Inside an Aldi rechargeable work light (with schematic)

[@MichaelSteeves]

Costco in Canada sells an almost identical one (a pair, actually) under the "FEIT ELECTRIC" brand. Interestingly, I grabbed a box containing two of them and went through the self-checkout. It gave me an error on "Incorrect item weight", at which point I realized that someone had removed one of the two from the box. The first time that scale at self-checkout has actually been useful!

[@jaykoerner]

I have seen the same light a harbor freight and homedepot under different brands

[@MarioDallaRiva]

@@jaykoerner my dad said to me the other day, hey check out the led from Costco (FEIT). As I turned to look, he turned it on (bright). 😵‍💫 As you said, it’s bloody bright!

[@mscir]

I got a Feit Electric Rechargeable LED Worklight WORK500FLEXBA, it's really bright. I had to repair it (solder the ct. bd. to a metal piece that attaches it to the battery, that is the weakest link inside it, once I resoldered that I had to admire how well built it is. If yours ever stops working check the connection of the ct bd to the battery, it's a little flimsy.

[@RayleighCriterion]

I have a pair of those Feit Electric lights, but needed to buy two boxes just to find two units that lasted at least 11+ hours at low output. Two of the units didn't exceed 10 hours, so those were returned for a refund.

[@MarioDallaRiva]

@@RayleighCriterion good to know! I use Milwaukee M12 work lights and they’ve been excellent! Much more expensive however.

[@samuesoeilyoriy6581]

i used these from aldi in busy work shop they been droped, hammered , dipped in oil . the best lamp i ever had battery lasts forever and always works

[@CommanderZx2]

Best part of it is that it doesn't go into a strobe or SOS mode when you are cycling through modes by pressing the button.

[@robbieaussievic]

.... Only taken them a decade to realize we only need to signal rescue helecopters infrequently. (or induce epileptic seizures).

[@bakedbean37]

I have a very similar model and it does the damned strobing thing. Mine has a little torch on one end too. I'd have much preferred the three brightnesses option Clive's has as mine only does the two levels plus torch and blinking blinking! Mine has a battery compartment that can take 3 AAs or two 18650s which I've fitted. It's a pretty (blinking) good light :-)

[@greensteve9307]

Agreed!

[@ragdolltrucking]

They put that stupid sos mode on every led light i can find, even just normal flashlights 🤦‍♂️

[@getcartercarpark8744]

I went into our local Aldi and the manager found the Workzone lamps they still had in stock. The stock label shows that these lamps went on offer at the beginning of March 2022, some 8 weeks ago, maybe how the online Aldi was out of stock of the offer of these Workzone lamps. Our local Aldi still had about 20 Workzone lamps in stock, so perhaps not that popular an item, despite how handy a lamp this is. I picked up two for around £7.50 ea. Thanks for the heads-up, Clive! K Watt.

[@keithking1985]

That's great to know about asking the manager if something your after is still in storage out the back.. coz there was a few items I thought I missed but there might have been one out back in storage. So thanks GetCaterCarPark... (& a pint for himself)

[@TomCee53]

I’ve used this light with yellow trim for several years, and it’s rock solid and long running battery. I once left it on in a closed room and didn’t make it back for 2 days. It had dimmed a bit, but still was quite usable. I have several versions in this style and in a stick format, and I wonder how we ever got along with d-cell flashlights (torches for my UK friends) back in the 70s.

[@SabretoothBarnacle]

I've got 3 of these that I've used and abused over the last couple of years. They've been genuinely great for the price!

[@knobgoblin9237]

I paid like 10 dollars for mine, rarely use the light anymore but its pretty good for charging my phone when I'm away from a power outlet

[@SabretoothBarnacle]

@@knobgoblin9237 I do a lot of vehicle and house work so very useful for illuminating crawl spaces/voids etc

[@QBFreak]

Really cool to see this! We've had a couple of them. Craftsman used to sell one of these in the US, however they no longer sell the rechargable one. Now they only have a version powered by AA batteries (much like the dual AA/18650 versions you can find on Aliexpress and the like). My Dad had the recharable version for several years, and I ended up having to replace the Micro-USB jack as it broke off the little stand-off PCB. I tried to repair it and ended up damaging the jack. Ultimately I ended up putting in a Mini-USB jack I had lying around, ditching the little stand-off PCB all together and simply holding it in place with copious amounts of hot-melt glue. It worked great right up until it he was using it in an attic of a large building and dropped it down the inside of a block wall and it was never seen again. I got him another one, one of those disposable brand names from Aliexpress. Near as I can tell it's identical to both the Craftsman and the one Clive has here, other than the accent color. (The Craftsman was red, and the one I got was yellow.) I don't recall the Craftsman having any trouble with the charging indicator flashing even when fully charged, but I've not spent any time with the newer one so I couldn't say.

[@toby1248]

The filter with the 1.5 ohm resistor is more likely to stop noise coming out of the charger chip rather than going into it. Switching converters like that can put out a lot of high frequency noise from ringing when the MOSFETs switch, and that snubber circuit is cheaper than a choke for passing EMC

[@StudSupreme]

Always a joy to see these analyses of consumer electronics designs. Thank you. :-)

[@davedave4865]

I have 4 of these. I moded one with a 10000mAH battery which came out of a faulty power pack , it takes about 8h to charge fully but I usually get about 2 days work out of it .also I changed the last LED to orange to identify it. Great video as usual 😀

[@kyriakosmaridakis8139]

can you help me with the handle ? i dont know how to get it back together after replacing the batteries with 21700

[@josef596]

Finally, you’ve reviewed something I actually own.

[@martindooley4439]

Had one of those for a few years now. I can confirm its a rugged long lasting lights. Good to see it's well engineered to.

[@MrJozza65]

I was able to pick one of these up recently from the bargain bin. I had the version from a couple of years back, which is in the same casing but yellow, and has the annoying flashing mode on the 3rd click of the button. Was very pleased to find out they got rid of that in the newer version! I found that if you unplug and replug the charger in when the 3rd light is flashing, it then shows all the LEDs lit correctly, a bit odd that it doesn't do that when charging.

[@ezyto]

My grandma has one of these and it actually helped a lot when renovating my mums place. It also lasted for a couple of days and the USB out was great for charging my phone when I forgot my brick.

[@mulhatton]

We get those exact ones with yellow trim (instead of blue) in South Africa under a “Magneto” brand name. Slightly different operation on the button. Only 2 modes… normal and eco. Mass manufacturered somewhere in the world. I placed a phat lithium pack in there thanks to the things that I have learned from you! Thanks Clive 🍻🤝

[@Lazy_Tim]

These have been available for a few years now. Have not found a bad review to be honest.

[@benbaselet2026]

If they don't fail in 2 years then the designer has failed miserably. Expect a new improved version with more spaceshippy design elements and more reliable points of failure engineered within.

[@benbaselet2026]

@@Okurka. Clearly not a (profit) winning product.

[@zybch]

Always nice to see a basic, well designed product with no stupid shortcuts made to save a couple of pennies.

[@AnimationGoneWrong]

Nice job reverse-engineering that! Your knowledge of circuitry and circuit behavior is impressive. Glad I found your channel! I've been enjoying it a LOT.

[@samholdsworth420]

Clive is awesome!

[@AnimationGoneWrong]

@@samholdsworth420 I concur!!!!

[@robbieaussievic]

..... Check his back catalogue where he, Irradiates his Brother, cooks with Dr. Frankenstein voltages, eats babies, etc.

[@meditatenow]

I've had one of these for a few months. It's now my go-to lamp for just about everything. Brightness can be slightly overpowering as your eyes adjust to the illuminated surface and everything else seems black. I've found this only happens when under a car in the daylight. I use a second lamp then to "fill" the shadows. A genuine bargain and seems built to last. Wish I'd bought 2!

[@ManWithBeard1990]

I've been surprised with the quality of stuff on offer at Aldi lately. For the price, I mean. Most impressive part is that some of it is even made in Europe, not China.

[@goeland4585]

Aldi is not that bad. They do try to be cheap (they know who shops there) but still, you often get at least what you pay for

[@paulstaf]

I have a very similar light. It runs on 4 AA batteries, or 2 18650. It has a battery compartment. Very bright and useful.

[@Alan2E0KVRKing]

I have a similar one, It gets used alot!

[@josephking6515]

Excellent. A little light entertainment from Clive. *Thank You* BC! 👍

[@damienkubik1380]

Thanks Clive, I really appreciate and enjoyed watching this video. Love the way you explain and reverse engineer the electronic and make it simpler to understand. You're one of the reasons I've got into electronics and been studying at uni at the age of 40. Cheers.

[@roberttaylor2328]

My spouse just brought home four of these, albeit a much fancier version. Funny, that. Obviously the same manufacturer, but with three brightness settings, and an impressive magnet in the swivel handle. Branded Feit Electric, WLR2000/2, 3.7v, 4000mAh, 5VDC 1A in/out. Presently (slowly) charging my android phone device with it. After watching your presentation, I am feeling a bit better about the cost, $15 U.S. each. You da bom!

[@paulmccoy2908]

Aldi U.S. had a 2-pack of a very similar, though not rechargeable lamp with an additional headlamp and batteries all for $10. Remarkably well constructed.

[@apcolleen]

Ours is a rechargeable one from Aldi US. it was a standalone item and it survived being dropped into a stock pot of boiling water.

[@CosRacecar]

I have several lights similar to this in my garage, and I absolutely love them. Two of them came from Amazon, only complaint is that the included 18650s were garbage, but I replaced them with ones from my stash and they work excellent.

[@robert574]

As always a great video and your extensive use of CAD (Clive Aided Drawings) makes it very clear. I got a similar light for Christmas and they are very bright. I guess I should expect from 1.5 - 2 hrs of light on bright. Now I don't feel the need to take mine apart. Thanks.

[@phils4634]

Haven't seen those in our ALDI's Down Under yet. Having said that we're still using the ALDI "battery powered LED strip lights" from many years back, which work just fine. Their lights (especially the Lightway range) seem to provide excellent quality and durability.

[@kentahirono]

U made these stamp so good when you put the finger on the button I was expecting it to click.

[@sf-jim8885]

I have a no-name light that looks identical to this that I got for around $5 in San Francisco's Chinatown a couple of years ago. I'm a cinema technician, and I was just using it today while tracing some LAN & speaker cables in the dark recesses behind the screen at an old movie theater. It works really great ! I liked it so much I went back & bought a 2nd one, and attached a magnet, so it's always handy behind one of the audio racks.

[@dashcamandy2242]

We have two of the WalMart versions of this work light. The button clicks firmly and cycles between High, Low, SOS, and Off, and no battery gauge, all the blue bits in this video are yellow. Confidently assuming we have a previous version of this same work light. I highly doubt my mother would allow me to tear one apart, so I'll have to wait until it fails first... My mother bought one and I originally thought, "well, this is probably gonna be shite," but it really puts out an impressive amount of light (even on its lowest setting), has a pretty good run time, the magnets on the back affix to metal objects firmly, and my mother's only complaint was recharge time. I told her, "why not buy a 2nd one, and use that one while the other is charging?" And that's how we ended up with two. I think she paid about $15 each, and after two years they're still going strong. The only BAD thing about them is, of course, that horrible SOS "feature."

[@Jakek200]

I've got an older version of that light which has a round COB LED with a lens. It works pretty well, I've dropped it a few times from relatively high places and it still holds up.

[@risvegliato]

I just bought the Wilko version of this. Looks the same from outside, but the trim is red not blue and the sockets and LEDs are in different positions. The switch settings are High, Low, Flashing. Completely different circuit board inside. Very good for the price. Didn't realise its was fully charged off-the-shelf, and just blinded myself when I pressed the button! Extremely bright!

[@thombaz]

I used the round led one when a renovated my flat, I loved it.

[@joegee2815]

I got a pair of those from Costco and in the handle/stand it has a strong magnet so you can stick it to the hood of the car (bonnet?) or a metal shelf/cabinet. Very useful light.

[@yah5o]

I've just recently got one from Aldi-Nord in Germany. They look almost the same from the outside. What I can tell (from memory) is that mine has a different power switch and a different LED module, but the rest looks almost the same. I like that little thing. Very inexpensive light for occasional use.

[@henninghoefer]

I got that one in 2019. The blue plastic is darker, the main COB is square (6x9 LEDs), there are 4 instead of 3 battery indicator LEDs and the arrangement under the flap is shuffled around. It also says only 10W on the back, not "max 15W" like the one Clive showed. It has visible PWM on the dimmer setting and the power switch of my unit is already starting to become unreliable...

[@buffuniballer]

Just got back from Aldi here in 'Merica and didn't find any here. But I will keep my eyes open for this. Thanks

[@jonesgang]

I have one almost identical but from Hyper Tough model 9977. Mine has 4 functions for the button, high, low, strobe, off. Mine does have 4 strong round magnets on the back side. That comes in handy when working on a vehicle or inside a metal enclosure. The handle is also multi positional. Have had mine since around Sept of 2019. It still works great to this day and it lights up an attic really well.

[@jamescorvett]

I have been looking for a light like this, just a light, without those unnecessary flashing SOS features. Thanks for sharing!

[@DavesGarage]

I'm going to imagine the light uses PWM for dimming but the duty cycle is so fast the camera doesn't see it. After all, in a circuit even 1000Hz would be trivial and would be invisible to a camera. Not everyone uses slow PWM rates like a set of old Cadillac tail lights! Resistive dimming would be fairly inefficient for heat...

[@fookingsog]

Mebbe PWM with capacitive smoothing???🤔

[@seanman6541]

With modern semiconductors there is no reason why any PWM dimming should be happening at frequencies less than 20kHz. Well above the human hearing spectrum and obviously not visible, even to a camera. If that’s to much to ask then at least put a capacitor in parallel to the output.

[@Black3ternity]

@@seanman6541 Tell that to all the fancy cars out there. Watch any episode of Grand Tour or anything nice on youtube and you can see Porsches, Lamorghinis and whatever you can imagine flicker like a 90s techno disco. And then there is a cheap Aldi light that just kills it and has no flicker.

[@seanman6541]

@@Black3ternity You buy something super cheap and it's garbage due to cheap design. Buy something expensive and it's garbage (or will be in a few years) due to planned obsolescence. Your really just paying for the brand name. Buy something in the mid range and it might turn out decent. As an electronics enthusiast, it pains me to watch people buy brand new cars filled with computers and electronics. In five years your "new" car and it's software will be obsolete. To top it off, many electronic components (think electrolytic capacitors) have a relatively short lifespan. Guarantee you won't see a 2022 Honda Civic driving around in 20 years. The necessities (FI, ABS, TCS, SRS, etc...) are all I want in my cars. My family has 4 cars, 3 of which were manufactured 1998-2004 and run perfectly. The other one, circa 2014, is already falling apart. Door locks don't work, mapping and radio unit software is 8 years old and filled with bugs.

[@idjtoal]

@@seanman6541 So true. It's the Phoenix Cartel all over again. ABS, SFI, yup. My 2002 Pontiac is still just fine, no worries about company servers going offline or phone protocols being shut down. Makes me wonder why there wasn't ever a "phone dock" sort of arrangement for cars but, again, $$$. Nice to see Dave Plummer here, some great stories on his channel. "Why does windows do xyz? Well, I sort of randomly guessed at x and y, and it never got changed, lol."

[@weasel2htm]

I have an older version of one of these. I've managed to lose the handle, and have overall beat the crap out of it, but it continues to be nice and bright. Mine oddly enough has a Hi Med Low intensities. Most of the time, Lo is more than enough for me to see what I need, so I use that to maximize my battery life.

[@nzl2004]

I've got a couple of those over here in New Zealand (re-branded), really handy lights. Charging them up is very slow however. I ended up adding some resin around the charging USB connector to strengthen it after one broke off the PCB.

[@craignehring]

Pretty cool, love the 18650s driving these

[@coop_coop007]

This is a good tool, been using around workshop for at least a year if not more, just keeps going.

[@thefixitgal]

Ive got exactly the same one!!! I pulled it to pieces and installed 3x 3ah cells in it ^^ With some cutting of course ^^ But I get a solid work day out of it!

[@clynesnowtail1257]

I have one like this. Its just red and black instead. I put in a 10kmah lipo and desoldered one of the resistors to cut the power consumption. In my case the resistors were not 0 ohm, so this actually reduced power consumption quite a bit. Its awesome.

[@jeremyboyce7921]

Harbor Freight Tools sells these in the US. Last summer I gutted one of them and retrofitted it into an old Coleman lantern. Works nice on campouts and gives a nice retro vibe.

[@JohnJones-oy3md]

I haven't come across these at ALDI in the US, but bought an almost identical one at Walmart, under their Hyper Tough house brand, for $15 or $16. Works a treat.

[@tjcondon3954]

"It's chunky; it's robust; it stands up well." - An accurate description of 70% of Aldi products (including food)

[@casemodder89]

thats what she said ! 😆

[@FishingFan2]

I bought one of these in Yellow from Screwfix three years ago? Mine does have a flashing on and off setting. It is exceptionally bright. I have mine in the garden shed for lighting.

[@dbackscott]

I bought a very similar one here in Florida about a year ago. I’ve been quite pleased with it (especially considering the price). Mine has three light levels, and I rarely need anything more than the lowest one. I have to hide it from my youngest son, who likes to use it as a portable battery to charge his phone.

[@simaesthesia]

That Aldi Workzone stuff is actually pretty decent kit. I have a few friends who've purchased cordless tools and been amazed by the quality and durability for the money. Not bought anything myself, but my friends in question friends are not the kind of people who mollycoddle their tools, let's say :)

[@McTroyd]

I _really_ like the simple one-button operation. Press it twice, and you get low intensity every time -- as opposed to, for example, a blinding strobe flash. I've wondered why these lights run the PWM frequency so low. If a microcontroller is being used, the frequency should be programmable, right? Even at a clock rate of 32 kHz, dividing by 128 (7 bits) still yields an 8-bit dimming slope. 👍

[@ShaunieDale]

The faster the PWM frequency the longer the MOSFET spends in the linear zone and the hotter it gets. I suspect that’s why the switching frequency is often quite low.

[@McTroyd]

@@ShaunieDale Interesting. But wouldn't the "on" resistance also generate heat, especially in cheaper FETs? (I'm thinking in terms of them being "on" for longer continuous runs.) Or is there an order of magnitude difference?

[@wrongtown]

I've noticed some pleasantly robust stuff in the Aldi workzone range; always a nice surprise 😁

[@quartfeira]

I've got the corded version which includes 2 dimmable led units and a tripod. very very good and robust for the price, and extremely bright! I became more and more interested their work stuff too, everything looks really well done and robust with good prices! I agree with you!

[@JohnJones-oy3md]

Same here. Their buyers do a good job. I'm going to assume they are mostly loss-leaders. When I go to ALDI to buy a $7.99 set of chisels, I end up leaving with that and $200 worth of groceries. :)

[@Dirt-Diggler]

I got a similar one from Lidl 👍 It's also a power bank and has lights both sides, cheap and cheerful but surprisingly well built. As allways, enjoyed the vid 👍

[@lonniehowell2360]

I love the reverse engineering of these devices, even when they contain the ubiquitous scrubbed chips

[@michaelkaliski7651]

Nice lamps that work as expected.

[@imsmart.]

In the US, (as far as I know) we have a CAT version of this light, but it's wires do have connectors and is almost exactly identical to this light. The PCB looks almost identical, USB output, 2 cell battery pack (3.7v), and overall design is identical to the CAT light

[@waynio67]

Costco in the U.K. had these for sale for a while

[@kb1gni]

I have almost the twin to this light, sold by Harbor Freight in the US. Where this light has blue accents, the HF one is yellow. Mine also has four battery status lights that are red, yellow, and two green if my memory serves. I believe the HF variant has strobe or SOS mode, as well. Same clicky handle and USB ports. It is a great lamp, and very bright. I use it at work frequently.

[@stevencunningham7409]

I have the Walmart one with red trim

[@8bpspfreak2]

I got a similar use one from a german store (Norma) as well. Its a Maximus M-WKL-017, but it is round on the front, easy to google the device to see how it looks like. The thing on this one is: there is no need for PWM or any regulation for the main lighting. Because the inner LEDs (roughly 40-50) light after one switch click, the outer ring's LEDs light after the second click (8x3 = 24 LEDs) and after the third click, there are 9 red LEDs in the outer ring that flash. The light is incredibly bright, should be 20 Watts according their claims, and judging by the heat I feel off the middle LEDs, I think it comes near it. Haven't opened it yet, but it says on the back "Input 5V 1A, Output 5V 1A, Capacity: 4400mAh (2x 2200 mAh), Battery Type: 2x 18650 Li-Ion". Only weakness I read about it on websites is, that the Micro USB connector, which is mounted right next to the USB output connector, may break off due to being only a SMD component, nit through-hole. But that is no problem for us I guess, just solder it back on/replace it and hot melt glue away. Oh and by the way: it was 20€

[@AIJenkins]

Hi Bigclive - I recently purchased two packs of two unit from Costco in Winter Park Florida. Feit brand, magnet handle with thumb screw adjust. 3.7v 4000mha, square led, 4 charge lights, micro usb :( - black and blue case. Three settings high,medium,low. Works great. Model WLR2000/2 IP64 - I think two cost 29.99 but may of been on sale. Need light to venture into the abyss of the attic…

[@PhilippG88]

I have the previous model. More or less same spec, just different LED. It is a very nice worklight. Maybe little short on runtime, but you can also charge it while using it, if needed. ALso the previous one had a magnet in the handle to attach it to cable trays or other metal on the ceiling.

[@richardbriansmith8562]

Awesome Video Big Clive

[@whatbuttondoipush]

Harbor Frieght is the US sells these under the Braun brand item number 56163 for about $25-$30. I have one and it has lasted years. On the lowest setting it is bright enough to light up a whole room and last a work day!

[@chartle1]

Does yours do 100% 50% SOS flash. Mine looks like an earlier version when all lights did that.

[@whatbuttondoipush]

@@chartle1 Yes is does high, low, sos, flash EDIT: it also has wire dissconnects live bigclive was hoping for, but they are glued in place. EDIT part 2: it looks like a different layout. There is only 1 button and 1 press shows the battery level using 4 LEDs. I'll try to post a good picture to imgur in a bit. edit part 3: I dont want to post a direct link but finding an image in imgur isn't that hard K0sgphG SP3Ose2 S7BLMjN bottom left is hard to read. it is "A2SHB" on both chips

[@olegvelichko1659]

I have that very same light! It has red bumper instead of blue, and has "disco mode" (flashes in red and green) and I got it a Leroy Merlen hardware store. I like it. Does the job for me... :)

[@Baggytrousers27]

Got a near identical one of these meself (model 869 from Australia). Has a little ball and socket hook on one side, the handle is magnetic with adjustable tightness hinges, square 20W LED and the bank is 3.7V 6600 mAh which smay actually tell you when it's charged via a 5th light on the back next to the input (will be able to confirm once it's finished charging).

[@bradmeekakasilvertopflyer]

Greetings Hope all is well in the middle of the Irish Sea Got one of these for my dad who is almost blind he liked it but it broke down,I got it it back and took it to bits found lots of corrosion, as I worked I remember thinking Clive and Louis Rossmann would be proud right now...good day mate

[@dizzy_derps]

I had a clone of this lamp that I bought at Walmart. Very handy light, the only modification I wanted to make was to put some magnets on the back of it. Ended up losing the darn thing.

[@JJFX-]

I bought 2 of these from Aldi about a year ago. They're great lights but do have some issues. Early on one stopped charging above the second LED indicator and doesn't hold a charge very long. The other actually does light all 3 with a full charge. I had to exchange the first one because it's surprisingly easy to break the micro usb port if the plastic door puts pressure on it while charging. If it also had an option to get powered externally instead of relying only on the battery I'd use it more often.

[@jb1555]

Picked up something same form factor of this, same features, but had a battery cover for inserting your own cells. Runs for a considerable time on high with 2 x 3500mAh cells!

[@Cornz38]

Quite a bit of Aldi middle shelf gadgetry is good quality gear!!

[@Nono-hk3is]

I was distracted by breakfast when you showed the circuit details, but i wonder if the always-charging-LED indicator is due to the positioning of that Schottky diode preventing accurate sense of the battery charge.

[@benbaselet2026]

That might make a bunch of sense.

[@davidhamilton2214]

Bought a couple a few years ago. Brilliant never had any problems.

[@gregorythomas333]

That is a really nice work light!

[@theR6969]

I bought a similar one from Amazon few years back for about $8. Two different things are : batteries are replaceable and either 2 18650s or 3 AA batteries can be used, and there's a blue/red flashing LEDs as third mode.

[@markmoore9486]

LED dimming can be done using PWM, if a constant current driver is used it is easy to simply regulate the constant current output. I.E. you would have a DC current of varying magnitude.

[@DYLANTRIES]

I have one, walked for 2 hours in a cave and came out with still a slight charge left, I did use it on low to conserve power as the cave is about 1.2 miles overall

[@curtchase3730]

I bought a 2 pack of the econo model series (Menard's Home Improvement store in the Great Lakes region in US). Looks like the one in the video, but used 4 AA single use batteries. I quickly learned that the light eats batteries dry! Put new batts in it, but not use for like a week? It won't turn on. Batteries totally flat! Now I put a little piece of paper to open the circuit when I/m not using it.

[@LordPhobos6502]

Jaycar (in aus) have an extremely similar lamp, but with 2 led clusters instead of 1 long one. Runs off 4xAA batteries. Trying to analyse it... seems to have 2 mosfets in parallel off a microcontroller, and the powerfeed goes through 2x 0.390ohm (parallel) resistors! My goodness they run hot!

[@electroniquepassion]

Thank you 👍👍👋👋

[@AMDRADEONRUBY]

Nice a light Video again really loving them

[@Farm_fab]

I'll have to check to see if these are available here at my local Aldi store here in Pennsylvania.

[@KeritechElectronics]

Great reverse engineering job - this lamp has some complexity to it :)

[@markkinnon4866]

It would be great if it had a threaded insert for use on a tripod.

[@quartfeira]

I've got the corded version which includes 2 dimmable lights and a tripod. Very bright and robust, i normally see products like this for about double the price i paid. 52 euros. I'm using it to illuminate the workspace during wall painting and general interior working. Really happy with aldi stuff. And I'm not usually cheap with my work tools, at all.

[@SquishyZoran]

The Harbor Freight one does.

[@ewicky]

3:20 I was wondering why Clive doesn't just actually press the button to show us the tactile action. Only after do I remember this is a blown up photograph.

[@ajacks1349]

Blast...the local one here doesn't seem to have any, though it's very easy to miss these sort of things at Aldi, because of the way items are haphazardly displayed. I'll check a couple of others next week... Update: Further afield branch has loads at £7.99 each...great value. Thanks Clive...

[@dallynsr]

The American Feit Electric version 2-Pack of this light has high-med-low settings and four charge level led’s. Goes for $40/for two great work lights. Also goes to show how silly it is to buy throwaway battery operated work lights in the store when rechargeable is a much better way to go. Plus, these lights have a USBa out port and will charge a full size cell phone if needed, like a pocket juice or power pack.

[@Slikx666]

That looks like someone thought about it when designing it. 😆👍

[@chrisengland5523]

I can remember the days when a "torch", which is what this basically is, had three components: a battery, a switch and a bulb. Nowadays, they include a large selection of components unheard of 40 years ago, including a microcontroller, otherwise known as a computer. Progress? Possibly, though a child could have fixed a broken one in those days, whereas many engineers would struggle to do so nowadays.

[@rexsceleratorum1632]

Well, it is rechargeable now, and that itself adds complexity. The fancy microcontroller is unnecessary, but that's about it

[@snowgorilla9789]

In Canada these were sold at Costco 2 for $25 Have been a great deal so far great to keep in the drawer for power outage or ....

[@AC9BXEric]

Looks just like the Braun brand should by Harbor Freight in the US. Theirs is yellow accents, green & red LEDs. It performs pretty well.

[@masteryoda394]

Workzone always have good robust stuff.

[@davidbwn]

Nice to see a switched mode charger in it. At the moment designing a switched mode charger for NiMH using the TL494. Should have circuits and PCB ready by next week.

[@ruben_balea]

I've a similar unit, a Brennenstuhl ML CA 110 M 1173080. It was crazy expensive back then, up to 100€ depending of the store, I got it for "only" 18€ at a pawn store, brand new without accessories, which where just a USB cable and a carrying bag, a good charger must have seemed too expensive to them, I suppose that as Apple is now saying with the iPhone we all already have lots of USB chargers at home and in the car ;-) It's also sold as Philips RC520C1, about as expensive but I think Philips throws a charger in the package. It has 4 charge indicator LEDs and those work OK, also it only switches to low power mode if the button is pressed again withing a few seconds after turning it on, otherwise it just turns off when the button is pressed again, and that's the feature I like the most because all the other LED lights I have to go through several modes to turn them off.

[@chartle1]

I have the Harbor Freight version and a few differences. The label Braun is on the bottom so the entire unit is flipped 180 degrees. But sadly I have first press 100%, second 50%, third SOS, fourth fast flash. ☹️ But I believe Aldi in the US is selling them this week or maybe last week and they were left over. Also it does have a tripod ¼ 20 socket.

[@CafeElectric]

I also have a Harbor Freight version. Nice in many ways. I do with that it was designed to not self discharge when sitting around. After a few months it depletes the charge.

[@ProfaneGod]

Tis a sad day indeed when Aldi has better build quality and design of products than most top brands.

[@upatree2660]

On the one I have it also has a magnetic Handel, pritty good stick to things you don't won't it to. Keep up th good work old chap

[@sootikins]

This light looks like it's a cousin of the " chunky USB rechargeable work-light" from your Feb. 1 2019 video. The PCB is very different but they have a number of case parts in common. I know this because I have the same light featured in the 2019 video sitting here. Bought it after seeing the video and it still work well. A decent product.

[@ulogy]

They sell this exact unit at Costco Canada under some other name. I have one, they're great for the price and are insanely bright for something that lasts so long.

[@TheFransVenter]

Have one for about 3 years now, used and abused. Great light with strobe. ..