Flextail Zero: Compact flashlight and lantern combo launches

Flextail's Zero Lantern is a fairly recently introduced 2-in-1 light that can serve as both a conventional flashlight and a small lantern. The regular flashlight beam is emitted from the head, while the small handle at the end is transparent and enables 360-degree illumination. The cylindrical battery sits in the middle inside a white housing. The Zero Lantern is quite small at around 2.8 x 1.2 inches. The lantern uses warm white light at 3,000 Kelvin. The flashlight light, meanwhile, is unusually cool at 9,000 Kelvin.

In terms of runtime, Flextail is focusing more on long use than particularly bright LEDs. The flashlight lasts at least 5 hours at 200 lumens. At 50 lumens, up to 15 hours are possible. Interestingly, the lantern function is not quite as enduring. The minimum is 3 hours at 300 lumens, while the maximum is 35 hours at 10 lumens. The ambient mode is also notable, as it gently pulses the flashlight's brightness. However, Flextail does not say how long this mode lasts.

Both lighting modes, lantern and flashlight, also have intermediate brightness levels that can be accessed via a rotating ring in the head section. The Zero Lantern weighs 2 ounces and is robust enough to be IPX5-certified. Thanks to a carabiner hook, the flashlight can also be attached to a backpack strap, provided the strap has suitable attachment points. This also allows the Zero Lantern to serve as a signal light when hiking in the dark.

Unfortunately, Flextail is not particularly precise when it comes to the technical details. Although images from the company suggest that the 16340 cylindrical battery with a capacity of around 4 Wh can be replaced, we could not find confirmed information on the homepage. At least the promotional video shows that the USB-C port is part of the Zero Lantern itself rather than the battery.

The flashlight is currently sold through the company's online shop for around $37. An Amazon listing is not available yet, but should go live soon.