Every man I know wants more flashlights, and at the very least, can appreciate a good flashlight. Flashlights aren’t exactly the most imaginative gift, but frankly, you just can’t go wrong. A man can always stow an extra flashlight in the pickup, the boat, in the toolbox, garage, or under the bed.
Always.
Besides, flashlights are close to making fire. There’s power in that.
Five reasons flashlights make great gifts for men
- There is no do-it-all flashlight, so you need flashlights for specific purposes.
- Smartphone flashlights suck. Every man likes a quality flashlight, and while the app on your phone is handy, it’s weak, fragile, and drains the life from your phone’s battery.
- Buying a flashlight for yourself is a tough purchase unless you have an immediate need — but half the point of a flashlight is being ready when you least expect it.
- Flashlights are cool tools: they make light! And all manly men appreciate a good tool, especially tools that cut through the darkness by unleashing the power of the universe.
- Flashlights can be used for home security — as a club or a blinding flash of eye pain — and manly men like to have home protection options, even when they know the odds of a situation are slim. That’s just being a man, though — being prepared. Besides, when the zombie apocalypse comes, the power will go out and the living will need to peer into dark places and/or bash their way to safety.
The five types of flashlight every man should own:
1. Home Security Flashlights
There’s one flashlight that has stood the test of time — the MAGLITE. Get it with at least three D cells and you’ve got a decent club. Get one with four, five, or six and you’ve got a stick that can do some serious bad-guy thumping. Alternately, a super-bright light might dazzle the eyes of a bad guy and give you a chance to run away or arm yourself in case the police don’t arrive soon enough. Check out this classic bad boy stick:
2. Simple Basic Flashlights
Unless you’ve got more money than you know what to do with, the simple basic go-to flashlight is the sort of thing you use around the house, in the car or pickup, camping, whatever. Good enough to last, cheap enough that you won’t freak out if a child plays with it. Try these all-around flashlight options:
- Dorcy Floating Waterproof LED Flashlight with Carabineer Clip
- Dorcy 180-Lumen High Flux LED Cyber Light Flashlight
- Fenix E12 CREE XP-E2 LED Flashlight
3. Headlamps
The headlamp flashlight is great anytime you need two hands: backpacking, camping, or changing a tire in the dark. Also handy around the house when you fix something broken or get into a spider-infested crawl space. Seriously, though, for camping, backpacking, fishing, and hunting . . . headlamps are perfect flashlights. Check out these headlamp options:
- Black Diamond ReVolt Headlamp
- Petzl Tikka Improved Lumen Output Plus 2 Headlamp
- Black Diamond Storm Headlamp (pretty much the best all-around headlamp)
4. Beams of Destiny
The most manly flashlight of all are what we like to call “Beams of Destiny.” Think high-powered lanterns used cut through the darkness in distances that measure over a hundred yards. They work great for finding lost dogs — or lost people. Search & Rescue heroes carry them, of course, but regular manly men can too. These are spendy, but oh boy, oh so powerful:
5. Rechargeable, Always Ready, and Emergency Flashlights
Today’s newer generations of batteries now come with a pretty amazing shelf life, but still, a flashlight is only useful if it works. We like to have an always plugged in rechargeable flashlight ready to go, especially during the winter and storm seasons when the power might suddenly go out — and you need a flashlight the most. Try these rechargeable flashlight and emergency crank-to-power options:
- Energizer Weather Ready Compact Rechargeable LED Light
- Energizer Weather Ready 3-LED Carabineer Rechargeable Crank Light
- American Red Cross Clipray