Fenix P3D CE Premium - Q5

Fenix P3D CE Premium - Q5 is Premium Digital Series flashlight from Fenix. It has Premium Cree 7090 XR-E LED. Similar in all other aspects to standard P3D CE; P3D CE Premium - Q5 takes two CR123 battery. The body is machined from aircraft grade aluminium and has hard anodize type III coating. O-Rings are placed at various places to prevent dust and water entering the light. P3D CE Premium Q5 meets the IPX - 8 Standard and is protected against water submersion, suitable for continual operation under water. P3D CE Premium - Q5 is exceptionally bright, strong built, high quality light. P3D Premium - Q5 has uC (Micro Controller) Controlled drive circuit with 2 UI (User Interface) modes. In Turbo Mode the light operates with Max Brightness (200+ Lumens) and Strobe. The General Mode there are 3 output levels and SOS function.

Light Features:

• Premium Q5 binned Cree XR-E LED
• Can run on various CR123 sized battery ranging from Primary Lithium to Li-Ion cells
• Meets the IPX - 8 Standard Waterproof Specifications
• uC (Micro Controller) Controlled
• Max Output, with Strobe in Turbo Mode
• Three light output levels and SOS in General Mode
• Toughened ultra clear glass lens with AR coating
• Can stand on tail

Turbo Mode: This mode is attained by fully tightening the bezel. It consists of Max Level [215 Lumens] and Strobe. The sequence alternates in cycle.

• Press the tail cap button until 'click' sound is heard to switch ON the light
• To change Mode, in ON condition, push the tail cap button until light is off for about half a second and release for next mode. The modes will cycle through
• Press the button on tail cap until 'click' sound is heard to switch OFF the light

General Mode: This mode is attained by loosing the bezel. The General Mode consist of [12 Lumen]-[53 Lumen]-[120 Lumen]-[SOS].

• Press the tail cap button until 'click' sound is heard to switch ON the light
• To change Mode, in ON condition, push the tail cap button until light is off for half a second and release to enter next level. The modes will cycle through
• Press the button on tail cap until 'click' sound is heard to switch OFF the light

Below is the chart showing total output levels for Fenix P3D CE Premium - Q5 with different types of Lithium batteries the numbers are very near to the manufacturer specifications.

P3D CE Premium - Q5
Level	2x CR123 (3v)	2x RCR123 Li-Ion (3.7v)
Low	87	51
Med	458	392
High	1048	1027
Max	1955	1933

Comparing P3D CE Premium - Q5 with P3D CE standard version here is the chart showing total output levels for various CR123 batteries, as you can see there is a distinct increase in overall brightness for P3D CE Premium - Q5.

P3D CE Standard
Level	2x CR123 (3v)	2x RCR123 Li-Ion (3.7v)
Low	62	66
Med	280	227
High	680	670
Max	1280	1300

General Info
ID	30
Light Model	P3D CE Premium Q5
Manufacturer	Fenix Light
Review Page & Image	P3D CE Premium Q5
Country	China
Review Date	2007-12-28
Review Update	2008-01-07
Light Vitals
Length	114 mm
Width / Bezel Diameter	22 mm
Width / Tube Diameter	19 mm
Height (if applicable)	mm
Weight (without battery)	63 gm
Light Source
LED Format	Power LED
Number of LEDs	1
LED Name	Cree XR - E
LED Power	3  Watts
Light Management
Lens Material	Glass
Lens Coating (if any)	AR Coated
Lens Transperency (typical)	90
Lumen Management	Reflector
Material	Aluminium Metal Smooth
Beam Type	Mostly Throw
Power Management
Converter Type	Buck
Properties	Regulated, Micro Controller (uC)
Features	Advanced User Interface
Batteries Supported, Output & Runtime
Battery Size     Chemistry     Nominal Voltage     # Used     Total Output     Runtime to 75%     Runtime to 50%     Runtime to 25%	CR123 CR123 LiMnO2   Li-Ion   3 3.7 2 2 1955 1933 0 171 0 171 0 171
Switch Options
Switch Type     Switch Properties	Click Reverse Click
Body Material Options
Material     Properties     Color	Aluminium Type III Hard Anodized Natural
Light Rating
Looks	80
Build Quality	75
Runtime	80
Output	85
Features	70
Usability	70
Bang for buck	80
Overall Rating	77.143

Size Comparison: About 4 times as big as a standard CR123 cell and yet it is one of the smallest 2 x CR123 battery based light. Fenix P3D CE Premium Q5 is comfortable to hold by hand. Pictured below size comparison between Fenix P3D CE Premium Q5 and standard Fenix P3D CE is virtually identical. From L to R: Fenix P3D CE Premium Q5, CR 123 Battery and standard Fenix P3D CE.


Another size comparison, From L to R: Sanyo CR123 Lithium battery, P3D CE Premium Q5 and Energizer AA Lithium battery.



Bezel: Reflector in P3D CE Premium Q5 is built from solid Aluminium. The reflector has LOP Finish. Premium Cree 7090 XR-E LED is perfectly aligned and centered within reflector. The beam very has a very soft transition from Hot Spot to Spill beam. There are no artifacts in the beam.


Shown here is a comparison between reflectors, P3D CE Premium Q5 on left with the LOP reflector finish and Standard Fenix P3D CE on right with smooth reflector.


The Glass Lens of P3D CE Premium Q5 has AR Coating. There is a o-ring seal between glass lens and the bezel body protecting reflector of P3D CE Premium Q5 from dust and water. Top of bezel is chamfered on to prevent sharp edges.



Body: P3D CE Premium Q5 is built from Aircraft Grade Aluminium. The Machining work is very good, there are apparently no any flaws in workmanship of P3D CE. To remove the machining marks and rings, the body is sand blasted and with hard anodized type III coating, the P3D appears to have a matt finish. Anodized type III coating also protects P3D from wear and corrosion in normal usage. The body of P3D CE Premium Q5 consists mainly of 3 parts; head housing lens, LED, reflector & Electronics, battery tube and the tail cap with switch. the battery tube has flat faces machined offering relatively good grip. The laser engraving is done on bezel to identify light model with P3D Premium Q5 engraved on it. the battery tube has fenix logo and P3D engraved. On the other side of bezel there is a also a serial number engraved. The overall size of P3D flashlight is very comfortable to hold in hands.


Picture below showing side view of P3D CE Premium Q5 highlighting the structural features. The tail cap has rectangular shaped knurling. There are 2 holes on either side of curved carving as seen in picture, allowing easy lanyard attachment.


The body walls of P3D CE Premium Q5 are relatively thick indicating strong construction.



P3D CE Premium Q5 Components: Showing from left to right, P3D CE Premium Q5 Head, Battery tube and tail cap. The threads on body tube on tail cap side are anodized but the threads on bezel side of tube are not.. O-Ring placed behind threads on both sides of battery tube offering good water resistance.


Picture here shows rotated P3D CE Premium Q5 components in same sequence. As you can notice there is a thick positive contact tab placed over the PCB in head, the battery tube is of relatively good thickness and the tail cap has gold plated negative contact spring.


Threads on bezel side show signs of wear after about a month of heavy usage. However, there is no damage to threads and they can be cleaned and re lubricated back to good service. On the extreme left of threads you can notice the chipping of anodized surface.


Comparatively, the threads on tail cap side are virtually untouched, that's the level of protection that hard anodized type III coating offer.

Below Beam shot Matrix shows Fenix P3D CE Premium - Q5 on Left and Fenix P3D CE on Right, one of the interesting observations from these beam shots is even though the P3D CE Q5 is considerably brighter by numbers visually, there is less difference in brightness visually.

	0	-1	-2
Low
Med
High
Max

Here are a some extreme closeup shots, notably the surface finish is flawless.


Laser Engraving on Bezel


Top side of battery tube


Laser Engraving on battery tube


Tail end of battery tube


Tail cap showing rectangular knurling


Super Closeup of P3D CE Special Edition Bezel


Super Closeup of P3D CE Special Edition Tail cap

Here is the runtime chart for P3D CE Premium Q5. The runtime was carried out with two AW RCR123 batteries. A typical observation for P3D CE Premium Q5 is as time progressed, the light output kept on increasing, this effect was more pronounced on the High as compared with Max(Turbo) level. The runtime for P3D CE Premium Q5 on Max (Turbo) is about 1 Hour & 7 minutes where as on High is about 2 hours 50 minutes.