Acebeam was established in 2014 and has been a pioneer of high powered flashlights, regarded as one of the world's leading flashlight/torch manufacturers. Acebeam manufacture a wide range of flashlights from EDC pocket lights such as the Pokelit AA, up to the impressive 75,000 lumen X75. I reviewed the excellent E70-AL back in 2021, and was hoping that Acebeam would bring an "E70 on steroids" to the market . Acebeam have done this in style, with the new E75, a quad LED, 21700 battery flashlight, available in both max 4,500 lumen 6500k 70CRI, or max 3,000 lumen 5000k 90CRI versions.
Disclaimer
The Acebeam E75 was sent to me by Acebeam for an honest review. This review is written from the perspective of a light painting/night photographer and flashlight enthusiast.
Acebeam E75 product link. - 10% off with code: Stephen10
Design and Construction
The Acebeam E75 is a compact 21700 battery format flashlight, with a side switch user interface, and quad LEDs. It is available in two versions, max 4,500 lumen with 6500k SFT40 LEDs, and max 3,000 lumen with 5000k 90+ CRI Nichia 519A LEDs. This review is of the 5000k 90+ CRI Nichia 519A version. The light is available with body colours in black, grey, blue, and green. My review sample was blue. At the time of writing, the Acebeam E75 retailed for US$99.90.
The E75 is 129.3mm long, 35mm head diameter, 28mm tube diameter, and 217g weight (including battery). It is similar in size to the Olight Seeker 3 Pro (and new Seeker 4 Pro), but larger and heavier than many other 1x21700 flashlights such as the Convoy S21 range. Accessories included in the package include a USB-A to USB-C charging cable, 21700 battery, 2 spare O-rings, spare USB-C port plug, instructions, and lanyard. There is a fixed side clip, which can be clipped to clothing in either direction. The light has a magnetic tail cap, which some people may like, and others not. I would advise keeping it more than a few cm away from camera equipment if placed in a camera bag. White or red traffic wands are an optional extra.
The E75 has an IPX rating of IP68, so it should survive being submersed up to 2m, or 1.5m drops. The flashlight tube has diagonal knurling, which is quite grippy and looks excellent. The light can also tail stand, which will keep candlepowerforum members happy.
A 5000mAh 21700 Li-ion battery is included. The flashlight has internal USB-C charging, which is an improvement over the E70 where the USB port was in the battery. The battery charge indicator has four lights in each corner of the side switch. These display red when charging, green when fully charged. When in use, these display green >20%, red 10-20%, and flashlight red <20%. This is rather crude, and it would have been more useful if the number of lights displaying could have been used as part of the battery percentage indication. The internal charging was tested to terminate at 4.19V, which is spot on.
For light painting/night photography, the E75 is far more suited to illumination, rather than connecting to light painting tools to create light trails. However, it is compatible with the Light Painting Brushes Universal Connector and Light Painting Paradise Adapters, with the side switch still accessible. These can also be used as snoots. It is compatible with Convoy M1 diffusers (35.2mm internal diameter), backlight scanners, and the Small Rig Super Clamp for tripod mounting. The optional silicone traffic wands can also work as diffusers, or turn the light into a camping lantern.
User Interface
The Acebeam E75 has Acebeam's e-switch user interface, which is not dissimilar to many other manufacturer's side switch user interfaces (including Olight, Sofirn, and Convoy). It is really easy to use. A single click is on/off to last memorised mode (Low to High only). Hold from on cycles through the brightness modes (Low>Medium 1>Medium 2>High). Double click from on goes to Turbo. Triple click from on or off goes to Strobe (but briefly passes throgh last memorised mode from off). Short hold from off goes to Moonlight. Long hold enters/exits lockout. The light can also be mechanically locked out by slightly unscrewing the tail cap.
The strobe is constant frequency - yay! There is also no momentary mode, and no single click access to Turbo from off (double click from off briefly passes through the last memorised mode). Thus this light isn't exactly a "tactical" flashlight. Thankfully, there are no silly gimmicks like Olight's proximity sensors.
Beam, Output, and Runtime
The Acebeam E75 is available in two versions, max 4,500 lumen with unspecified cool white 6500k LEDs, and max 3,000 lumen with neutral white 5000k 90CRI Nichia 519A LEDs. This review is of the 5000k 90CRI Nichia 519A version. Both versions use quad LEDs, placed in smooth reflectors. Beam profile is relatively floody, but still with half-decent throw - a useful general purpose beam.
With a maximum output of 3,000 lumens, the peak beam intensity was claimed to be 11,025cd (210m throw), and was measured at 13,000cd.
The Acebeam E75 519A 5000k High 90CRI version has 6 brightness levels, plus strobe, with the following claimed brightness and runtimes:
Turbo - 3,000 lumens (step down to 1,000lm from 60secs, step down to 150lm at 1hr 41mins) - 2hr 41mins total.
High - 1,000 lumens (step down to 150lm at 1hr 45mins) - 2hr 45mins total.
Medium - 450 lumens - 4hr 40mins.
Medium - 150 lumens - 16 hours.
Low - 30 lumens - 60 hours.
Moonlight - 1 lumen - 26 days
Strobe - 2,400 lumens (step down to 1,000lm at 15mins) - 3hr 15mins total.
Brightness levels and runtimes were measured to be within +/-10% of claimed figures. I consistently measured around 3-10% higher lumen output than specifications on Medium, High, and Turbo modes - update: this has been confirmed by another reviewer. I am not able to accurately test Moonlight mode output, but visually I would estimate approx. 0.7 lumens. Brightness step-down from Turbo to High mode is gradual between 50secs to 150secs seconds, measured at 92% at 60secs, 83% at 90secs, and 56% at 120secs.
It should be noted that the E75 6500k 70CRI version has 50% more lumens for most brightness modes. On turbo, that is max 4,500 lumens (16,900cd/260m throw), and 1,500 lumens sustained! The measured sustained brightness of 1,000lm for the tested 90CRI version, and estimated 1,500lm for the untested 70CRI is very impressive and class leading. In comparison, the previous class leader - the Olight Seeker 3 Pro (and new Olight Seeker 4 Pro) can "only" manage 1,200lm (70CRI). The E75 can match the sustained brightness performance of some considerably larger 26650 battery flashlights, such as the Convoy M3-C.
Using an Opple Light Master 3 Pro, I measured the hotspot colour rendering index (Ra CRI), correlated colour temperature (CCT), and tint (DUV) on three brightness modes:
Turbo - 96.6 Ra CRI, 4683k CCT, -0.0018 DUV.
High - 97.5 Ra CRI, 4587k CCT, -0.0005 DUV.
Low - 98.0 Ra CRI, 4486 CCT, -0.0005 DUV.
As expected for the Nichia 519A, the CRI is excellent, measured between 96 to 98 Ra, and a very neutral tint on all brightness settings.
It is fantastic that Acebeam provide the choice of 70CRI 6500k LEDs for those who like maximum lumens, or 90CRI 5000k LEDs for those who appreciate high quality colour rendering. I'm a big fan of >90CRI flashlights instead of "washed out" 70CRI flashlights sold by most manufacturers. The beam shots (below) show excellent colour rendering of the surrounding forest. If you require high CRI warm white options, you may need to consider the (not as bright) Convoy S21D/E/F models.
Conclusion
Positives:
Reasonable value for money.
Choice of 70CRI 6500k, or 90CRI 5000k versions.
90CRI version is actually >96CRI.
Excellent max brightness/size at 4,500lm (6500k)/ 3,000lm (5000k 90CRI+).
Excellent sustained brightness/size at 1,500lm (6500k)/ 1,000lm (5000k 90CRI+).
Appears to perform better than specifications.
Easy to use.
Last mode memory (Low to High).
Good general purpose beam profile.
USB-C internal charging.
Moonlight mode.
Constant frequency strobe.
No silly proximity sensors.
Neutral:
Magnetic tail cap.
Negatives:
Battery charge indicator could be better.
No momentary mode.
No single click access to Turbo or Strobe from off.
The Acebeam E75 is an excellent consumer grade flashlight for general purpose use, camping, and night photography illumination. Maximum and sustained brightness are best in class. The choice of 6500k 70CRI, or 5000k 90CRI emitters also provides more consumer choice than, for example, the Olight Seeker 3/4 Pro's 70CRI only option.
With excellent maximum and sustained brightness, choice of 70CRI and 90CRI versions, and ease of use, the Acebeam E75 is one the best general purpose 21700 flashlights available. It is highly recommended.
The Acebeam E75 is currently my favourite new flashlight released in 2023.
Acebeam E75 product link. - 10% off with code: Stephen10
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