Why we like these:
This light is a great little package with a lot of power and features built in at a perfect price point. Let me just summarize it with this:
PROS:
- 1,000 Lumens - Bright enough to light up what you need to see, not so bright that you blind yourself shining it indoors.
- 80k Candela - Very impressive throw. You can easily see the hot spot on your target at 100 yards.
- Awesome Crane Port Pressure Switch -
- Small, doesn't take up much rail space.
- Robust construction, and screws directly to the pic rail so no need for additional mounting hardware.
- Heavy and durable cable, which has been the weak point for some other lights.
- Single button operation - hold for momentary or press for constant. Double tap for turbo.
- Backup switch on tailcap for redundancy.
- M-LOK and Picatinny mounts included.
- Rechargeable 3500mAh 18650 included.
CONS:
- Not dual fuel - unsure if this is something that will be changed in the future, but these currently only use 18650 batteries and can't take CR123s.
- 'Halo' effect in light beam pattern - let's get into this real quick. This is the main complaint I've seen from people, and it's something that I'm sure will be adjusted in the future. But here's the deal- the 'Halo' rings are only something you notice if you're shining this light on a wall and looking at the beam pattern. If you are shooting and target focused, you really don't notice it because you're not looking all over the place, you're looking downrange at the hot spot your light is hitting. So in my opinion this is a non-issue, but it still goes in the 'CONS' list.
- Ugly - I personally don't really care what the light looks like, I'm more interested in size/weight/performance. But subjectively some people find this light ugly. I can't say I disagree, it just doesn't bother me at all for what I'm getting.
All in all we really like this light. We've been waiting for something to pop up on the market in the price and performance range between ol' faithful (Streamlight ProTac HL-X) and the higher end options in the $300-$400+ range. We think Holosun nailed it with the RAID.
Official Description From Holosun:
The RAID (Rifle Area Illumination Device) is an all-new, highpower, long-gun white light that brings powerful illumination and user-interface versatility. RAID features 80,000 candela and 1,000 lumens for identification of targets and greater distances. RAID is activated via the included, compact, remote switch or using the integrated tail cap button. Mounting on Picatinny rails or M-LOK is covered out of the box, and the single 18650 USB-C rechargeable battery is also included. RAID has an ultra-durable 7075 aluminum body, is IP68 dust and waterproof, and withstands 1000g of shock.
