Wuben X4 Prototype EDC Torch Review
Wuben X4 Prototype#
- Specifications
- Introduction
- Torch in use
- Build quality
- LED, bezel, lens, reflector and beam
- Size
- User interface
- Batteries and charging
- Performance
- Beamshots
- Conclusion
- Price
- Product page
Specifications#
| Brand/model | Wuben X4 Prototype |
|---|---|
| LED | Main Light (White), Side Light (RGB and 4000K White) |
| Maximum lumens | 1,500 lm |
| Maximum beam intensity | 10,506 cd |
| Maximum throw | 205 m |
| Battery | 1*18650 |
| Onboard charging | Yes (USB-C) |
| Material | Aluminium |
| Modes | Many (ramping) |
| Blinkies | Beacons, Red-Blue, Red-Green, Red-Yellow |
| Reflector | TIR |
| Waterproof | IP68 |
| Review date | September 2025 |
Introduction#
This Wuben X4 Prototype is an 18650-sized torch with a white Main Light, an RGB Side Light and built-in USB-C charging. It has a battery compartment with a cool locking mechanism that flips open. And the torch can be controlled with a slider, a side switch, a rotary wheel and a tail switch!
It looks like a cool design experiment to see how to best combine multiple tactile buttons, sliders and wheels.
Here is a video of the Wuben X4 Prototype:
Wuben sent this torch for early feedback and review. I have not been paid for this review nor have I held back my opinions of this torch.
Packaging#
This sample came in a gray box with the Wuben logo. There is plenty of foam padding.
The following was included in the box:
- Wuben X4.
- Wuben ABE3400 18650 3.65V Li-ion 3350mAh cell.
- USB-A to USB-C cable.
- Basic user manual for the sample.
User Manual#
Torch in use#
The Wuben X4 feels natural in my left hand with the pocket clip in the palm of my hand.
There is a slider with a hall effect sensor, a side switch, rotary wheel and a tail switch to control the Wuben X4.
There is a magnet in the tail cap but it is a bit weak. The torch may fall off a wall if mounting it at a right angle.
The tail switch integrates discretely into the tail cap without any risk of accidentally pressing the button while tailstanding the torch.
Build quality#
The torch is made of aluminium and it has a Gunmetal Gray anodised finish. It is also available in white and black.
The are no sharp edges.
The one-way pocket clip can be unscrewed.
The build quality looks pretty good.
LED, bezel, lens, reflector and beam#
This Wuben X4 Prototype has a Main Light with four white emitters: one emitter behind a pebble TIR optic, two small emitters behind a clear TIR optic, and a larger spotlight emitter behind a clear TIR optic.
It has a Side Light with RGB and 4000K white lights behind what appears to be a frosted platic cover.
CCT, CRI, and duv#
I have taken Correlated Colour Temperature (CCT) and Colour Rendering Index (CRI, RA of R1-R8) measurements with the torch positioned half a metre away from an Opple Light Master Pro III (G3).
The CRI is around 60.
The CCT of the Main Light is around 6000K while the CCT of the Side Light is around 4000K.
| LED | Mode | CCT (K) | CRI (Ra) | x | y | Duv |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main Light | Turbo | 6025 | 62.6 | 0.3202 | 0.3514 | 0.0107 |
| Side Light | Turbo | 3937 | 68.5 | 0.3880 | 0.3950 | 0.0062 |
Calculate Duv from CIE 1931 xy coordinates
Size#
Dimensions#
I took the following measurements using a digital caliper.
| Measurement | Unit (mm) |
|---|---|
| Length | 95.82 |
| Width | 36.00 |
| Height | 20.11 |
| Height with clip | 26.18 |
Weight#
I took the following measurements using a digital scale.
| Weight | Unit (g) |
|---|---|
| Wuben X4 | 89.85 |
| Wuben X4 with battery | 139.85 |
| Battery | 50.00 |
User interface#
The Wuben X4 has a slider, a side switch, a rotary wheel and a tail switch to control it.
The slider can be moved into one of four positions: Locked, Side Light, Main Light and Moonlight.
The built-in USB-C port is accessible when Moonlight mode is selected.
The side switch is used to turn the Main Light and the Side Light on and off and to select a mode.
The rotary wheel is used to ramp the brightness up and down or to change the colour when in the RGB Side Light mode.
The tail switch is used to turn the Main Light on in Turbo, Strobe or Moonlight modes.
The Main Light has multiple brightness levels.
The RGB Side Light has 7 colours: red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue and purple. Beacon mode can be activated for each colour by double pressing the side switch. There are three flashing modes: Red-Blue, Red-Green and Red-Yellow.
The White Side Light has multiple brightness levels.
I recommend reading the user manual for the user interface diagram.
Mode memory#
When selecting Side Light on the slider and pressing the side switch, the torch will remember whether RGB Side Light or White Side Light was used and it will remember the colour and brightness.
Beacon is not memorised.
Battery status indication#
The battery status can be displayed for 5 seconds by pressing the holding the side switch for 1 second when the slider is in the Side Light or the Main Light position and the light is off.
A blue or red indicator will appear on the Side Light strip.
| Colour | Battery level |
|---|---|
| Blue | Capacity ≥ 90% |
| Blue blinking | 40% ≤ Capacity < 90% |
| Red | 15% ≥ Capacity < 40% |
| Red blinking | Capacity < 15% |
Pulse Width Modulation#
I did not notice any visible PWM (flickering).
What I like about the UI#
- Dedicated Moonlight option on the slider for direct access by clicking the side switch or the tail switch.
- Direct access to Turbo with the tail switch.
- Direct access to Strobe with the tail switch.
- I really like the layout of buttons and the slider.
What could be improved#
- The friction could be increased for the slider. It is easy to move.
- The rotary wheel may be easier to use if it had chamfered cutouts to expose more of the wheel.
- It would be cool if the emitters for the Main Light turned on gradually while ramping up. E.g. The floodlight with the pebble optic could turn on first, then the two small lights, and finally the spotlight.
Batteries and charging#
Battery#
A button top Wuben ABE3400 18650 3.65V Li-ion 3350mAh cell arrived with a voltage of 3.79V.
The battery compartment has a lock where you can slide a switch and press down to release the tailcap.
The cell was isolated with a piece of plastic to prevent accidentally turning the torch on.
I tried the following cells:
| Cell | Top | Compatible? | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vapcell N40 18650 3.7V Li-ion 4000mAh | Flat | Yes | |
| Wuben ABE3400 18650 3.65V Li-ion 3350mAh | Button | Yes |
Charging#
The Wuben X4 has 5V/2.4A USB-C charging behind the sliding switch on the side.
Power supply: PinePower Desktop USB-C
USB Meter: ChargerLAB Power-Z KM003C
Room temperature: 21 C
It took 3 hour 4 minutes to charge the 18650 cell from 3.17V to 4.15V at a rate of 5V/2.3A.
The RGB light is red while charging and blue when charging is complete.
Power supply compatibility#
I tried the following power supplies with the built-in USB-C charger:
| Power supply | USB Type | Protocol | Does it charge? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple 61W Power Adapter | USB-C | PD | Yes |
| Google Pixel Power Adapter | USB-C | PD | Yes |
| PinePower Desktop | USB-C | PD | Yes |
| PinePower Desktop | USB-A | QC | Yes |
| PinePower Desktop | USB-A | Yes |
USB-C to USB-C charging works.
Performance#
Specifications from the manual:
Main Light
| FL1 Standard | Turbo | Moon |
|---|---|---|
| Output (lumens) | 10 | 5 |
| Runtime | 3h | 285h |
| Beam Distance (metres) | 205 | |
| Beam Intensity (cd) | 10,506 |
Side Light
| FL1 Standard | White Light | RGB Light | Beacons | Red-Blue Flash | Red-Green Flash | Red-Yellow Flash |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Output (lumens) | 100 ~ 2 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| Runtime | 8h ~ 65h | 70h | 350h | 185h | 185h | 185h |
Lumen measurements#
| LED | Mode | Specs | Lumens @turn on | Lumens @30 sec | Lumens @10 min |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main Light | Low/Moon | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Main Light | Medium | 766 | 613 | 456 | |
| Main Light | Turbo | 1,500 | 1,298 | 953 | 442 |
There is no Medium mode. I moved the rotary dial about half a turn.
Runtime graphs#
I used my own DIY lumen tube with a TSL2591 sensor and forked bmengineer’s project RuTiTe to record runtimes.
Note: Lumen measurements may be off by 10% with my DIY lumen tube.
The room temperature was approximately 13 C.
Runtime#
Here is a summary of the runtime results:
| LED | Mode | User manual | Runtime | Turn off | Final voltage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main Light | Turbo | 3h | 3h 23min 50s | 3h 23min 50s | 3.17 |
| Main Light | Medium | 3h 26min 38s | 3h 26min 38s | 3.13 | |
| Main Light | Low | 285h | 8h+ | 8h+ |
“Runtime” is the time until the output reduces to 10% of the output at 30 seconds (as per the ANSI/PLATO FL1 2019 Standard).
“Turn off” is the time until my DIY lumen tube no longer detects more than one lumen.
“+” indicates that the light remained on after recording had stopped.
The output is well regulated.
Throw#
I took lux measurements with a UNI-T UT383BT at 30 seconds. Medium and Turbo were measured at five metres.
| Mode | Specs (cd) | Specs (m) | Candela measured (cd) | Distance (m) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medium | 6,925 | 166 | ||
| Turbo | 10,506 | 205 | 11,450 | 214 |
There is no Medium mode. I moved the rotary dial about half a turn.
Beamshots#
I went to a local park and aimed the torch at a tree 70 metres away while using Turbo.
Beamshots were taken using a Sony RX100M2 using 3.2", f3.2, ISO 100, 5000K WB.
Wuben X4 Prototype Turbo#
Manker MC13 II SE (Turbo) 18650#
Wuben X2 Copper Turbo#
[Wuben X1 Falcon] (Turbo)#
Conclusion#
I am loving how Wuben has continued to build upon a design with a replaceable battery by adding a tactical tail switch to the tail cap of this Wuben X4 Prototype.
It is cool to see so many buttons, sliders and knobs combined in a small torch.
Wuben could take the design a step further by making the rotary wheel have a tactile feel with clicks. This would make the Wuben X4 more fidget-friendly (the slider and tail switch can be played with without turning the light on).
It would be nice if the friction could be increased slightly for the slider so that it isn’t so easy to move.
The output appears to be well regulated based on the runtime graphs.
It would be cool if the emitters for the Main Light turned on gradually while ramping up. E.g. The floodlight with the pebble optic could turn on first, then the two small lights, and finally the spotlight.
I am keen to see what the final production version of the Wuben X4 looks like!
Pros:#
- Good build quality.
- Good beam distance.
- Cool user interface with the slider, wheel and buttons.
- The output is well regulated.
- Built-in USB-C charging.
- Pocket clip.
- 18650 battery can be replaced.
Cons:#
- Lumen output is lower than expected.
- The slider is a bit loose.
- Magnet in the tail cap is weak.
- Low CRI.
Price#
The Wuben X4 is US$49.99 from wubenlight.com (affiliate link)
Product page#
Wuben X4 at wubenlight.com (affiliate link)
Wuben X4 at amazon.com (affiliate link)
I may earn a commission if you use an affiliate link or a promo code. This will help fund future torch reviews and tutorials.