NEBO Leo 800 Flex

The NEBO Leo 800 Flex is a rechargeable hand torch built for rough use: an aircraft-grade aluminium body, an IPX7 water-resistant rating and a magnetic base that lets it stand and light a job hands-free¹. On its brightest setting it gives 800 lumens and throws a beam 130 metres; on its lowest it gives 50 lumens and runs for up to 20 hours¹. For a household, that range covers both a quick sweep of the garden in a storm and a long evening of low light during a power cut.

It charges from a USB-C cable, and it will also run on three AAA alkaline batteries through an adapter supplied in the box, so a flat built-in battery is not the end of the light². The power button cycles through High, Medium and Low, with Turbo reached by holding the button, Strobe by double-tapping, and a Lockout setting that stops the torch switching on in a bag¹.

This page sets out what the torch can do, how long each setting lasts, how to charge and store it safely, and how to keep it ready for the sort of evening when the power goes off. It is a description of one product, not a comparison with others.

What the Leo 800 Flex is, and who it suits

The maker describes the Leo 800 Flex as a rechargeable torch to "Stay prepared for any dark situation", durable, versatile and easy to pack¹. In household terms it is a general-purpose hand torch: bright enough to light a path or check outside after a storm, dim enough on its lowest setting to leave on for hours without draining the battery, and solid enough to survive being dropped on a kitchen floor or knocked about in a toolbox.

It suits a household that wants one torch that does several jobs rather than a drawer full of half-working ones. The 6X zoom lets you widen the beam for lighting a room or narrow it to a spot for looking down a garden or into a loft¹. The magnetic base means you can stick it to a fridge, a boiler casing or a metal shelf and have both hands free, which matters when you are resetting a trip switch or finding a stopcock by torchlight¹.

It is a hand torch, not a lantern. If your main need is to light a whole room steadily during an evening without power, a lantern does that better; our guide to battery and rechargeable lanterns sets out the difference, and lantern or torch compares the two directly. The Leo 800 Flex is the torch you carry, point and stand on a metal surface, and it is worth having alongside a room light rather than instead of one.

Brightness, beam distance and how long each setting lasts

The torch has four light levels, and the trade between brightness and run time is steep. Turbo gives the full 800 lumens and a 130 metre beam, but the maker states that after 30 seconds the light returns to the previously used mode, to prevent overheating and protect the battery; Turbo can be switched on again at any time¹. That makes Turbo a burst of light for checking something at a distance, not a setting to leave running.

The three everyday modes are where the torch earns its place in a power cut. High gives 500 lumens, a 80 metre beam and 2 hours of run time. Medium gives 200 lumens, 70 metres and 5 hours. Low gives 50 lumens, 30 metres and 20 hours¹. The maker also lists a maximum run time of 20 hours¹.

For a household, the practical reading is simple. Use Low for moving around the house, finding things and leaving a light on in a hallway; it will last a long evening and more. Use Medium when you need to see detail, such as reading a meter or checking a fuse box. Save High and Turbo for outside, for signalling or for a quick look at something far off. If you want the ideas behind lumens and beam distance in more depth, see lumens, beam distance and run time explained, and for the general question of how long a torch lasts on low, see how long does a torch battery last on low.

Using the power button: modes, Strobe, Direct-to-Low and Lockout

The maker's instructions for the power button are worth learning before an emergency, because several functions depend on how long or how often you press¹. Press the button to turn the torch on, then press and release repeatedly to cycle through the modes in the order High, Medium, Low, Off¹. After 8 seconds of inactivity, the next press turns the torch off rather than moving to the next mode². That catches people out: if you have been holding the torch still for a while, a single press puts it out.

• Turbo: press and hold the button from any mode other than Lockout¹.
• Direct-to-Low: press and hold the button from Off¹.
• Strobe: double-tap the button¹.
• Lockout: triple press the button from Off to toggle Lockout on and off¹.

Direct-to-Low is the one to remember in a power cut. Holding the button from off gives you the 20 hour setting straight away, without cycling through brighter modes and without dazzling yourself in a dark hallway. Lockout, which the maker calls PowerSave Lockout, stops the torch switching on accidentally in a bag or a drawer, so the battery is still there when you need it¹. Strobe is a rapid flashing mode; if you are unsure when to use it, our page on SOS and strobe modes on a torch explains the conventions.

Charging by USB-C, or running on AAA batteries

The Leo 800 Flex has two ways to get power, and the second is what makes it a sensible emergency light. The built-in battery is a 2000 mAh Li-ion 3.7V rechargeable pack, and you charge it by connecting the torch to a power source using the included USB cable¹. The maker's manual states that the torch also runs on disposable alkaline batteries, using the alkaline battery adapter supplied in the box to take three AAA cells².

That matters in a long outage. A rechargeable torch is only as good as your ability to recharge it, and if the power is off for a day or more, a USB power bank or a car charger helps but eventually runs down too. AAA alkaline batteries are widely available and can be stored for a long time, so the adapter turns the torch into a light that keeps working when the mains does not. Keep a set of spare AAA cells with the adapter, and check them periodically.

The accessories supplied are a lanyard, the alkaline battery adapter and a USB-C charging cable¹. Keep all three together with the torch. For the wider question of charging and storing rechargeable lights safely, including how often to top them up, see charging and storing rechargeable torches safely. If you are unsure whether a particular USB charger is suitable, can the wrong USB charger damage a torch battery covers the risks, and can you use a torch while it is charging answers the question people ask most often.

Built for rough use: aluminium body, IPX7 and a magnetic base

The maker lists an aircraft-grade aluminium body that is impact-resistant, an IPX7 water-resistant rating, and a magnetic base that provides hands-free lighting¹. In practice that means the torch is designed to be carried outdoors, dropped, rained on and stuck to metal while you work. IPX7 is a water-resistance rating rather than a promise that the torch can be used underwater, and our page on what IPX ratings mean for torches and lanterns explains what the number does and does not cover.

Heavy rain and storms are exactly when a household torch gets used. A water-resistant torch is useful for checking outside after a storm, but it does not make flood water safe to walk in, and it should not be used as an excuse to go near it. The LEO 800 Flex has an aircraft-grade aluminium body that the maker describes as impact-resistant, and an IPX7 water-resistant rating¹. Its magnetic base provides hands-free lighting, so you can fix it to a metal surface while you work¹. The maker's safety instruction is to use it only for its intended purpose and not to shine the light directly in someone's eyes¹.

The magnetic base is the feature that most changes how you use the torch at home. Stick it to a metal surface near the fuse box, the boiler or the loft hatch and you have a steady light where you need it, with both hands free. The 6X zoom lets you widen or narrow the beam to suit the job¹.

Keeping it ready for a power cut

Official guidance for a power cut is to keep a torch handy, and that advice appears in council and network operator material for households across the UK³. The Leo 800 Flex fits that advice well, but only if it is charged and findable. A torch at the back of a drawer with a flat battery is no help in the dark.

A small routine keeps it ready:

• Charge the torch and check the battery indicator ring, which is divided into four segments showing the current battery level¹.
• Store it somewhere you can reach without a light, such as a bedside drawer or a kitchen cupboard at waist height. Our page on where to keep torches so you can find them in the dark has more on this.
• Recharge every few months, even if the torch has not been used, so the built-in battery is not flat when you need it.
• Put a warm blanket and a charged mobile phone or analogue phone nearby, as independent guidance suggests, since cordless phones will not work without power⁶.

A torch with a long low setting covers a long evening and into the next day. If someone in the household is older or disabled, our guide to lights for older and disabled people in a power cut sets out what else helps, and the power cut checklist is a printable list of everything to have ready.

Support, safety and buying in the UK

The maker's UK site lists the Leo 800 Flex as in stock and ready to ship, with UK shipping only and no international shipping¹. Buying from a UK seller keeps the cable, adapter and any support straightforward. NEBO is the maker, and its wider range of torches, head torches and lanterns is described on the NEBO brand page; the maker states that its torches and head torches use Smart Power Control, which automatically adjusts light output based on remaining battery charge⁸.

Before relying on any torch, check it against recall notices. Our page on recalled and unsafe torches and chargers explains how to check and report. Keep the manual with the torch, and keep the receipt somewhere safe in case you need support.

The maker's safety instructions are short and worth following: use the device only for its intended purpose, do not shine the light directly in someone's eyes, look away immediately if the beam shines in your eye, do not use magnifying instruments that could concentrate the beam, keep it away from heat, hot surfaces, sparks and open flames, and do not incinerate it¹. Store the torch somewhere dry and cool, and do not leave it in direct sun or on a hot surface.

If you want to compare the Leo 800 Flex with other ways of lighting a home in an outage, start with the emergency lighting at home section, which covers torches, lanterns and candles, and lighting your home safely when the power goes off for the practical sequence of an evening without power.