I'll come right out with it, I am a flashaholic. I have far more flashlights that I will ever need in my life, however I find that I cannot stop buying more! This Streamlight KeyMate was the latest, but not the last, in my hefty collection. Now before I start with the pros/cons, I want to let other flashlight hobbyist out there know, that yes this cute little powerhouse will take a 10220 sized Li-ion rechargeable battery with no diminish in performance! (aside from possibly slightly less runtime than the alkalines (by 50mAh), although I have been playing with the light for several hours now, and my 10220 battery has barely dropped in voltage at all). but hey, it's rechargable, so I can use it as much as I want without any repercussions (well maybe a slightly higher power bill :-P). I have included pictures for this product that shows it's size comparison to several different objects, and also shows the 10220 li-ion battery. Now to the pros/cons. Pros: - Bright! Wow, I was surprised when I first turned on this light. I have had many keychain lights in the past, and this one blows them out of the water by far. For how small this is, I am impressed, and that is coming from somebody who owns 1,000+ lumen professional flashlights. The amount of light is a very useful output, and with dark-adapted vision in a dark environment, the output is great for just about anything. I only wish I had one of these when I was a kid! (hint-hint to the parents out there, these no-doubt would make great stocking stuffers for the young-ones ;-)) - Cheap, for around $12 this is a price easy to swallow and is not a heavy loss if the light finds a place to hide where you can't find it. Although you are paying mostly for the size, as I'm sure you could probably get a much brighter light for $12 or less. But for the power and it's size, it is worth every penny. - Can take a 10220 Li-ion battery (or similarly sized rechargeable Li-ion batteries; can go as wide as 11.6mm as there is some side-to-side wiggle room with my 10220 battery, as for length I wouldn't push much past 22mm). Having the option to use these batteries is a HUGE plus, as that means I no longer have to buy coin cells which can add up in price. Therefore I can play with this light and squander all of it's battery juice without any worry. All I have to do is recharge the battery! And since Li-ion cells hold their charge for a very long time (unlike alkaline batteries which often go dead in a matter of a year) makes it great for packing in emergency storage or as a backup light in your vehicle. - Very small, it's not the smallest key-chain type of light out there (I honestly wouldn't use it on my key-chain, as it's too big for that IMO) but it is still plenty small, easy enough to pack in virtually anything you can imagine. - Looks. I personally love the way it looks, not only due to how small it is, but it really does look like a super mini-maglight. It has that "perfect scale" kind of look to it, and anybody who likes having miniature versions of things will appreciate this light. - Build, it actually has a pretty decent build quality to it. Smooth threads, has a solid feel and is really light-weight. The machining on it is also extremely well done, no flaws on my light. And lastly, the knurling along the bezel is quite rough and grippy, which makes one-handed operation very possible. - Pocket clip. I likely won't use the clip, but it doesn't get in the way and is a nice option to have (helps with one-handed operation too, as it adds a gripping point to the main body). I can't comment on how it will hold up over time, but it is very tense and not loose at all. Works great for an anti-roll mechanism as well. Cons: - Tint. I am quite a tint-snob, which in the flashlight world means I am very picky when it comes to the color of the flashlights beam. This light is among the worst I have seen, very purple hotspot with yellow spill around the edges of the corona. However I have accepted this tint because for what this light is, an emergency backup, the tint is not really a problem. Because if I need light, this will give it to me. I have my much more expensive modded lights to give me good tints, this light is simply there to supply light if I have nothing else available. And when you really need light of any kind, who cares about it's tint! - Beam quality. I was expecting a little better beam since this light has a reflector, but it really is pretty bad. The hotspot is lopsided and shaped like a peanut, there is rings all over the place (not all round mind you), and there is quite a few messy half-rings around the hotspot. This light is not winning and beam quality awards, i can tell you that much. But just like my previous con, this is a backup light... not my EDC. And when I take that, and the lights price, into consideration, I am perfectly Ok with it. But it is still a con nevertheless, as I would have liked it much better if it had a smoother beam profile. - Batteries. if you are not a flashlight hobbyist (or some kind of hobbyist that deals with special batteries and chargers) then having coin cells as a battery type is a big disadvantage. Harder to find than conventional batteries, they are unreliable for long-term storage, and can be pricey. However if you buy enough in bulk, they are somewhat cheap. - Three piece design. For something this small I would have preferred a two piece design, which would be the head and body. I've read in other reviews for this light that the end-cap can pop out. Well, there you have it! Overall I love this light and am very pleased that I can use rechargeable non-coin cell batteries to power it.
