“Flat” flashlights that have a lower profile for easier everyday carry have become a thing in recent years. There are now plenty to choose from with a range of features and price points. One of the most full-featured — and most affordable — is NiteCore’s EDC07. It does a few things that set it apart from its competitors.
The first thing you’ll notice is that unlike most of the others, the EDC07 doesn’t have an aluminum housing. Instead, it’s made of polymer. The biggest advantage there is that the plastic housing makes the EDC07 lighter. It weighs a mere 2.5 ounces where a couple of its nearest competitors tip the scales at either 3.3 or 4.1 ounces. That might not sound like much, but the difference is noticeable in the hand.
Nitecore has also molded in a range of textures into the housing that give you a good grip on the light.
The EDC07’s shape is also different. While it has the same long-ish, flat-ish design as its competitors, the others are basically rectangular blocks. The corners on the EDC07, though, are angled, giving it an octagonal shape. That shape is more ergonomic in the hand and makes the EDC07 feel slimmer, even if its overall thickness is pretty much the same as the other lights in the field.
And yes, the EDC07 has two LEDs. Those two emitters crank out a range of brightness levels from 1 to 1500 lumens depending on the color. Yes, the color. The Nightcore EDC07 lets you choose from three color temperatures, if that’s important to you (it really isn’t to me). You can select a warm, yellow light, a neutral white or a cooler blue output (the cool blue gives you the most light output).
The EDC07’s beam is more floody than spotty, as you can probably guess from those textured reflectors. It’s a useful beam that works well in the majority of situations you’re likely to need a flashlight for.
The EDC07 has two buttons. The rear is the standard rubberized on/off arrangement. Click it for on and again for off. Push it partially and hold it for intermittent use. The rear button is guarded by four nubs molded on the housing that keep it from being turned on accidentally and also allow the light to strand up on end.
The other rubberized button is what Nitecore creatively calls the M button. Probably because there’s an ‘M’ on it. I’m guessing that stands for ‘mode’, but the manual doesn’t say that, so, whatever.
The M button is where you select brightness and color temperature. There’s also an ultra-low ‘moonlight’ setting, a strobe and even a Morse code SOS feature. It probably seems complicated at first, but it’s really pretty intuitive after a couple of minutes. I’d run through all the options the EDC07 gives you, but Nitecore has put together such a good, short (1:32) video that lays out the functions that I’m just going to refer you there.
As for power, the EDC07 runs on a rechargeable internal battery. There’s a battery level readout above the M button so you can see approximately how much juice you have left.
On the flip side is a rubber USB-C charging port cover. The EDC07 has an IP67 waterproof rating, which means it will handle being rained on or splashed. I ran mine under a tap and the cover kept the charging port dry and the light kept on cranking.
The light is also equipped with a very good deep carry pocket clip. That’s no small thing. Other similar lights I’ve tried have clips that are too long or too strong, making them difficult to get over the edge of your pocket (no, really). A good clip that’s easy to use is a feature that too many people take for granted (and too many companies don’t take enough time designing).
As for battery life, again, it depends on your light color preference and the brightness lever, of course. Open the above image in a new window to embiggen it and see the details.
My light charged fully in a little over an hour and I haven’t let it get below one LED bar on the readout before recharging. Battery life simply hasn’t been an issue and I carry it just about every single day.
In addition to all of the above, the Nitecore EDC07 may be the most affordable of the full-length flat flashlights. At about $46, it’s less than half the price of some of its competitors and does virtually everything most of us need an EDC light to do. You may need the ability to choose between wide and narrow beams and you may need a laser pointer, too. But those features will cost you. If you don’t need those things, the EDC07 is likely to be your best option.