James Hobson and Chris Thiele standing with their extremely bright flashlight, the Nitebrite 300. (Hacksmith Industries/YouTube)
Flashlights are important to have around the house, especially when the power goes out or if you have an attic that you need to crawl up into (you go first!).
Of course, these gadgets are rarely all that powerful. Instead, their advantage is that they're portable and convenient. But it does make you wonder ...
Just how powerful can a flashlight get?
Meet Canadian YouTubers Hacksmith Industries. Their channel is all about using engineering skills to create unreal gadgets and devices. Often, they look to try and recreate the impressive tech found in sci-fi, comics, and manga, including mechs, lightsabers, blasters, and even Thor's hammer, Stormbreaker. But in this video, they use all of their engineering wizardry to try to make the world's brightest flashlight!
(Safety goggles, everyone!)
Building for the fun of it!
So do they succeed? In the end, that depends on what you want from a flashlight.
Their epic device—the Nitebrite 300—is longer than an NBA basketball centre is tall, extremely heavy, and just generally very, very awkward. This is not something that anyone is going to whip out during the next camping trip.
But is it bright?
Yes sirree!
And besides, tasks like this aren't really about being practical. It's about pushing the limits of engineering and learning about tech along the way. Which is exactly what this entertaining video does. Watch it and we guarantee that you'll leave knowing way more about LEDs, power sources, and focusing beams of light than you ever did before. You may even be inspired to become a maker yourself!
Watch the video below and be prepared to be blinding by science! (Skip to 14:03 to see the final test of the Nitebrite 300, but make sure you're wearing shades!)
Wow! That is so bright!