Olight Flashlights: Warrior Mini vs Warrior Mini 2

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I’ve reviewed many Olight flashlights, and one of my favorite lights is actually their most basic, the Warrior Mini. When they wrote to me recently asking to review their new Warrior Mini 2, my first reaction was “Why tinker with an already-great light?” That’s another way of saying “If it ain’t broke – don’t fix it!”

Note: If you’re shopping at Olight, use coupon code
“PREPPERPRESS”
for an additional 10% off non-sale items.

Direct shopping links: Warrior Mini and Warrior Mini 2.

Olight is always innovating, however, creating ever more options in different flashlights to satisfy consumer demands. Still, the Warrior Mini is great, why complicate it with a Warrior Mini 2?

Where the Mini is my favorite light, the Mini 2 is not going to get its own review. Instead, I’m going to put it up against the Mini itself. This is a Warrior Mini vs Warrior Mini 2 showdown!

Olight Flashlights in General

If you want to know the story behind the brand, look at the Olight company itself. According to their About page:

We are a global, technology-driven lighting company, filled with dedicated people who want to provide the best for our customers. We are Outdoors-men, Sportsmen, Veterans, and DIY go-getters — we are you. We use our own products every day to make sure that we practice what we preach; it keeps us honest. We want to give you quality design and functionality that really works when you need it to.

That’s a bit of a sales pitch, however. Here’s the real story:

Olight is actually Olight Technology Co, Ltd. They are based in Guangdong, China. They produce higher-end lights and own the associated intellectual property. Their board chairman was the owner of Foursevens, an Atlanta-based flashlight company that was bought out in 2018 by Prometheus Lights. U.S.-based Foursevens also manufactured their lights in China. All Olight flashlights are tested to ANSI-NEMIA FL-1 standards.

The vast majority of Olight flashlights are tactical LED flashlights, but they do make a laser excited phosphor (LEP) light.

My Background with the Warrior Mini

What I’ve always liked about Olight is their careful balance between quality and cost. You will have flashlights created by some companies that cost little but are total crap. On the other end, you have companies producing really high-end lights that also cost half a paycheck!

Olight flashlights are what I would consider to be the middle-higher ground, high quality lights that are reasonably priced.

The Warrior Mini was one of the first Olight lights I acquired. I liked its simplicity – compact yet powerful with all the settings I could possibly need in an EDC light. The flashlight sits on a bookcase in my living room and I use it almost daily when I take the dog out for her evening walk into the field. It’s the flashlight I use the most – by far.

Can I attach the Warrior Mini to a firearm? No. Does it have a thousand fancy features? No. Is it a simple, basic, reliable, strong EDC flashlight. Yes – and that’s why it ends up getting used every day. I love it.

Introducing the Warrior Mini 2

As I mentioned from the outset, coming out with a Warrior Mini 2 – to me – is a big Why?

The obvious answer here is that it’s a bit more powerful. That comes with slight-but-noticeable size difference, however.

The size difference is small but noticeable. What the Mini 2 does is bump the Mini up to a more traditional-sized light. It has a bigger/stronger clip, a more meaty feel in your hand, and more lumens at the top setting.

This, of course, comes with a downside – a larger, heavier size. What I like about the Mini is that it’s super easy to slip into my pocket. I barely notice it’s there. I can still do that with the Mini 2, but it’s less of a pocket light, better suited to clipping it on my belt.

Warrior Mini vs Warrior Mini 2 Comparison

The earlier image illustrated the size different (detailed in specifications below). This lens-facing photo below shows the difference in circumference.

One attribute that really stands out when holding these two flashlights in your hand is that the Mini 2 has better self-defense attributes. If part of your reason in choosing a light is for self-defense, the ability to drive a light into somebody’s face, the Mini 2 has a big leg up. You can more easily wrap your hand around it due to its size, and the wider size would mess up someone’s face better than the Mini.

Specifications

All of the specifications are detailed in the chart below. The biggest takeaways here are in the length, weight, and maximum lumens.

Specification	Warrior Mini	Warrior Mini 2
Beam Distance (ft)	623	722
Max Performance (lumens)	1500	1750
Light Intensity (candela)	9025	12300
Level 1 (lumens)	1500~500~170	1750~500~200
Level 1 Run-time (minutes)	4~205~55	4~206~40
Level 2 (lumens)	500~170	500~200
Level 2 Run-time (minutes)	218~50	218~55
Level 3 (lumens)	120	120
Level 3 Run-time	18 hours	19 hours
Level 4 (lumens)	15	15
Level 4 Run-time	150 hours	164 hours
Level 5 (lumens)	1	1
Level 5 Run-time	45 days	45 days
Strobe	Yes	Yes
SOS/Beacon	No	No
Weight (g / oz)	105 / 3.7	122 / 4.3
Length (mm / in)	106.5 / 4.19	118 / 4.65
Battery	3500mAh 18650 Rechargeable	3500mAh 3.6V 18650 Rechargeable
Drop Test	1.5 Meters	1.5 Meters
Waterproof	IPX8	IPX8
MSRP	$79.95	$109.90

Real World Photos

Specifications in a chart are one thing, seeing the lights function in the real world is another.

Low Setting (Rear Switch)

There are two light switches on each of these Olight flashlights. There is the rear switch, which I use most often, and a smaller switch on the side positioned for thumb activation.

The rear switch is what most users would use unless they want to reduce their light signature to the minimum needed or if they are working on something up close and higher setting are just too much light (very possible).

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You will see no difference in the two pictures above because the lower setting is the same – 500 lumens.

High Setting (Rear Switch)

In these photos I switched up to the higher setting, 1500 for Mini and 1750 for Mini 2.

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The short distance that these lights are shining may not illustrate the slight 250 lumen difference. You get a reduced gain in output with lumens the higher going, meaning the difference between 1000 and 2000 lumens is significant. The difference between 2000 and 3000 is less.

Low Setting (Rear Switch)

For these photos I moved out of the field and aimed the lights back at the house. The photo of the Warrior Mini 2 on the right might look brighter (lower setting), but that’s because the light was aimed lower at the ground.

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High Setting (Rear Switch)

Here, at the higher setting and a greater distance, you can begin to see the 250 lumen difference in the Warrior 2 Mini. The light on the house is a bit brighter.

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Modes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 (Warrior Mini)

All of the photos below are of the Warrior Mini, but the effect would be the same across both lights as the two lights have the same lumen settings – the one exception being the last at 1500 lumens. The Warrior 2 Mini would have 1750.

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As you can see, both of these lights will give you various settings to reduce (or increase) lumens to fit the project or need at hand (ha ha).

Comparison Summary

The Warrior Mini and Warrior Mini 2 are both great lights, very suitable as everyday carry flashlights. So, does the Warrior Mini 2 match up to its smaller-sized brother?

For periodic all-purpose use, I prefer the size of the Warrior Mini. If, however, you’re looking for more self-defense attributes and bit more shine at a distance, the extra size and 250 lumens of the Warrior Mini 2 may be right for you. Weigh this against the additional $30 MSRP, however. It may/may not be worth it. It depends entirely on your intended uses and preferences.

Note: If you’re shopping at Olight, use coupon code
“PREPPERPRESS”
for an additional 10% off non-sale items.

Direct shopping links: Warrior Mini and Warrior Mini 2.

Do you own either of these or other Olight flashlights? What are your impressions? Let us know in the comments section.