Streamlight 88030 Protac Tactical Flashlight 1L with White LED Includes 1 CR123A Lithium Battery and Holster, Black

CUSTOMER REVIEW



I bought this flashlight because I work security detail in an ugly part of my city, and when I need a flashlight, I need it to work consistently every time - because my life could depend on it. For a standard flashlight, that may be too much to ask for, but for a flashlight of this reputation and price, I was expecting much more. I bought the Streamlight Protac HL 2 months ago. It worked for about a month (long enough for the return time to expire), and then the 600 lumen output drastically decreased. I assumed it was exhausted batteries, and so I bought a new package of batteries. The Streamlight did not regain its 600 lumen output. It put out less than 200 lumen, in my estimations. At times the light did not turn on at all when the switch was pressed. I assumed that this was my fault, that maybe I didn't know how to use the Streamlight's "ten-tap" technology. After all, I couldn't find anything on the internet suggesting that anyone had ever had a problem with a Streamlight. I even bought another package of batteries, just to be sure that expired batteries weren't to blame. Sure enough, it was a problem with the flashlight. Bear in mind, I had not abused the light, submerged it, dropped it, exposed it to shock or high heat, and I would go as far as to say I babied it. It spent most of its time in the holster, on my belt.



Streamlight has a limited lifetime warranty on parts defects, and so I decided to send the flashlight to the Streamlight repair facility, after filling out an online repair form on Streamlight's website, accompanied by a detailed description of the problem. I asked them to call me with their findings. I paid for 2 day priority mail, it was shipped within 2 days to their facility, and by the morning of the 3rd day, it was marked as shipped back to customer. I called them and asked what the problem was with my light, and they said it was that I must be using bad or inferior batteries, because they couldn't find anything wrong with the light. I told them that there was indeed a problem with the light, and that I had used both Energiser and Duracell batteries with expiration dates of 2021, and they said that I must be mistaken, and that they strongly recommend more new batteries. Personally, I don't think they looked at it at all.



When the flashlight shipped back to me, I decided to inspect it myself. I figured I'd lose nothing since honoring the warranty was seemingly ignored by Streamlight, and as is, I had a useless paperweight of a flashlight. I started by cutting the rubber button on the tail-cap off, exposing the "guts" of the flash-light's switch, and immediately exposing the problem: corrosion in the tail-cap. An easy fix that I believe that Streamlight should have easily found and fixed. I ordered a new tail-cap on eBay for $16, and the light works like new.



In the end: Does the light work now? Yes, but because I fixed the problem.

Did it work in the beginning? No.

Did Streamlight honor the warranty? No. They insinuated that I was mistaken to weasel out of warranty work, and offered no solution to the problem.

Total cost of flash light after repairs, shipping, and batteries: Easily over $100

Would you recommend this product? No. The product is made in China, offers quality craftsmanship, but poor quality control, and customer service is marginal at best. For you to buy a flash light this expensive, you would have to need it for a tactical/emergency situation, and if it doesn't work in even simple situations, you have a serious problem.



I will probably get steam-rolled for this negative review, but I can only report my experience. I can't speak for the entire Streamlight brand, nor other model flashlights of this brand. I'm only speaking from my experience, and this being my first and only Streamlight, I can tell you that I'm not pleased.