above photograph does not show up.
The Orb appears quite durable. The Luxeon LED means there's no blub to burn out, and the all-aluminum body means that if you drop it, the worst damage you can expect are superficial dings in the body. Because of that fragile glass tritium vial in it though, I won't beat it against a concrete sidewalk or concrete stairs.
The walls of the Orb's barrel are very thick and robust, and it looks like you could run over the flashlight with a tank (the kind with treads, not the kind behind the commode).
The Orb is not anodized; it comes in a handsome brushed aluminum body. I was *VERY EASILY* able to leave a mark on the body with the blade of a Swiss army knife, so it is rather delicate in the sense of it staying new-looking.
Would I really try to cut up a brand spanken new and rather limited-edition flashlight?
You bet your sugar-coated toilet muscle I would, if it's in the name of science!!!
There it is...look under the "O" in "Orb". 
The LED, tritium vial, and reflector are protected by a 2mm scratch-resistant mineral glass window (or "lens", if you are more comfortable with that term, even though it does not adjust or focus the light in any manner).
The Orb is waterproof and even submersible to 100 meters (~300 feet). So you need not be afraid to use it in foul weather; and shallow water landings won't kill it either. If something or somebody goes #1 on it, just take the garden hose to it or douche it off under the faucet - good as new!
Photograph of the Orb's bezel, showing the tritium vial. Out of all the photographs I took of the bezel and tritium vial, this was the best one of them all.
The Orb comes with an elastic (stretchy) wrist lanyard. It fits all the way around the flashlight, so you can use the lanyard to hang it from water pipes, long tree branches, or other relatively thin objects with no readily accessible "end". You do not want to cut this lanyard off, because it contains part of the switching mechanism, and your Orb will not work without it.
Beam photograph at ~12".
Measures 1,050,000mcd on a Meterman LM631 light meter.
This is a very good value for a single LED.
Spectrographic analysis of the LED in this flashlight.
Same as above; newer spectrometer software & settings used.
Spectrographic analysis of the LED in this flashlight; newest (03-25-12) spectrometer software settings used.
Spectrographic analysis of the LED in this flashlight; spectrometer's response narrowed to a band between 430nm and 450nm to pinpoint native emission peak wavelength, which is 440.922nm.
USB2000 spectrometer graciously donated by P.L.
Beam cross-sectional analysis.
Image made using the ProMetric System by Radiant Imaging.
Beam photograph at ~15'.
TEST NOTES:
Test unit was ordered from a Candlepower Forums group buy on 10-07-04, and was received on the morning of 11-03-04. The thread on CPF this is on is right here if you're interested (this thread contains at least 388 messages as of 01-12-05; please be patient if you're using a dial-up connection).
UPDATE: 00-00-00
PROS:
Fantastic body shape
Appears quite durable
Water-resistant and submersible
Very, very, very bright
Pure white with no unwanted tint
CONS:
Switching mechanism may take some getting used to
Uses batteries that could be difficult to find or locally expensive
MANUFACTURER: The Orb
PRODUCT TYPE: Handheld flashlight
LAMP TYPE: 3 watt Luxeon LED
No. OF LAMPS: 1
BEAM TYPE: Medium spot with dim corona
SWITCH TYPE: Magnetic lanyard-activated on/off
BEZEL: Metal; reflector, tritium, and LED protected by glass window
BATTERY: 2xCR123A cells
CURRENT CONSUMPTION: 713mA
WATER- AND PEE-RESISTANT: Yes
SUBMERSIBLE: Yes, to 100m (~300')
ACCESSORIES: None
WARRANTY: 1 year
PRODUCT RATING:
Orb 3W Luxeon Torch * www.theorb.co.uk
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