Toย say pocket and floodlight together sounds a little bit like aย misnomer, but the guys over at Maxxeon pulled it off with their new Maxxeon WorkStar 220 Pocket Floodlight. This little flashlight is hardly bigger than a pen but features a Cree LED that puts out 120 lumens.ย With the included pocket clip, you can put it in your shirt front pocket, and you can almost forget it is there until you need it, because it only weighs an ounce. With no hot spots or shadows, theย light beam has a 1:1 ratio โ meaning that for every foot you are away from an object, the diameter of the beam grows by one foot. Stepย 20 feet away, and you are lighting up an entire room with this baby.
Maxxeon WorkStar 220 Pocket Floodlight Features
Forย many guys, there are a few things that you can never have too many of,ย and they include things like pocket knives and flashlights. Now withย the Maxxeon WorkStar 220, you can carry both your knife andย flashlight in the same pocket. The first thing that caught my eyeย with this light was the powerful 120 Lumen Cree LED light source.ย Cree is known as an industry leader with their LED technology, so thatย alone is a good start. The main body of the light is made of T6ย aluminum that has type II anodizing in black.
The tail cap, whichย unscrews to provide access to the batteries, also houses the switch.ย The switch is a click ON / click OFF type that, when slightly depressed, will also give a momentary ON. The switch is protected fromย dust and moisture by a rubber cover, and all the parts that unscrew onย the flashlight are protected with rubber o-rings as well. Accordingย to the folks at Maxxeo,n the switch button has been tested to 100,000ย cycles (which we will have to take their word on). If the lightย should fail in the first year, they will replace it as part of theirย standard one-year warranty.
Theย reflector is probably one of the most critical aspects of aย flashlight since it dictates how the light beam shines out from theย light source. In the case of the Maxxeon WorkStar 220 Pocket Floodlight, the reflector is the normal silver reflective color, but with an orange peel texture that somehow projects no shadows, hot spots, or rings. The beam shinesย forth in a 1:1 ratio in a floodlight style. Shine this into a roomย and you light up the whole place with an even glow. Power comes from three AAAA (yeah, you read that right,ย quadrupleย โAโ batteries), which are available in more places than you might realize.
Testingย and Use
Whenย we got the Maxxeon WorkStar 220 Pocket Floodlight in for review, weย figured the best way to test it was to use it as much as possible,ย replacing our normal methods of illuminating work areas. Afterย carrying it around for a few weeks, I found that I actually used itย numerous times to inspect inside of crawlspaces and attics for aย little side consulting business I have. What was fun is that I have aย few other Cree LED productsย like the Outback Big Stick Flashlight that rely on big โDโ sizeย batteries for power. I always keep one on my dresser and the otherย under the seat in my truck, where they are always ready.
Whileย both of these other flashlights are decentย brands and have a sturdy construction, they almost canโt compare toย this little flashlight. They are distinguishable on several levels โย the first being the size. It is so easy to clip the WorkStar 220 in my pocket, where it goes unnoticed because it does not weigh anything.ย The next huge area of comparison is the fact that this little lightย is really a floodlight. I tried to capture some photos of this toย give an idea of how much light it puts out. While up in an attic theย other day, I snapped this photo of the light illuminating the entireย attic space. Notice the complete lack of hot spots or shadows. (I didย not use a flash at all)
Just for fun, I rigged up a piece of steel pipe with some Irwin quick-grip clamps to suspend the WorkStar 220 and one of my other 2-D 120-lumen Cree LED flashlights. They were suspended about three feet above theย floor, side by side. I did this to try to compare the consistent, bright, even light of the WorkStar 220 to its larger brethren.ย As you can see, the WorkStar 220 has a nice tapered flood patternย that casts a tremendous amount of light and is perfect for lightingย up a large area. The other flashlight presents a much more focusedย beam, with a hard edge and limited spread.
Conclusion
Notย sure what to get your father for Fatherโs Day? We hope that after reading this review, the Maxxeon WorkStar 220 Pocket Floodlight will be at the top of your list. Make sure to pick one up for yourself, too, because it will quickly become one of your favorite flashlights. We suspect that HVAC techs, mechanics, electricians, and plumbers would also appreciate this light.ย
Given its slim size, lightweight, and big beam, we gave this flashlight a Performance rating of 9/10. For our Value rating, we pinned the WorkStar 220 with a 9/10 as well because it included things like a real Cree LED, glass optics, and water-resistantย features at a great price.
