The ThruNite Archer 2A V3 is in many ways like a high-end flashlight at an affordable price. Taken individually, its features aren’t unique, but the ThruNite combines the best of what we saw among all of the lights in this price range. It has a two-button interface that makes quickly cycling through the four brightness levels easy—one of which is the very useful, very low firefly mode. The strobe setting is not part of the brightness toggle so it doesn’t get in the way of regular use. Like most of the better lights we found, the beam simultaneously projects a long-distance hot spot and a dimmer wide-angle light, which gives a great view of the surroundings. For durability, it has a high-quality fit and finish and can handle full submersion in water and a 1½-meter drop. We also like that the body is designed so that it won’t roll. After we finished most of our testing, the ThruNite was what we kept reaching for when we headed into the woods.

The ThruNite has an interesting two-button interface. At the rear of the light is a button that turns it on and off (often called a "tail switch"). Once the light is on, the brightness levels are controlled by a second button up at the head of the light. Prior to testing we had never used a two-button light, but we soon realized how convenient it is. Holding the light with a thumb on top and fingers cradling the bottom, we could toggle through the brightness levels quickly and one-handed with just a few taps of the thumb. (This also works holding it in a pencil grip.) Many of the other lights have the on-off and brightness levels all controlled at the tail switch, which makes you reorient the light in your hands, or use a second hand to change the setting. Of the tested lights, only our runner-up, the Manker E12, has a similar two-button setup.

The ThruNite also has what’s called “momentary on,” which means that the light activates with a half press of the tail switch and stays on for as long as the switch is held. This feature, found on some of the other high-end lights we tested, is convenient for quickly turning the light on and off without fully engaging it. In addition, the light has a memory, so it always turns on at the brightness setting that was last used. The nicer lights, including our runner-up, have this feature, but the others (under $30) usually default to the brightest setting, which is often too bright and blinding, especially if you know you’re looking for the lowest setting.

After we finished most of our testing, the ThruNite was what we kept reaching for when we headed into the woods.

The ThruNite has four brightness levels: high, medium, low, and firefly. With the high, we were able to make out the trees at the end of a 500-foot-long field. At the low end, the firefly felt barely brighter than a full moon, so it was perfect for reading a map or checking on a sleeping child. It’s so low that we could hardly see a wall 10 or 15 feet in front of us, but we could still make our way around in the dark. When we initially heard about these über-low levels often found on high-end flashlights, we rolled our eyes thinking it was a gimmick, but when we got the light in our hands, we ended up using it all the time. Of the tested lights, the ThruNite offered the lowest of these low settings, which we feel is a very nice feature.

Not surprisingly, the brightness levels dictate battery drain. According to ThruNite’s website, the high setting has a run time of 96 minutes and the firefly mode can last a staggering 28 days. These numbers were taken with Eneloop Pro 2550 mAh batteries (NiMh), which offer better performance than the more common alkaline batteries. In our tests with Energizer Max batteries, which are alkaline, the high mode lasted around 45 minutes, so a little less than half the output with the NiMh batteries. According to ThruNite, the low setting lasts 14 days, so with an alkaline we assume that translates to around six or seven days, which is still a considerable amount of time.

Having the multiple levels of brightness and understanding how much each one offers in terms of battery life, left us with a feeling of control over the flashlight. On single-setting flashlights, all you get is a set amount of time and that’s it. ThruNite allows you to only use the amount of light that’s necessary. As Wise mentioned, we found ourselves operating in the lower modes most of the time, with only the occasional jump to the high level. Walking around a house during a power outage, there is really no reason to go above the low setting.

And exactly how the battery drains on the ThruNite is another one of its high points. The ThruNite has what is called circuit regulation, so the battery feeds a constant amount of power to the LED. This means that on the highest setting, the ThruNite maintains a consistent level of brightness for about 45 minutes. At that point the high setting kicks out and only the lower settings work. This stepping down continues for about 20 to 25 minutes. We saw similar results from the other two-AA lights from the high-end manufacturers we tested (Manker, Nitecore, and Streamlight), but other lights like the Craftsman and all of the AAA lights we looked at had a more linear battery drain. As the chart shows, they start out bright and slowly and consistently fade down to nothing.

The ThruNite also has a high-quality beam pattern. Around the LED is a reflector with an orange-peel texture, which provides a focused hot spot and a not-as-bright spill beam surrounding it. In the woods, we could clearly make out tree branches over 300 feet away and at the same time, the area directly around us was lit for full visibility. As a reflector light, the beam pattern on the ThruNite was pretty comparable with that of the other similar designs we tried.

As for the strobe setting, the ThruNite mercifully tucks it away from the regular brightness settings, yet keeps it fully accessible for when needed. The strobe activates with a long press of the brightness button. It’s an ideal setup, and given that it’s a feature that may be used in an emergency, this simple activation is conceivable in a high-stress, high-adrenaline situation. We consider this separation between strobe and the standard brightness settings to be an essential design element, and very few lights in the under $40 range do it successfully. The Manker E12, our runner-up, has the same setup, but in most of the other tested lights, the strobe is just one of the toggle settings. This is not only annoying in regular circumstances, but we consider having to cycle through settings to find the strobe a potential risk in an emergency.

The ThruNite is about the size of a big marker; a shape typical of the two-AA lights we tested. It’s a comfortable size to handle and it’s easy to flip it around in the fingers depending on how we wanted to hold it. A nice knurled pattern around the body offers a little extra grip, which was useful when the light got wet. It also has a hex shape up at the lens end, so it won’t roll off a rock or any other sloped surface. The light is also small enough to hold between our teeth, which was useful for quick instances when both of our hands were occupied, such as during a quick electrical fix in the basement.

It also has a slightly crenelated bezel designed for self-defense. This is a small series of ridges that project from around the lens of the flashlight. We’re a little skeptical that it’s going to give much of an advantage over a non-crenelated light in terms of self-defense, but we do like that it recesses the lens a bit, giving it more protection if the light is dropped right on the nose.

Speaking of a drop, the ThruNite is rated for a 1½-meter fall. Many flashlights we tested also came with an IPX rating, which is the standard for protection against water intrusion. The ThruNite has the highest rating of eight, meaning it can be completely submerged in water over 1½ meters deep (which we did a number of times to no ill effect). Both of these ratings were found on the tested lights from Manker and Nitecore.

The ThruNite comes with a lanyard, a pocket clip, a replacement cap for the tail switch, and two additional O-rings for the battery compartment. Minor but nice finish details make it feel like a high-quality tool—the threading on the battery compartment cap is smoother and cleaner-feeling than the rough threads on cheaper lights, and a knurled texture on the grip helps keep it secure when it’s wet. The light is available in cool white and neutral white, which are hard to distinguish side by side. The cool white has a bluish tint and the neutral white has a more yellow tint, as this video explains. We tested the cool white and thought it was one of the warmer lights we saw.

Last, the ThruNite’s warranty is a little nicer than average. It has a two-year free replacement if “problems develop with normal use.” Beyond that is a lifetime limited maintenance policy, with the owner of the light paying for only shipping and parts. Of the tested lights, only the Nitecore had a longer warranty, stretching to a full five years, followed by a limited lifetime warranty.

Flashlight reviewer JohnnyMac (founder of TheFlashlightForum), tried the ThruNite Archer 2A V3 and wrote, “If you are looking for a small, reliable, well built light on a budget from a quality manufacturer then the Archer series of lights deserve your consideration.” Specifically, he noted the “excellent build quality,” and the “great output levels and battery versatility” and wrote that, “it’s hard to beat them for the price of $30 just each.” At another prominent review site, reviewer Selfbuilt names the ThruNite Archer 2A V2 (the previous version) as one of the few budget lights he recommends (the ThruNite Archer is seen as a budget model among flashlight aficionados).