****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
They arrived fast and surprisingly each one is packed in its own pretty box, so if you wanted you could wrap up each one and give them as a gift. I ordered these specifically because they only use 2 AAA batteries. After a week of use I can confirm that they will retain essentially the same brightness level in the remote controlled flickering candle mode burning 24/7 for right at 4 days before they start to dim a bit. This is while using rechargeable double AAA's that have been in general daily use about a year in other LED candles. Initially, I was a bit disappointed with the brightness level of these candles, but I noticed that the end of the "burnt wick" that you can see inside the base of the candle is an LED bulb that is wrapped in black shrink wrap except for the bulb tip which burns very bright. I decided to see if they would burn brighter if the shrink wrap was removed from the "wick" bulb. Voila!! A huge difference in brightness and a VERY EASY FIX that only takes a pair of nail scissors and about a minute and half! To do this, remove the flat battery housing cover, remove the batteries, and then pinching the plastic "partition" that separates the batteries unscrew the entire unit - i.e. the battery and bulb case housing, by unscrewing it like a jar lid and pull the entire housing out. It will come out very easily. You will see that the unit actually has two LED bulbs. The one that protrudes into the "inside" of the candle as the visible "wick" will be sticking straight up from the plastic casing. Just below this LED "wick" there is small notched cap with a hole in it that the wick protrudes through. Stick the point of a pair of nail scissors in the notch on this cap and pry up gently and this cap will pull off. It may pull the wick bulb out with it, but this is not a problem as your next step is to pull this bulb out anyway. Notice when you pull the bulb out that it has 2 stiff protruding wires - the longer one is the positive wire. Now start from the end with the protruding wires and gently use the nail scissors to snip a small straight slit in the black shrink wrap cover about 3/8ths inches long. Next grip the slit end of the shrink wrap with your finger tips and pull straight up to the bulb end and this will peel the shrink wrap off of the bulb - leaving you with a clear LED bulb with two stiff wires sticking out at the opposite end - one long and one short. Look closely at the end of the main housing that you just pulled the LED bulb out of. You will see that it is marked with the positive and negative polarity signs and that each sign has a small hole next to it. Re-insert the longer bulb wire into the positive pole and the shorter wire into the negative one. Then push straight down and the bulb will go in about 3/8th inch and reseat itself. Re-insert the protruding bulb back through the hole in the notched cap and then re-set the cap in its notch. Gently re-screw the whole battery/bulb pack back into the candle base - just like screwing a jar lid back on. Snug will be fine, don't over tighten. Once the unit is screwed snugged in place, put the batteries back in, replace the battery cover, turn the candle on to your desired setting, and you're all done. Now, when you turn on the candle it will look much brighter.I have ordered this product 3 separate times in the past month from amazon via Orange Tree Trade. The first time, just to check it out, the second time, because they were nice so I wanted more of them. So I had 8 candles that worked well. The remotes worked with all of them. (I got one remote for each set of 4, FYI - I had wondered if there would be one remote per candle.) I agree that the flicker is a bit much and that knocks them down from 5 to 4 stars. Other than that, they are very attractive and I love the remote and timer features. I have 8 of them grouped together on my mantel and I usually take about 3 and turn on the flicker and leave the rest on a consistent light, so the rapid flickering is not overwhelming. I like that they have no scent and feel like real candles, not that anyone else is touching them but it makes them more realistic. It is great having the ambience of candle lighting but without the fire hazard, chemicals burning into the air, and the smoke and wax splatter of blowing them out.Just this week I ordered two more sets from the same vendor of the same product because I wanted a couple more for the mantel and a couple for my bedroom. I received two sets of 6 candles, they look similar to the ones I have but are NOT the same product. These have a different light, require 3 AAA batteries, do not come with a remote and do not respond to the remote I have for the others. The remote is key, as I've learned, because if you have a grouping of candles it is a hassle to go through every night and turn each one off, especially if you have them in any kind of holder. Anyway the sets I just received are going back today but I wanted to pass this on in case anyone else receives something that does not seem to be what is advertised!The 4 sizes that come in this set are a good variety of sizes. I wish the flicker setting was a bit less flickery--it goes from bright to almost nothing, like it is blowing out. Too much variation. But of course, I can change the setting to steady flame.The remote control is pretty cool--it lets me: 1) turn the candles on or off 2) turn the candles on for 4 hours, then they shut off automatically 3) turn the candles on for 8 hours, then they shut off automatically 4) change from flicker to steady light 5) change the brightness of the light from regular to about half that, more dimTo get started, put the batteries in the candles and turn each candle on using the switch on the bottom of each candle. Remove the strip from the remote's battery, and use the remote to turn the candles off. Now you can just use the remote to control them and turn them on and off--no need to use the manual switch until you change batteries.Given that there are 4 candles in the set, it is nice to control all of them with one click. I have some other flameless candles, and to set them, I have to push buttons on the bottom of each candle every time I want to turn them on.Also, I like that the candles are fragrance-free. Too many others come with a very artificial vanilla.I would give 5 stars except that the price is not that cheap, and the flicker could be a bit more gentle.Note, I just got these a week ago, so it is too soon to know how fast they will go through batteries. The remote did come with a battery (round, watch-type battery), but not the candles. For the whole set, you'll need 8 AAA batteries, 2 per candle.Candles are very nice when the batteries are brand new. But, even when the candles are off for a long time, the batteries are depleted very quickly. I have never seen anything like it.
