Maglite facts for kids

Maglite 2 D cell flashlight

A Maglite is a super tough flashlight made in the United States by a company called Mag Instrument, Inc. It was first introduced in 1979. These flashlights are mostly made from strong aluminum and have a special design that lets you change how wide or narrow the light beam is. You can find Maglites in many cool colors like black, silver, blue, red, green, purple, and gold.

Older Maglites used special light bulbs called krypton or xenon bulbs. But today, most new Maglites use bright LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes), which are more energy-efficient. Even so, you can still find the older models if you prefer them.

Maglites come with lots of cool accessories. You can get holsters to carry them on your belt, brackets to mount them, and different colored lenses. There are even special attachments that use fiber optics to bend the light into tight spaces. You can also get brighter bulbs or LED parts to upgrade older flashlights. The Maglite was actually an improved version of an earlier flashlight called the Kel-Lite.

Maglite History: When They Came Out

Here's a look at when different sizes of Maglite flashlights were first released:

• 1979: The first Maglites, using large D and C size batteries, were sold. These were popular with police, firefighters, and people working in factories. (Some very large models like the 5C, 6C, 7C, and 7D are not made anymore.)
• 1982: The MagCharger was released. This was a bigger, more expensive flashlight, very popular with emergency workers. It was much brighter than regular Maglites and used a special halogen bulb and a rechargeable battery pack.
• 1984: The Mini Maglite, which uses two AA batteries, became available. This was Maglite's first smaller flashlight for everyday use.
• 1987: An even smaller Mini Maglite came out, using two AAA batteries.
• 1988: The Maglite Solitaire was introduced. This tiny flashlight uses just one AAA battery and is small enough to fit on a key chain.
• 2006: Maglite started making LED flashlights and upgrade parts to turn older Maglites into LED ones.
• 2006: The Mini Maglite LED 2AA was released.
• 2008: The MagCharger got an upgrade! It now had a better rechargeable battery that charged faster and a new halogen bulb that made it even brighter.
• 2009: Maglite introduced "Next Generation Mag-LED Technology" with a new type of LED and batteries that lasted even longer.
• 2010: The Maglite XL100 came out. This cool flashlight had a motion sensor, so you could control it by moving it!
• 2010: The Maglite XL50 was released. It was a simpler version of the XL100 with three light modes, and it cost less.
• 2011: Many new LED and rechargeable flashlights were introduced, including the ML100 and the ML125.
• 2011: The Maglite XL200 was released, similar to the XL100 but even brighter.
• 2012: New Mini Maglite models came out: the AA Pro (215 lumens) and AA Pro+ (245 lumens), which are very bright.
• 2012: The Maglite 2D Pro was released, offering 274 lumens of brightness.
• 2012: The Maglite Mag-Tac flashlight was introduced. It was designed with input from military groups and was the first Maglite to use CR123A batteries. It had a bright 310-lumen mode and a lower 100-lumen mode.
• 2012: Another Mag-Tac model, the "crowned bezel" version, came out with 320 lumens but no low light mode.
• 2012: A new version called the V4 was released with an electronic switch for multiple light modes and a brighter bulb (245 lumens).
• 2012: In August, Maglite announced several new models, including an LED version of the tiny Solitaire, a Mini Maglite LED 2 AAA, and a new 2D LED Pro model that was super bright (over 200 lumens).
• 2013: Maglite released an LED version of the MagCharger. It was very bright (680 lumens) and could change from a spot to a flood beam with a quarter turn of the head. It could last about 4 hours on a full charge at full power.

Maglite Models You Can Find

Maglites and Police Use

Maglite flashlights are very strong and have sometimes been used by police officers as a substitute for a baton (a police stick).

In 2004, the Los Angeles Police Commission decided to use smaller flashlights. This was to make it clear that flashlights are for light, not for hitting things. This change helped keep both officers and the public safer.

On March 30, 2007, the Los Angeles Police Department announced they would switch to smaller, lighter LED flashlights. This decision came after an incident where an officer was accused of using a Maglite in a way that was not allowed. The new, smaller flashlights cannot be used as a baton.

Images for kids

• 

  Most Maglites have a spare bulb hidden in the tailcap. LED lights last a very long time, so they usually don't need new bulbs. Some LED Maglite models still have a spare incandescent bulb.

• 

  A close-up of a 4D Maglite with its factory-installed LED light. The smaller picture shows the LED part after the reflector is taken off.

• 

  The 2xAA Mini Maglite comes in four different colors.

• 

  A Mini Maglite with its belt holster, perfect for carrying it easily.