Before writing this review, I made sure to look at the 1 and 2 star reviews (which made some valid points but not deal breakers for us). Why? Because we faced this situation: heavy snow, a car which broke down and low visibility. We immediately got out these flares and were happy to see that they were visible for some distance (to test this out, we stood away from the road, on the ground and far back from the car). One of the MAJOR advantages of this product is that each emergency beacon is magnetized and sticks to cars. I"m also getting another set because I think it is safer to have some behind the car as well as to the sideas well as on the car itself.
The bottom line is that they worked on a busy interstate and we could see cars taking care to avoid our car, long before they got within striking range. There were no screeching or skidding noises from those cars. Meanwhile, we stayed outside our car, since the temperature wasn't too cold. The beacons are noted to be able to be "run over" by a 6000 pound vehicle. I can't vouch for that because it didn't happen.
I do want to address the concerns of those who gave lower ratings to this product. Yes, it could be difficult to install the batteries for those with arthritis or any trouble pushing batteries into typical battery slots. Yes, it takes a bit of strength to move the top of the beacons counter clockwise to open the case (but not all that much). I don't work out enough to have more than average hand strength. But just to be sure, I had a 12 year old, a 50 year old and an 80 year old open the case. None of them do more than general household chores and activities. I don't know if multiple sets have reliability problems but we'll find out soon enough as I'm ordering more (and I'm revise my review if we had any difficulties with any of the beacons).
You do have to get the batteries firmly in place, nice and straight. The top of each beacon doesn't have enough space to accommodate batteries that stick up. This wasn't a big deal to us.
The kit also doesn't come with batteries but many products don't come with batteries so I didn't assume it contained batteries. The only decision we had to make was whether to install the batteries ahead of time or have them ready and waiting in the storage bag which comes with this product. In an emergency, it seems desirable to turn on the beacons and get instant safety. But if you install the batteries ahead of time you do need to remember to check them often enough to avoid battery leakage and potentially ruined beacons.
There is both a flash and steady option for the lights. If you use the flash option, you are supposed to get 60 hours of battery life. Thankfully, we needed only a few hours of time. If you use the steady light option (no flashing), you get only 20 hours of battery time. I think the flash option would attract more attention and that is what we used when in our emergency situation.
A MAJOR advantage is that the beacons are compact and come in a storage bag. Just stick the bag in your car's trunk or somewhere in the back seat or an over the seat storage pack and you're good to go. I'm definitely getting one for a son's car as well as my spouse's vehicle.
I got these emergency strobe lights for auto emergency kits and I really like them. If you use road flares, they will burn out after 30 minutes or so. If you use cyalume light sticks, they are not bright enough and can blow away. If you use reflective triangles, they are also not visible enough in snow or fog and can blow away. These strobe lights are very bright and the bottom is magnetic, so you can stick them to the roof of your car and they will be visible from long distances in heavy snow, rain, or fog, and will not blow away. There are two settings; the blinking red light and the steady always-on light. The only problem I found is that they are hard to open to put batteries in them, which could be a pain if you store your batteries separately and need to put them in during the cold or rain.
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My Flare Alert arrived very quickly and I am incredibly satisfied with my purchase. The bag is sturdy and contains three pockets that safely hold each Flare Alert until you are ready to use them. (There's also room to store batteries inside if you don't want to actually put them into the light until you need to use it.)
Each light needs three AA batteries. I tested one and was amazed at how bright the light was. It literally hurt to look at it more than a few milliseconds. I'm positive that this would be able to viewed from a long distance. I stuck it on the fridge and the magnets worked fine.
It's a great little addition to any car emergency kit. Traditional flares can be dangerous and unreliable. These are safe, easy to use, can be seen from a greater distance, and are longer lasting.
They also have a variety of uses I could see someone using it to demarcate a driveway for visiting guests or as a night light for kids or even as lighting for a party (you might need to place some sort of lampshade or something over them as these things are really bright).
Read Best Reviews of 3 FlareAlert 9.1.1 LED Emergency Beacon Flares with Storage Bag Here
You know, it never ceases to amaze me how some people will never be satisfied. "Too small", "Not bright enough", "Too hard to open", etc. Okay, I read all these reviews, and wondered in my mind how good the FlareAlerts would be when I actually received my set. In all the criticisms that I read, there is only one I would tend to agree with, but it was not a "show stopper" in my mind. It is in fact true that the middle AA batter slot is a bit of a tight fit for a battery, but I had no difficulty in ultimtely getting the battery in place. As for the rest of the criticisms, I can only figure they are posted by overly fussy consumers. The bottom line is, it seems you can't please all the people, all the time.
These units are about 4.5 inches across and plenty sturdy in my opinion. They are >easy< to open. One thing I was searching for in the description and reviews was whether they were weather resistant. In short, they are. There is a small rubber gasket on the body of the unit where the lid contacts which should be quite effective in keep water out of the unit. As also reported, there are two operating modes one that keeps the light on continuously, and one that provides rapid flashing. The units come with a storage case (pictured) that also has two internal velco-secured compartments to hold the nine required batteries.
In terms of brightness, they are not as bright as the emergency flashers on your car. However, they are extremely bright, and can undoubtedly be seen quite a distance down the road. Looking at the unit from the top provides the brightest illumination (for instance, stuck magetically on a veritical plane on the back of your car) due to the design of the lens in the lid, however they are also plenty bright situated horizontally on the ground. When I looked at them directly from the top, I had to look away. That's plenty bright I think. I believe that if my vehicle was ever disabled on a dark and stormy night on a major Interstate, these three units spread out behind my disabled vehicle in flashing mode would attract a lot of attention. The proof in the pudding is the post from the user who actually used these in the conditions described, and who reported that people slowed down when they saw all the flashing lights. That's precisely what you want people to do, so in terms of the units "accomplishing their mission", I would say these lights are doing what they're supposed to do.
I bought two sets one for my wife, and one for me. After looking them over, playing around with them, and even putting one in the back yard at night to see how effective it would be, I would say these will also be Christmas gifts next year for some of the people I care about. I think they are a much better option than flares, which only last about 30 minutes anyway, and orange triangles which can blow over and are not as visible at night. The only downside is the nature of batteries. It's a good idea to replace them every couple of years to make sure you have full strength batteries on hand to power the units. Something you must remember to do just like changing the battery in your home smoke detectors in fact, not a bad thing to add to the list.
I think these units are a great idea and recommend them to all.
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About a year ago, my friend and I almost got killed changing a tire, following an accident on a very dark mountain road. Following this harrowing experience, I bought these LED flares and put them in my trunk.
Over this past weekend, I was following another friend of mine when suddenly, his right rear tire flew off his Jeep! (I clearly choose poor driving buddies). After we pulled to the shoulder and chased down his run-away tire, I set out these flares, and let me tell you... they gave us some fantastic peace of mind!
These LEDs are quite bright and do a great job of directing the idiots on the road away from my rear bumper. I highly suggest that everyone buy a set.
My only complaint: The power buttons can be activated while the flare is in the pack, leaving your batteries dead. Fortunately, I noticed this previously, and now just keep an unopened pack of batteries in the case, and only install them when necessary. That's the only reason this product didn't get 5 stars.
I like the fact that unlike some other trickle chargers it specifically confirms when it is charging. I have one from Harbor Freight that only indicates if it is either plugged in or connected to the battery. If the battery leads come off it still shows that it's on just because it's still plugged in. The only improvement I would make is that the battery leads could stand to be longer.
