REVIEW: FENIX GL19R Pistol Light

FENIX is known for its high-quality flashlights. Now they have released their first pistol light, the GL19R, and we have already extensively tested it. What stands out is the slim shape and light weight. The GL19R weighs only 100g with the battery. It measures around 7.7 x 3 x 3.1 cm and has a lamp head diameter of 25 mm. Thanks to the adjustable clip mount, it can be adapted to most pistol and Picatinny rails. From the factory, the GL19R comes with the adapter for Glock pistols installed. Another adapter for Picatinny/1913 rails is included. The FENIX GL19R is barely wider than the slide and should fit most full-size pistols. On the right side, there is a concealed USB-C port. But for what? Of course, to charge the battery, because the FENIX GL19R is powered by a 18350 Li-Ion battery. The 1,100 mAh will give you a runtime between one to two hours. The GL19R can only be operated with such a battery and not with a CR123A battery. On the other side, you will find a battery status LED for charging. This will also notify you shortly on every activation of the GL19R. Green is good, red means you should charge or replace the battery. The brightness of the FENIX GL19R is sufficiently bright with two levels. In the image, the first level with 350 lumens. The second level gives you 1,200 lumens, so significantly more light on target.

In our video you can see the difference in brightness very clearly and there's also a strobe mode.

Thanks to the dual switches, operation is really simple. If you tap one of the switches briefly, the GL19R goes into "Constant Mode", meaning the light stays on. If you hold the switch down, the LED will light up until you release the finger, meaning "Momentary Mode". To activate the strobe, you need to switch the light to Constant Mode first and then hold the switch down again.

The switches on the FENIX GL19R are relatively high. This is very pleasant because you can still have a good pistol grip when operating the switches.

The LED slightly extends beyond the muzzle on a Glock 17, causing the lens to get dirty from residue. We have always been able to easily wipe this off with our finger.

CONCLUSION: FENIX took a long time to release their first pistol light, but it was worth the wait. With the GL19R, they have brought a very solid pistol light to the market that we can't really find any faults with. It is very robust, waterproof, and at 100g very lightweight. You also don't have to buy batteries thanks to the replaceable battery.

The FENIX GL19R is available directly from FENIX for $99.95 USD

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