Another AA everyday carry flashlight? You bet! I know I just reviewed the Olight I5T EOS flashlight, but then I came across Fenix E20 V2.0 and I have to talk about it. It’s such a great little everyday carry flashlight and kudos to any flashlight company that’s creating AA pocket lights. In this review, I’ll go over all the features of the Fenix E20 V2 and finish with my opinions of the flashlight.
Summary of Contents
Fenix Everyday Carry Flashlight
First things first, the Fenix E20 V2 is a penlight or similar to a penlight. It’s about 5 inches in length with a diameter of less than 1 inch so this is a small flashlight that’s extremely easy to pocket. I say it’s similar to a penlight because it has the right look to it, but it’s a little bit bigger than what I would consider a good pen light. I’d say it’s roughly double the size in diameter of a pen. Nevertheless, it’s still really easy to carry in your pocket which makes it an awesome edc light. That and the fact that it does come with a pocket clip. The pocket clip is removable if you’d rather not have it.
The E20 V2 LED flashlight delivers a maximum 350 lumens which is definitely really good for an AA flashlight. It has an extremely soft and diffused beam. When it comes to everyday carry tasks, a soft and diffused beam is easy on your eyes and easy for up-close work. According to Fenix, the E20 V2 has an 85 degree beam angle which gives you a pretty good idea of how wide this beam is. As you can imagine, you’re not really going to see very much throw with it. It has a maximum throw of 126 meters. Honestly, I find it very surprising that it can even throw that far.
Fenix E20 V2.0 User Interface
In my opinion, one of the most important features of an everyday carry flashlight is an easy user interface. The E20 V2 light has just that. It has a single tail switch that you fully press to turn the flashlight on and off and you do a half press to cycle through the brightness levels. It’ll cycle from low to high which is exactly what I prefer in my everyday carry flashlights.
The E20 V2 pocket flashlight features multiple outputs, specifically it features four outputs. You’ve got high at 350 lumens, medium at 150 lumens, low at 30 lumens, and eco at 5 lumens. Great spacing, and great outputs. I know some users will want a lower moonlight mode on this light, but given the soft beam on this Fenix light, I think five lumens is great.
AA Pocket Flashlight
I know I already said this but I’ll say it again, this is an AA flashlight. The E20 V2 takes two AA batteries and you can use alkaline or nickel metal hydride (Ni-MH). In this case, I can’t say it’s better to use Ni-MH batteries which is good because I think alkaline is quite a bit more accessible. With two alkaline batteries you’re going to see higher run times and the outputs that I listed above. With Ni-MH batteries you’re going to be seeing the same outputs but lower run times. So all in all, I recommend using alkaline with this Fenix flashlight.
Speaking of run times, there are some great run times with the E20 V2. The high mode lasts 3 hours and 45 minutes and the eco mode lasts 200 hours. That is a lot of light for a long time and the high mode has a fantastic runtime. Alkaline batteries are not usually very powerful and don’t usually provide the best runtimes, so I am extremely impressed with the E20 V2 runtimes.
What Makes the Fenix E20 V2.0 a Great Everyday Carry Flashlight?
You may have already guessed that I really like the Fenix E20 V2. I want to say why this makes such a great pocket flashlight. First of all, it’s compact and really light. You can easily slip into your pocket and continue on with your day. It runs on AA batteries which are extremely common to find and it has great run times using those AA batteries. You can choose between Ni-MH batteries or alkaline batteries, though I’d go for alkaline batteries personally.
This light has an extremely soft beam that’s easy on your eyes, perfect for everyday tasks. Finally, it’s not really expensive. This is a high-quality Fenix flashlight, but it’s not going to eat up the money in your wallet. I’m happy to see such an excellent pocket flashlight that is an economical choice.
Final Thoughts on the Fenix E20 V2.0
Pros: I pretty much listed all the pros in the section before this one. The size is great, the outputs are great, the beam is great, pretty much everything about this flashlight is awesome. I like everything about it.
Cons: Honestly, I don’t have any complaints about this flashlight. I could say that it would be nice if it ran on 14500 batteries, but I don’t think I care. It works great the way it is and I don’t think I would change a thing.
Conclusion: Fenix did a phenomenal job with this LED flashlight. I’m actually really excited to see how flashlight companies are coming out with better and better AA flashlights. I was a little worried that as rechargeable flashlights were becoming more prominent, flashlights that ran on AA or AAA batteries would be forgotten. Since these types of batteries often make the best survival flashlights and can be quite an economical choice for many users, I am happy to see such a high-quality AA flashlight. So if you’re looking for a new light for your EDC gear, make sure to check out the Fenix E20 V2.0 pocket flashlight.