I spent $30 on this bizarre magnetic keychain flashlight, and it’s a surprise hit

Olight iUltra keychain LED flashlight

ZDNET's key takeaways

• A tiny keychain flashlight that's built with toughness and simplicity in mind
• Pull off the magnetic base to activate a 90-foot beam
• Built-in USB-C connector for easy charging.

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A keychain is a tough environment for any gadget. Being tumbled around in a pocket or bag with keys and coins is hard on anything.  But this isn't what killed my old keychain flashlight. 

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No, long story short, I dropped it into the Mediterranean Sea while trying to use it to light up a fish I saw in the water one night. It takes less than a second of distraction for King Neptune to claim something, and that's what happened here.

An excuse to upgrade

Oh well, the keychain light was pretty beat up, and it gave me an excuse to upgrade. I shopped around a bit before settling on the new Olight iUltra mini LED keychain light, a light that's packed with some high-tech features that I've not seen on a light previously.

The iUltra is a tiny light

It measures 2.30 inches long, 0.65 inches in diameter, and weighs a minuscule 0.71 ounces. It's small enough for a keychain or to be attached to a zip pull or worn as a necklace. But don't let its petite look fool you. This light can push out 80 lumens of power, which in real terms means a beam out to 90 feet, and it can do that for 50 minutes.

That's impressive for a light this small. But there's a lot more to the iUltra.

First, the light is built from tough anodized aluminum called OAL that's been designed to resist the rough-and-tumble of pocket life. I've had mine on my keychain for a couple of weeks now, and it's still scratch-free. Yes, there are some very light marks, but they are not noticeable in normal use.

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It's built to IPX6 standards, which means it is resistant to rain, splashes, and water jets. It's also been built to shrug off drops of up to five feet. I've tested the water resistance and drop-tested it onto a variety of surfaces, and it's as good as Olight says it is.

Then there's charging

There is no shortage of USB-C-rechargeable lights out there, but if you don't have a charging cable with you when the lights go out, you're stuck. The iUltra comes with its own built-in USB-C adapter.

To charge up, you just find a free USB-C port on something — charger, power bank, laptop, or computer — and plug it in. The port folds away when not in use and is protected from damage by the carry mechanism, and the engineers at Olight have tested it and say it's good for at least 10,000 uses.

It's a really cool setup that looks like a big weight initially, but once you start using it, you immediately wonder why this hasn't been done before.

Then there's the important part of turning the light on. Most keychain lights rely on buttons to turn them on and are usually packed with all sorts of features, like strobing and high-power modes, that get in the way of just being able to turn the light on quickly when needed. There's none of this with the iUltra.

This light is turned on by snapping it free from the magnetic USB-C port, and it's turned off by attaching it back to the charge base.

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No buttons to have to find in the dark, and no crazy strobe features to contend with. I love this simplicity, and again, I wonder why this has not been done before.

ZDNET's buying advice

Olight is a company that I've been impressed with for years now, and it makes all sorts of lights, from colorful orbs to feature-packed flashlights. The Olight iUltra builds on this heritage of quality and innovation, and it delivers a truly next-gen everyday-carry pocket light that should offer years of service. 

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And only $30, it's a budget price for what is a premium, quality product backed by a lifetime warranty.