What is a small, LED dimmable that is all or most of these things? ** indicates must have

** Attractive small unit with great diffusion if needed...so that in close quarters with clean high ISO capable cameras where the LED can be dimmed considerably and diffused to where "most" people at parties and receptions, etc don't mind that they are looking at it. There's always a few, but I've had great success on my full sized rigs over the years with a conventional lamped mini Frezzi dimmed down. And recently picked up the nice black soft box for it....and blacked out all the white "look at me" Frezzi logos (but form factor and battery setup not practical here).

** Color temp changable for outdoor fill or indoor.

** Hopefully small, elegant or cool looking and powered with capable on-board battery.

** Robust. Well designed physically and "BRIGHT" enough on full lumens to help out in dark areas 20-30' away. Could the 6400 ISO of a new GH3 or similarly capable low light performance camera with a 2.8 lens still allow the contrast detection AF to function OK? Assuming at least some other ambient in the room.

Anything else that would contribute to it looking good on board and functioning well?

Are there a number of brands or models that might fit the bill under $400-500? More than that?? Hope not.

I have owned several small inexpensive LED camera lights and the main weakness was the camera mounts. Most were plastic and broke easily.

The best I have had at a great price is the Z96 LED camera light. You can get it for $70 delivered on ebay. The light is around 5500k with magnetic filters to either diffuse it or bring it to around 3200k.

The camera mount can easily be replaced since it screws into the light itself with a standard single point (1/4" I think).

The camera also uses Sony professional style F series batteries. You can buy generics for $10-$25 depending on how big / how many hours you want. The smallest battery will power the light for well over an hour I am sure. The largest battery (F970 if I remember right) will last many hours but is pretty heavy. The light will also take AA batteries.

here's a recent video we did talking about the Z96, you can see different examples of it in use

Yardbless Pro Shooter - HDV-Z96 Review - YouTube

Z96 is a good one. We have it in stock.
HDV-Z96 LED Photo/Video Light Kit | L.A. Color Online (http://lacoloronline.com/product/?Z96-HDV-Z96-LED-Photo-Video-Light-Kit)

We also have the new Z-Flash which is same as Z96 but comes with the flash sync cable for photography flash use.
Z-Flash 96-LED for DSLR Video and Flash Light | L.A. Color Online (http://lacoloronline.com/product/?ZFLASH-Z-Flash-96-LED-for-DSLR-Video-and-Flash-Light)

See this post:
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http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/photon-management/510592-portable-power.html#post1754512

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We have a new budgeted LED light.

The 312LED is a flexbile bi-color LED light with variable color temperature adjustable from 3200K to 5600K.
VL312LED High Power Bi-Color LED Dimmable Video Light Kit | L.A. Color Online (http://lacoloronline.com/product/?VL312LED-VL312LED-High-Power-Bi-Color-LED-Dimmable-Video-Light-Kit)

This light is much better than the CN160 light before with better built quality, flexibility and output quality.

I have one of those. Got it somewhere else BUT it works like a champ. That has become my main on camera light and I use the 2 CN160s I have off camera with the aid of remotes. Great set up and the 312 is a nice light for indoors or out. The only thing I did to it is put a piece of Tough Spun over the diffuser lense to spften it up a bit more. PLUS not only can I use the Sony batteriess (it came with a decent 2 battery charger) but I use it with a Bescor NiMH 50W battery that's so small I hook it to my tripod or belt if I'm running N gunning. The light also comes with a cable that has a cigarette lighter plug. It's a big light but liteweight and well built.

I bought a couple of Z-96 lights from Taky a while back and they have been great.

I have one of those. Got it somewhere else BUT it works like a champ. That has become my main on camera light and I use the 2 CN160s I have off camera with the aid of remotes. Great set up and the 312 is a nice light for indoors or out. The only thing I did to it is put a piece of Tough Spun over the diffuser lense to spften it up a bit more. PLUS not only can I use the Sony batteriess (it came with a decent 2 battery charger) but I use it with a Bescor NiMH 50W battery that's so small I hook it to my tripod or belt if I'm running N gunning. The light also comes with a cable that has a cigarette lighter plug. It's a big light but liteweight and well built.
Don, do you use these remotes
6V DC REMOTE CONTROL RELAY SWITCH 6VDC OUTPUT with 2 remote control RS60 | eBay (http://www.ebay.com/itm/6V-DC-REMOTE-CONTROL-RELAY-SWITCH-6VDC-OUTPUT-2-remote-control-RS60-/400290822894)

I have the original ReceptionLight remote controls, which are the same remote controls, but were wired to work with XLR inputs.
They work great but I have to have my power source sitting between my lights. So I can't use the onboard power wirelessly, but have to have my power in a bag at the base of a lightstand.

It works great, as I can switch out the batteries easily if needed without taking down the lights. But I would rather have a light that powers on/off wirelessly using it's onboard power and no cables.

If you are using these remotes, did you wire the lights yourself?

I bought one of these a few months back. I've used it a lot more than I thought I would. It works quite well.

There is a brighter version that is about $100 more but still in your budget range.

ikan iLED 144 On-Camera Bi-Color LED Light ILED144 B&H Photo

Michael,
Yep, thems the ones. I still have the wiring diagram so if you need it shoot me an email.

That Ikan iLed 144 on the brightness specs show it at 2354 lux but at 50 centimetres, When measured at the normal ( if there is any norman grading distance) of 100 centimetres or 1 meter or 3 feet. that whopping 2354 luxes goes to a paltry 588 luxes. At 2 metres or 6 feet away that is a lowly 147 luxes and at 4 metres or roughly 12 feet ( what probably most of the average shooting will be done at, unless one shoots lizards in a terrarium) it becomes ....drum roll please....38 very bright and blinding luxes, equivalent to my bedroom night light.
Unless they got a typo error on the lux figures.
A led with 144 emitters should be much more brighter than a 30 watt( equivalent) light bulb.

I have a 312ASZ and think it's great. I got a Strobies 16" collapsible softbox, cut out the circular fabric where the flash goes and then stick it on the light with tension. Works great.

However, now I'm using a dual 209AS setup with both the Strobies 24" and 16" softbox. They stack so it's a little more light, plus I can separate them when need be for two independent lights. If you don't mind stacking them, I'd recommend these.

2 LED 209AS Video Light KITS Camcorder, DSLR, Camera Lighting, 312 144 209 160 | eBay (http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-LED-209AS-Video-Light-KITS-Camcorder-DSLR-Camera-Lighting-312-144-209-160-/160676373985?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item25690ee5e1)

i recently bought this:

LUMAHAWK LD144AS ON-CAM LED LIGHT/DIMMER LMX-LD144AS (http://www.henrys.com/64769-LUMAHAWK-LD144AS-ON-CAM-LED-LIGHT-DIMMER.aspx)

the adjustable temperature is a huge bonus! good battery life also.

I have a 312ASZ and think it's great. I got a Strobies 16" collapsible softbox, cut out the circular fabric where the flash goes and then stick it on the light with tension. Works great.

However, now I'm using a dual 209AS setup with both the Strobies 24" and 16" softbox. They stack so it's a little more light, plus I can separate them when need be for two independent lights. If you don't mind stacking them, I'd recommend these.

2 LED 209AS Video Light KITS Camcorder, DSLR, Camera Lighting, 312 144 209 160 | eBay (http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-LED-209AS-Video-Light-KITS-Camcorder-DSLR-Camera-Lighting-312-144-209-160-/160676373985?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item25690ee5e1)
Brett do you use a speedring to connect the softbox to the light?

Or do you simply attach it to the light by itself.
I gather you connect the softbox to the light itself, because it looks to be identical to the Coollights softbox. If it is the same softbox then I now know where Coollights gets their softbox design from. Not to mention it's cheaper as well. BTW it is a great design.

CL-SPSB256 LED 256 Speed Softbox Kit - Cool Lights USA (http://www.coollights.biz/clspsb256-speed-softbox-p-135.html)

No speedring, just stick it on the light, I had to cut maybe a half inch more between the panels to give myself a bigger opening. It's usually tipped up slightly since it runs into the light stand mount at the bottom. However, it stays on pretty well. I have the Coollights 256 and their softbox. It's slightly different with a smaller opening, but the same basic design. It wouldn't work with these lights.

After a lot of reading and looking I ordered and have just received the Sabre S2400. More than I wanted to pay but worth every penny. "Awesome" light in build and performance. At high setting on the excellent, "non" pulse width modulation dimmer control this is throwing the most bright, uniform, beautiful illumination in a perfect 16x9 field I have ever seen from a camera light in over 20 years in the field.

Spec Sheet - Sabre Pro Lighting Solutions (http://www.sabreprolighting.com/spec-sheet.html)

Cons:
Heavier than most
More expensive

Pros:
Finest low wattage yet powerful, high quality illumination. The 2 separate light sections in its design allow at the exact same illuminations with no external filters required: 3 switch controlled temps: 5500K, 4000K and 3200K

The LEDs have very high CRI or color rendering index

As opposed to conventional lamps there is zero color shift when dimming all the way to off

Tremendous uniformity in the area of the light's coverage

It does indeed at full brightness and only 15 watt draw from long lasting normal lithium camera batteries, look to be putting out their advertised equivalent of 140 watts from a conventional lamp.

I put a fully charged Sony NP-F770 battery on and let the light sit on full brightness to test how long before it started to go down, and got 1 and 1/2 hours out of it. In normal use with any, and more likely a lot of dimming......that time will extend greatly.

There are a number of good, easy and effective diffusion options that they offer which really make this sweet in close proximity and dimmed, with still all kinds of brightness headroom.

Build quality of everything is exceptional and should be very rugged and durable in the field. Personally I like the look a lot.

I cannot wait to shoot with it. The quality of the light and uniformity I expect would make any camera sing to its best potential and likely require less gain settings in low light even at 30 foot distance when needed. Even auto tracing white with Sony PMW 320 seems to be much more accurate in lower light conditions, for when needed in place of normal white balancing. With a DSLR I have the very same expectations.

The best I have had at a great price is the Z96 LED camera light.

I totally agree. It is a really good light for a very reasonable price. Very soft and even illumination with a wide angle. Good brightness, too. With the magnetic diffusor clip you can also very easily clip gel filters to the lamp. I often use a 1/4 CTO on it because the lamp's native color temperature is a little high for most daylight situations.
The Full CTO magnetic clip that comes with the lamp is really good, too. A little different from a Lee full CTO, but not worse in my opinion.

I use eneloop NimH batteries most of the time which works great, but you can also use Sony batteries or any power source from 5-16V (it has a power socket for that).

A colleague of mine took our Z96 to Brazil and Bolivia where he shot a documentary. He also used eneloop Nimh batteries and said he did not have a single problem with the lamp for over three weeks of shooting.

I often use it as a hair light/edge light when I don't have time for a real lighting set up. Just put it anywhere with a super clamp, and in less than one minute your interview lighting looks 100% better :)