Disclaimer: Wuben provided this light to me free of charge. This had no influence on the review.
Introduction
Wuben has a design language that I simply like. When I first got my hands on the preview of the E2, I was definitely intrigued. A keychain light from Wuben, featuring a stylish gradient, pleasing for sure – but is it really a neck light? The matching chain with its clip mechanism looked good in the photos, but how it performs in daily carry was something I had to test for myself!
Specs by Wuben
Package Contents and Impressions
The box of the light is still smaller than many other lights, kept in Wuben's typical blue-and-white style and printed with all essential info. Inside, the light sits in a plastic tray, beneath which you will find a charging cable, a split ring, and a manual. If you purchase the light as a "Necklace Bundle", the necklace and its corresponding manual are also included.
The light is truly small. Even smaller than I expected. Yet there is significantly more packed inside than you would expect given its size. At the tail, there is a magnet, a lanyard hole, and the cutouts for the necklace. Following the color gradient along the body, a closer look reveals light strips along the side!
Of course, there is also a USB-C port and a switch. These are located opposite each other on the wider sides and are easy to reach. The ring surrounding the switch sits slightly raised from the body. The switch itself is recessed deeply enough to offer a degree of protection against accidental activation.
The USB port could actually fit cables of all sizes, but the port cover is somewhat limiting. It can only be swung out of the way to a limited extent, making plugging it in a bit fiddly. While charging, the light glows red on the sides, and solid blue when fully charged.
The battery level can also be displayed:
Blue Battery level ≥ 90%
Blinking blue 90% – 40%
Red 40% -15%
Blinking red 15 -0%
At the very front, there is a metal bezel with laser engravings. Looking at the light head-on, you see an unknown LED set inside a wavy, slightly textured reflector.
The body is glow-in-the-dark (GITD) green. Surprisingly, it looks good with both color gradients. A nice side effect of the side light is that it recharges the GITD body at the same time. As is often the case, the effect is unfortunately short-lived, but it is still nice to look at. And hopefully helpful if you happen to drop the light!
Size
The light measures a tiny 19mm x 13.6mm x 41.5mm and weighs an incredible 11g!
Carrying Options
Lanyard: A classic lanyard is not included, but there is a lanyard hole for the included split ring. Available as a separate purchase or in a kit, however, is the P5, a
Necklace: A ball chain with a "gripper" attachment. Simple, but holds really well, and the light can be detached quickly. The chain can be replaced, including with the included split ring. Being able to quick-release the light is, in my eyes, always a plus – and it certainly won't detach on its own with this clasp!
Clip: A pocket clip is not included.
Magnet: There is a magnet in the tail of the light. It is not overly strong, but more than adequate for a light of this size.
(Jacket)pocket: Whether around the neck, in a pants pocket, or in a jacket pocket, the light is barely noticeable. Well, if you wear it around your neck and activate the Pulse mode, you are bound to get a few curious looks!
UI
Small light, lots of features. That is always a challenge. There isn't much space for large chips, so you can't fit endless code onto the light. For that, I have to say Wuben found a very good solution. The only thing I would have wished for is a lockout, although the light won't burn holes in anything, and I've been carrying lights with similar switches on my car keys for a while – without lockout, without accidental activation. So I can't really criticize the decision.
When the light is off, 1H displays the battery status.
The light is always turned on with 1C.
The mode (Main beam, Side light white, Side light red) is cycled with 2C.
Mit 1H ramps through the brightness levels within a mode:
White: Low -> Med -> High -> Low -> …
Side light white: Low -> High -> Pulse -> Low -> …
Side light redFlashing red (Beacon) -> Flashing red-blue (Police Strobe) -> Flashing red ->…
Beam Profile and Measurements
All measurements were done in my 30cm integrating sphere. The temperature was between 20 and 24°C. Additionally, an Opple Light Master III and a TASi TA636B lux meter were used. Please note that this is hobby equipment, so inaccuracies and deviations are possible!
Output and Beam
The light is certainly no lumen monster. But it doesn't aim to be one either. The beam is smooth and optimized for close-range lighting up to 5m ahead. For that, the output is plenty. Unfortunately, I can't provide thermal measurements – the surface of the light, which barely warms up anyway, is too small for my IR sensor and too small to properly attach my contact sensor.
The side light comes with a double surprise – on one hand, it is relatively bright with low glare, and on the other, it is High CRI!
In my testing, the light achieved a throw of 35m.
CCT, CRI, DUV, PWM
| Low | Turbo | side light | |
| CCT | 5800K | 5900K | 4000K |
| CRI | 67 | 70 | 96 |
| DUV | 0,005 | 0,002 | -0,002 |
Flicker is well within acceptable limits. PWM is not visible to the naked eye, but it is detectable both in flicker tests and with a camera.
All measurement data can be found here.
Beamshots
At 150 lumens, I don't have anything that makes for a meaningful comparison. I will show you the beam against a white wall and outdoors in real-world use as best I can. A typical use case for the E2 for me: a quick walk with the dog just outside the door. The light is tailor-made for that.
Batteries and charging
The charging performance is largely unspectacular. The graph noise looks more dramatic than it actually is; at such low currents, it just appears more pronounced. My battery analyzer confirms the capacity as well.
Summary
The E2 is different. A genuinely full-featured light with everything you need. But in a small and stylish form factor. A quick note on the technical side: you can see the specs above; on such a small light with a tiny battery, a buck driver or similar was not to be expected – quite apart from the fact that it probably wouldn't make sense anyway. I would like to highlight the High-CRI side light, which pleasantly surprised me.
The real strengths of this light lie elsewhere. First and foremost, its tiny size and impossibly low weight. Combined with the design, this makes the light a genuinely nice accessory – whether attached to a handbag or worn as a necklace. It will also serve unobtrusively on a keychain.
For all these applications, I can highly recommend buying the chain bundle. Even if you don't intend to wear the light around your neck. But the ability to securely attach the little light to something while still being able to quick-release it at any time fully convinced me.
In case anyone still has doubts about the E2 – my wife reserved the black review sample before the first line was even written, and checked in on it multiple times. While lights have found their way to her a few times before, I haven't seen this level of enthusiasm yet. I can understand why, because I am just as taken with this light. I wouldn't have expected it – this light gets a clear buy recommendation for anyone looking for a small light or a cool gift!
If you share my enthusiasm and want one too, head over to Wuben!