SOSeFLARE 5 NO MORE FLARES, Electronic Boat Distress Flare, Waterproof LED

I bought this to put on my boat in order to comply with USCG safety equipment requirements. I was not sure how well it would work but after getting it and testing it out I am quite happy with this purchase! The most important thing to know about this electronic flare is that it only counts as a night time visual distress signal. Typical pyrotechnic flares count as both day and night time signals. If you intend to only have this electronic flare onboard then you will also have to get a daytime visual distress flag to comply with the USCG minimum requirements. For those who think that this is somehow not as effective as a typical flare I have to disagree. This strobe is significantly visually brighter than a flare (it hurts to look at it) and it has an IR beacon that is tuned specifically to show up on night vision gear so I suspect it may show up brighter there as well meaning it can likely be seen much further away. Second, this beacon operates for tens of hours as opposed to the 3 minutes typical of visual distress flares. Third, you could hoist this this beacon up your mast and increase the visual range by miles- literally. Other advantages over pyrotechnic flares include a one time cost to purchase, far less environmental damage associated with the manufacture and disposal of flares (which are nearly impossible to properly dispose of), takes up less space than multiple flares, no burning slag dropping on your boat and burning holes through the deck, no possibility of starting a fire on your boat, much easier to turn on, and as mentioned previously it could be easily hoisted up high to increase the chance of being spotted. I take safety on my boat very seriously and I am quite impressed with this electronic flare. It will make an excellent addition to my safety gear and it will make it easier to remain in compliance with USCG regulations in the future. I would highly recommend this product.

As a matter of principle, I never post a review too soon in order to have time to torture the item a little bit, In this case I had to brake my rules, when I saw this SOSEFLARE from Tektite thingy advertised as NEW item, I had to have one to see if it was a better safety unit for us than what we were using which I call the Fat Boy that was bought at West Marine & serving Skipper's McGregor 26M for the last year, a brand called Sirius , I like the Sirus however the SOS Light from Tektite is OMG ! it kind of looks like, Fat Boy lost his weight & volume which is a big deal to us, 26 feet is not that much when in open ocean, so everything in its place is a must, We can now place the Tektite SOSeFlare so easily FLUSH on the steering wheel housing so to be deployed at a moment's notice no more fighting with that spongy awkward donut float of the Fat Boy, this alone is a God send to us, we just could not leave fat boy near enough for an emergency due to its corpulence. Another plus for me anyway, buy America or bye bye America, wow ! we still make flashlights in the USA , blown ! It says USCGA so I trust the US Coast Guard did their due diligence in certifying that SOS emitting beacon, In recap, considering: - the non-obstructive flush standby storage by our wheel - the ease of deployment & activation by simple twist of the lense - the OMG intensity coming from that LED module - the fairly inexpensive cost - the longevity / duration of the burn/illumination is why I derived to a word we all like INEXPENSIVE but not Cheap . PS, we've only been using Tektite SOS since March 26 2024 on the very next day we received it , so it has been a short time to fully torture it as mentioned, however I plan on taking pictures & possibly making videos of my torture chamber, time allowing, especially since I discovered some other usage which I will speak about later.

Nice and bright should work good at night. Should not have to buy any more flares.

I tested it during a recent night trip and was impressed by how far the bright SOS strobe (white + IR LEDs) carries — easily visible for miles with 360° coverage. It flashes the international Morse code SOS automatically and runs for many hours on a set of batteries. Seems a little over priced for what you get.

Why did you pick this product vs others?: Everyone knows that Pyro flares are a hassle. They are dangerous, they are costly, they expire, and there is no legal way to dispose of them ( at least not here in NY). The Tektite Electronic Flare is the perfect, elegant and cost-effective solution. Every boat should carry this flare. I hesitated buying this flare because of all the negative reviews. Those that say it is cheaply made are just plain dishonest. It is obviously made of the highest quality materials. Others say that it did not work properly. Perhaps they were unlucky enough to get a sample defect, and, judging by the number of negative reviews, maybe Tektite has a quality control issue. I don't know. My flare worked perfectly right out of the box. It is obviously of high quality and solid construction with no rattles or other issues. I've been boating for over 60 years and I've never used a Pyro flare, and hope to never use this one, but I'm thrilled to have it. Thank you Tektite for making such a great product and solving a real issue for us boaters.

Bright strobe flashes SOS in Morse code. Waterproof. Appears durable. I would have thought the value was less than $15 not $70.

Great way to meet requirements for boating. It doubles as an underwater light when scuba diving. No need to worry about flares expiring every few years

First impressions are great. It was packaged well. The instructions are clear. The only rattle I heard was the batteries sliding inside because it wasn't screwed down tight, probably to prevent it from coming on and using up the batteries. Size is nice, like a medium sized flashlight. Seal seams good and tight to keep out moisture (double o-rings) Twist to turn on and it is bright as heck. Twist to turn off and then one more rotation to prevent accidental power up. Fits great in glovebox on boat. When needed it can be held high overhead for better visibility or even use the elastic cords on it to attach to a flagpole or a push rod. No lighting a fire on an already stressed emergency situation. Replacing batteries every 5 years for around $5 total is way cheaper than buying flares. Now I need to dispose of the last 3 sets of expired flares that I have. Wife and children are also very happy with this upgrade from flares.