Wurkkos' TS10 series has been very popular with flashlight enthusiasts, and the larger 18650 battery format TS10 MAX is now available with high CRI Nichia 519A LEDs, and 2500 lumen max output. This is one of a handful of flashlights/torches with the flexible Anduril user interface (UI) that are suitable for light painting photography.
Disclaimer
The Wurkkos TS10 MAX was purchased with my own funds. Product links in this review are non-affiliate.
Design and Construction
The 14500 Li-ion battery format Wurkkos TS10 and TS10 V2 flashlights have been around for a few years, and have been hugely popular with flashlight enthusiasts. However the small size limits both maximum and sustained lumens. The Wurkkos TS10 MAX brings to the TS10 series to the much larger 18650 format, potentially allowing for higher brightness and/or longer runtimes. The TS10 MAX uses the flexible but complex Anduril 2 user interface (UI) which is explained in more detail in the next section.
The Wurkkos TS10 MAX has a head diameter of 26.7mm, length of 92.7mm, and weight of just 50g (without battery). The light has a tail switch, and optional 18650 Li-ion battery with internal USB-C charging. Accessories included the side clip, a lanyard, spare O-rings, instructions, optional 18650 Li-ion battery, and USB-C to USB-C cable. An ANSI/NEMA chart has been provided by Wurkkos. The standard price at the time of writing was US$49 without battery, and US$56 with battery, though Wurkkos frequently discount their lights (it was 30% off at the time of writing).
The triple LED TIR optics also have auxiliary RGB LEDs which are a bit of a gimmick, and will need to be disabled for light painting photography. They can be useful for general purpose use to display battery charge status, but are not bright enough to actually illuminate anything.
The head and tail can be unscrewed for battery insertion. As the light uses an inner signal tube, it is critical that the head and tail are screwed on for the light to work after a battery change. The light accepts unprotected flat top 18650 Li-ion batteries, as well as the (longer) optional 18650 with integrated USB-C charging. The Wurkkos TS10 MAX is the only tail switch Anduril light that I'm aware of with USB-C charging. The optional battery terminated charge at 4.19V and tested close to its 3000mAh rated capacity.
For light painting photographers - with a head diameter of 26.7mm, then the TS10 MAX fits in the Light Painting Paradise (cone shaped) adapters, Light Painting Brushes Universal Connector, and most T8 tubes. Note that the light output will be warmer than 6500K LEDs used in most flashlights for light painting. The high CRI LEDs are excellent for illuminating scenes. There is no remote pressure switch available, but the tail switch can be used in momentary and tactical modes.
User Interface
The Wurkkos TS10 MAX uses Anduril 2 UI with a single tail switch. The keys features of Anduril for light painting photographers is:
Party strobe - "motion freezing" - adjustable 4Hz to 90Hz frequency.
Tactical strobe - 33% on-time - adjustable 2.5Hz to 80Hz frequency.
7 stepped or ramped continuous brightness levels, plus Turbo.
Any of the above can be used in Momentary or Tactical mode.
Other features include a pulsating bike flash mode, and lightning effect mode. As anything other than basic use it not entirely intuitive in Anduril, I have written a detailed article on how to use Anduril for light painting photography. Below are the basics:
Enter Advanced UI from Basic UI - 10 clicks, last one hold for 0.5 sec (10H). You should only need to do this once unless you do a factory reset or click too much! The TS10 MAX arrived already in Advanced UI.
On/off (last mode memory for steps 1/7 to 7/7) - 1 click (1C).
Toggle ramped/stepped - 3 clicks from on (3C).
Change brightness levels (1/7 to 7/7) - hold, release at desired brightness level.
Turbo mode - double click from on (2C).
Enter strobe mode - click, click, hold 0.5s (3H) from off.
Cycle through strobe modes - double click (2C) ...party strobe>tactical strobe>police strobe>lightning>candle>bike flash>...
Increase strobe frequency/speed - hold, release at desired strobe speed.
Decrease strobe frequency/speed - click, hold, release at desired strobe speed.
Save last used setting into momentary (essential to "save" strobe) - 5 clicks (5C).
Momentary - hold only when you need light.
Exit momentary - slightly unscrew and re-screw head cap (to break the electrical connection).
Additionally, for light painting photography, you will need to disable the auxiliary RGB LEDs. This is done by clicking 7 times (7C) from off (in Advanced UI), which cycles low>high>flashing>off with each 7C. To do the same for Tactical mode (below), you have to first enter Lockout mode.
There is a fairly new Tactical mode, entered or exited with 6 clicks (6C). It is then possible to configure 3 different settings (including strobe) to be accessed by 1H, 2H, or 3H. (See diagram). This is useful if you need to access more than one setting with momentary mode. The default settings were different to the TS10 SG, but it only took a minute to configure 1H to Turbo, and 2H to a roughly 20Hz Tactical Strobe.
The annoying battery check on off feature was enabled by default, but can be turned off in configuration for both normal modes and tactical mode. The "soft start" functionality was disabled by default.
I often use Anduril UI flashlights for light painting (as a secondary flashlight to the excellent Light Painting Paradise LightPainter - Ryu's Lightworks V2 flashlight). However, the user interface is complex, and I have had reports from many light painters who struggle to use Anduril UI lights. Persistence with learning to use Anduril UI pays dividends in creativity.
It should be noted that there are many versions of Anduril 2 in use. The tested light appears to have a recent 2024 version, but I'm not completely on top of Anduril 2 versions..
Beam, Output, and Runtime
The Wurkkos TS10 MAX has three high CRI Nichia 519A 5000K LEDs in a TIR optic. This creates a relatively floody beam profile.
All testing was performed with the supplied 3000mAh18650 Li-ion battery (unless otherwise specified), indoors, 26C ambient temperature, minimal air flow, and default thermal calibration/settings.
I measured the colour temperature (CCT), colour rendering (CRI), and tint (DUV) with hotspot measurements using an Opple Light Master 3 Pro:
Turbo - CCT 4539K, CRI 96.8 Ra, Tint -0.0020 DUV.
7/7 - CCT 4535K, CRI 97.2 Ra, Tint -0.0013 DUV.
5/7 - CCT 4514K, CRI 97.9 Ra, Tint +0.0014 DUV.
3/7 - CCT 4306K, CRI 98.3 Ra, Tint +0.0001 DUV.
2/7 - CCT 4228K, CRI 97.5 Ra CRI, Tint +0.0004 DUV. (No reading on 1/7 brightness mode).
CCT is around 4500K, warmer than the specified 5000K, which is often the case for lights with TIR lenses. CRI is very good at more than 96 Ra at all brightness levels. Tint is also very neutral at all brightness levels.
The measured brightness in lumens @5secs on each mode:
Turbo (30Q) - 2530lm
Turbo - 2200lm
7/7 - 1353lm
6/7 - 781lm
5/7 - 380lm
4/7 - 109lm
3/7 - 32lm
2/7 - 7lm
1/7 (moonlight) - 0.9 lm
On Turbo mode (with the optional Wurkkos battery) the light started off at 2200lm (slightly under specification), and started to step-down in brightness rapidly after just 12 seconds. By 30 seconds the brightness was 407lm, then 498lm at 60secs, 504lm at 120secs, 353lm at 5mins, 200lm at 10mins, 171lm at 15mins, 170lm at 20mins. Due to low sustained brightness, the useable runtime was quite long at 4hr30mins.
With a Samsung 30Q battery, the max brightness was (briefly) 2530lm. The rapid step-down and poor sustained brightness (which was lower than the tiny Wurkkos TS10 SG) may be a combination of an inefficient FET driver, poor thermal mass (noting the TS10 MAX is only 50g compared to the Noctigon KR4's 95g), and default thermal calibration/settings. The Wurkkos TS10 MAX is essentially a 170 lumen flashlight, that can briefly hit 2200-2500 lumens.
It should be noted that brightness step-down does not occur in Momentary or Tactical modes where the user has to hold the tail switch for light output. I like this, as there is no chance of brightness step-down whilst creating short light trails for light painting. However, the user needs to be aware of the heat generated.
Tactical strobe appears to run on Turbo brightness (other than the very fastest frequency). I'm pretty sure previous Anduril versions were at 7/7 brightness? The 3ms party strobe has a 3 photographic stop hit to brightness due to the short 3ms pulse.
Throw was tested at:
Turbo (30Q) - 8190cd (181m)
Turbo - 7126cd (168m)
7/7 - 4383cd (132m)
Compared to:
Wurkkos TS10 SG Turbo - 24036cd (310m)
Noctigon KR4 W2 - 25533cd (320m)
Noctigon KR4 519A - 6487cd (161m)
Note: My Opple Lightmaster 3 Pro tends to overestimate lux readings by 25%.
The Nichia 519A is a floody LED emitter, so it is no surprise that the throw was relatively low. Interestingly, the max throw/peak beam intensity is actually slightly higher than the Noctigon KR4 519A with Boost driver. However, the KR4 will easily win in regards to sustained throw output. I would like to see a triple or (preferably) single SFT-25R option for the TS10 MAX, as well as a more efficient LED driver (Buck or Boost).
Conclusion
Positives:
Good maximum lumens / size.
Adjustable strobe frequency (at fixed brightness).
Good CRI and tint.
Momentary or tactical mode can work for any strobe or continuous brightness setting.
Well spaced, stepped brightness levels.
Last mode memory for brightness steps 1-7.
Compatible with most light painting systems.
USB-C charging (rare on tail switch Anduril lights).
Side clip included.
Negatives:
Extremely rapid brightness step-down (dimming).
Poor sustained brightness.
Anduril 2 UI is too complex for many users.
Auxiliary LEDs have to be disabled for light painting (in 3 different parts of configuration).
I'd prefer battery check on off to be disabled by default.
No remote pressure switch option.
For general purpose use:
It is fantastic to see Wurkkos expand the tail switch TS10 series into 18650 format, and include USB-C recharging. However, the light's inefficient driver and low thermal mass results in extremely rapid brightness step-down and sustained brightness that is out performed by the much smaller TS10 SG. Whilst the TS10 MAX is very good value for money, the more expensive Noctigon KR4 with Boost driver performs significantly better with quad 519A LEDs. The Anduril 2 UI is more suited to flashlight enthusiasts or tech savvy people.
For light painting photography - light trails and illumination:
The Wurkkos TS10 MAX has good light painting system compatibility. Due to the rapid brightness step down it is most useable in Momentary and Tactical modes where brightness step-down is disabled. The floody high-CRI LED is more suited for light painting portraits with fiber optics and light blades or illuminating scenes, and less suited (but still useable) for use with saber like tools. A SFT-25R option would be better for the latter. Again, the Anduril 2 UI is better suited to more tech savvy light painters.
I would really like to see Wurkkos to release a version of the TS10 MAX with a triple or (more preferably) a single SFT-25R LEDs and a more efficient LED driver.
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