I have been using the Streamlight Microstream USB for years now. I want to talk about it, but I need to give you some context about why I'm talking about it now.
There are a few major market forces I see currently. One is the popularity of the PHLSter Enigma. That seems to have struck a chord and demonstrated how many people want to carry a gun when they're wearing suits, dress clothes, or athletic wear. Being able to conceal a gun and carry it effectively without a monster tactical belt is a real game changer, and obviously that capability has resonated.
I also see Rhett Neumayer running a 22 caliber snub and it being received quite well. It puts a different spin on the old heads screaming about 45 acp and 1911s. Carrying a big full size duty gun is great if and when you can, but it isn't realistic for most people, most of the time. Firearms instructors, cops, and military get the ability to carry guns at work and nobody cares. Those individuals who come from those endeavors will likely advocate for full size weaponry and supporting equipment. But even if you CAN cart around a full bat belt of goodies, it doesn't always mean that you want to.
This is not about the PHLSter Enigma, 22 caliber snub nosed guns, or Rhett Neumayer. It is about finding a compromise that works quite well with an exceptionally small and lightweight package:
The Streamlight Microstream USB.
If size and weight aren't prime concerns, I'd probably steer you towards a Fenix PD36 TAC. But that TAC weighs 5.8 ounces, whereas the Streamlight Microstream USB weighs 1.2 ounces. The Streamlight is so light that you can easily forget that it is clipped to your pocket or waistband. You will never forget that Fenix is in your pocket.
The Streamlight Microstream is for normal people. It is for people that don't work as cops or military, or maybe even for them when not at work. It is a light that fits into any pocket or purse. It is also small and innocuous enough to avoid any negative attention, no matter what venue you are in.
The Streamlight is still fairly bright for the amount of size it occupies. On low it puts out 50 lumens with a runtime of 3.5 hours, and on high it puts out 250 lumens with a runtime of 1.5 hours. My testing bears out those runtimes, if not the lumens, but Streamlight marketing doesn't tend to embellish numbers. If you will recall, it wasn't too long ago that we were being told that 60 lumens was blinding. While that claim may have been exaggerated, the Streamlight puts out enough usable light to work for tasks as small as looking for your keys, to looking further. While it won't cover football fields in light, I don't think it was ever designed with that in mind.
It will easily illuminate halls and rooms, as well as drawers and under car seats. Even if you aren't going out at night, you are one power outage away from a low light, or even a no light situation.
In a pinch you can probably press it into a tactical backup, although it wouldn't be my first choice for that application. But in an imperfect world, we have to dance with the partner we brought, and this might be the one. It isn't so small that it gets completely swallowed by my hand, and therefore it is usable.
There are two negatives to this light. The first one is how long it takes to charge, and from zero to full it will take you approximately 4 hours to get a full charge onboard. The second is that this light is splash resistant, not fully waterproof. IPX 4 rating means that I wouldn't dump it into a sink, bathtub, swimming pool, or other body of water. It might survive it, but it wasn't designed to do so. This design has been out for years now, and almost unchanged from the original spec. You can get it in black or FDE, which may be the one update I'm aware of.
Anyway, for those of you wearing yoga pants, dress pants, or basketball shorts when you go out and about, I think I've found the perfect flashlight for you. This is the flashlight that you carry when you don't want to carry a flashlight.
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