VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- As part of the Opening Ceremony at the Winter Games, attendees were given a sweet little LED flashlight to perform some of the lighting effects. Folks on Twitter requested a teardown, and I will comply to the best of my paltry ability.
The flashlight is about 4 inches long with some heft to it, thanks to the four AAA batteries needed to power it. The four batteries are housed in a sleeve that fits into the barrel. You unscrew the butt to install the battery pack. The flashlight resembles a Maglite, though there is no manufacturer identified. (There is a "TM/MC" on the barrel.)
The lens contains nine LEDs, but only four of them are operational, at least on mine. Each light had a gel filter on the lens, marked with a numeral from 1 to 4 -- mine was a 2. This was how the light tricks were organized. Each section had a leader who gave a cue when to prepare the flashlight. The audience was then directed to watch one of the giant video screens to see when to turn on the light. When a little tab with your number appeared on the screen, you turned on the light, then mimicked the motions being made by your leader.
Did it work? You'll have to tell me.
