Fenix Enters The Pistol Light Market: The GL22

Fenix has come out with their first pistol light, the GL22. This is a compact white light with laser. Let’s see how it stacks up.

The Specs

Fenix publishes the following specs on the light:

Interestingly enough, they also produce a lumen curve. This is a welcome change for us. Though I suspect that most consumers don’t know how to read the data, it’s a good reference for us to see if the light we received is performing as expected.

Initial Impressions

The light feels well made. The bezel unscrews, allowing you to remove the battery for replacement or charging. The included battery is a CR-123A sized battery with a USB port for recharging. Simply remove the battery, attach it to the included USB cable, and you can charge the light without removing it from your pistol.

The light clamps on using the familiar rail clamp. It comes with a 1913 and a Glock rail adapter. Fenix states that the furthest rail notch cannot be closer than 1.6875″ from the trigger guard for proper fitment. In other words, it may not fit on the smaller subcompact pistols. We test fitted the light and it fit onto the following pistols in our inventory:

• Glock G17 / G45 / G17 (etc)
• Sig Sauer P320 Compact
• Sig Sauer P320 AXG
• Sig Sauer P229
• H&K VP9
• Canik TL9 Elite Combat
• CZ 75 P-01
• FN 509
• Shadow Systems MR920
• Rock Island STK100 (fits forward of trigger guard)
• Lone Wolf LTD 19
• Staccato 2011
• Infinity 2011

It did not fit on the following:

• Sig Sauer P320 X-Compact
• H&K VP9SK
• Canik TP9 Elite SC
• Smith & Wesson M&P EZ
• Steyr C9-A2 MF
• Plus nothing without a standard rail (Glock G43x MOS, Sig Sauer P365, Smith & Wesson CSX, etc)

The switches feel quite good. They’re like TLR-7A switches, but hinged from the bottom instead of the top. This results in a high-positioned switch button. The switch is tactile. I set the pad of my reaction side thumb on top, and provide some pressure forward to get it to click on. It feels good. The switch has the standard short-press constant mode, with a long press resulting in momentary. Pressing one switch down while cycling the other switch switches between light / laser modes. In my opinion, Fenix did a very nice job with the switches.

Competitors

For me, the obvious competitors are the Olight Badr S, the Olight Baldr RL Mini, and the Streamlight TLR-8.

	Fenix GL22 (w/included battery)	Olight Baldr S	Olight Baldr RL Mini	Streamlight TLR-8
Spec Lumens	800	800	600	500
Spec Candela	8,000	4,400	4,225	5,000
Laser Color	Red	Green	Red	Red
Runtime	35 minutes	33 minutes	40 minutes	90 minutes
Battery Rechargeable?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
CR-123A Compatible?	Yes	No	No	Yes
Price as of 4/12/2022	$119.95	$129.95	$119.95	$197.19

The GL22 seems to compare favorably in terms of critical candela output while holding its own on the other specs. Pricing is attractive as well.

Performance Testing

We start with lumen testing, which provides us with max lumens, ANSI/PLATO lumens, runtime to 10% of rating, and runtime to 10lm. First, we will show the overall performance graph for both the included ARB-L16-700UP battery, and our benchmark Panasonic CR123A battery. These tests were run with the laser off.

Using the included battery, this chart looks remarkably similar to the results published by Fenix, with two exceptions. The first is that we obtained higher ratings than Fenix published. I appreciate when manufacturers output at or above their ratings. The next is that we obtained slightly shorter runtime than Fenix advertised. Even so, the light produced 20 minutes over 600 lumens, which is pretty respectable for a small light.

When using a CR123A battery, the light produces almost 500 lumens for over 15 minutes. Again, not bad.

This gives us some calculated numbers:

Metric	Fenix GL22 CR123A	Fenix GL22 ARB-L16
Max lumens	638.5	918.8
ANSI / PLATO Lumens	525.6	889.3
ANSI / PLATO Runtime	1:14:37	29:45
Runtime to 10 Lumens	1:36:38	29:45
Max Candela		7,967
Short Cycle Consistency		97%

For candela, we used our gonimeter at 1 meter distance to get the following measurements, both max straight on, as well as at an angle. This chart shows the intensity at the center of the beam and how widely & strongly the light disperses to the sides. We used the ARB-L16 battery for this test.

I’m fairly impressed with the results here. The center of the light’s hotspot has a high candela output, almost reaching their specs (99.59%), plus provides a decent width or “flood”. This is what I want in a light. Give me some environment-illuminating flood while also providing the advantages that high candela can provide. I think Fenix did a nice job on the shape of the beam.

We are now also testing for light consistency. We cycle the light on for 15 seconds, then off for 45 seconds, and do this 10 times. This simulates an environment where we are illuminating, then turning off the light to move, then cycling the light on again. We are looking to see if the light continues to perform in that environment. We want a light that is consistent, and meets manufacturer specs. Again, we used the ARB-L16 battery.

In this test, the light was 97% consistent from first shine to last, meaning that the max light output in each 15-second cycle was consistent from first to last use. In addition, all 10 cycles had the light stay above the 800 lumen manufacturer rating. This is a consistent light when used for short bursts.

Light Quality

We know that lighting isn’t only about output. We prefer a light close to 5500k color temperature, and a high CRI to allow us to better see colors in our environment.

Here we see color temperature at 6218 Kelvin and comes in at a CRI Ra (average) of 70.4. This is in the typical range of what we currently see in pistol lights, perhaps a bit closer to our preferred color temperature than some on the market. In all, these are solid quality results.

Practical Testing

As usual, we tested the light on a subject in the warehouse space. These images are with the camera and light 40 feet from the subject.

From the operator’s perspective, the GL22 provides a strong hotspot and provides the most robust reds out of this test sample of 4 lights.

From the subject’s perspective, the GL22 and the TLR-8 both were the strongest in the eyes. None were painful, but all were reasonably strong.

Bottom Line

Here are our measured results of key specs between the Fenix GL22 and our competitors from Olight and Streamlight (best results highlighted):

Measured Results	Fenix GL22 ARB-L16	Olight Baldr S	Olight Baldr RL Mini	Streamlight TLR-8
ANSI / PLATO Lumens	889.3	794.2	509.7	589.8
Max Candela	7967	4158	3285	3446
Color Temperature	6218k	7255k	6686k	5977k
CRI Ra	70.4	67.8	70.3	66.9

In comparing performance versus the other two lights along a few metrics, Fenix has a competitive light. In some ways, it outperformed my expectations. In the race to get lumens, I feel as if candela and light quality can be neglected. Not so with the GL22; it provides high lumens, plus solid CRI and color temperature. In addition, the switches are much better than the Olights. At this price, I think this is a solid entry for Fenix into the pistol light realm.

Fenix GL22 Pro	Fenix GL22 Con
Strong candela & lumen	Large for a compact light
Option to run rechargeable battery or CR123A	May not fit the latest generation of compact pistols
Good switches