The first time I tried this out, I was on the 8th floor of a building overlooking the Gulf of Mexico. The building was 100 yards from the water. The night was dark but there were a few small groups with flashlights walking the water's edge. In order not to startle the walkers, I illuminated an area well in front of them where their own lights were pointing. Whoa! The beam on the white sand looked like daylight! Others have commented on how the Streamlight produces a bright spot surrounded by even, peripheral coverage. The peripheral lighting was probably a factor of 300 lower in brightness than the main beam, but you could see the peripheral illumination easily against the white sand at 200 yards. I brought my wife out on the balcony to show her. She said, "It's like a search-light." I couldn't put it better myself. She said it was unreal that something so small could put out so much light. The barrel is the size you'd expect for C-cells or slightly smaller.A nifty feature is the way that you change intensity. You push down the button until it clicks and hold it; the light cycles through the three levels; you release at the level you want. Click it twice in quick succession, and you get the strobe. A single click in any mode turns it off. In other words, it contains a very simple microprocessor. If you just want quick on and off, you can press the button gently enough that it doesn't click -- it will go on stay on at full intensity until you release the button. You'll find that it's immediately intuitive.You may have heard of using laser pointers for astronomy instruction. This beam is visible enough that you can use it in that way as well, although, of course, the beam is wider and diverges more than a laser. I was able to point out stars to my daughter using it.It's probably a good thing that these lights are expensive. I'm not sure it would be a better world if everybody had one, since some would use them indiscriminately.I do a lot of walking after dark and typically carry a light, especially when skunks are in season. This will be the ultimate tool for that use: the combination of the central spot and peripheral coverage will be perfect.The build quality is excellent without being any heavier than a normal flashlight of the same size. The design is rugged and not prone to scratching or scuffing. It comes across as a no-compromise, superbly engineered product, properly priced for what it is.Tim