A battery-powered headlamp is the ideal outdoor personal lighting appliance.
The headlight is easy to use, and the most attractive thing is that it can be worn on the head, so that the hands are freed and the hands have more freedom of movement. It is convenient to cook dinner, set up a tent in the dark, or travel at night.
80 percent of the time, your headlights will be used to illuminate small, close-range items, such as gear in a tent or food while cooking, and the remaining 20 percent of the time headlights are used for short walks at night.
Also, note that we’re not talking about the high-powered headlamp fixtures that light up the campsite. We’re talking an ultralight headlamp designed for long-distance backpacking trips.
1. Weight: (no more than 60 grams)
Most headlights weigh between 50 and 100 grams, and if they’re powered by disposable batteries, you’ll have to carry enough spare batteries for long hikes.
This will definitely add weight to your backpack, but with rechargeable batteries (or lithium batteries), you only need to pack the charger, which saves weight and storage space.
2. Brightness: (at least 30 lumens)
A lumen is a standard unit of measurement equivalent to the amount of light that a candle emits in one second.
Lumens are also used to measure the amount of light emitted by headlights.
The higher the lumen, the more light the headlight emits.
A 30-lumen headlight is more than enough.
3. Beam distance: (at least 10M)
Beam distance refers to how far the light will illuminate, and the beam distance of headlights can vary from as low as 10 meters to as high as 200 meters.
Today, however, rechargeable and disposable battery headlights offer a standard maximum beam distance of between 50 and 100 meters.
It all depends on your needs, i.e. how many night hikes you plan to do.
If hiking at night, the powerful beams can really help with getting through dense fog, identifying slippery rocks in stream crossings, or assessing the slope of a trail.
4. Light mode setting: (spotlight, light, alarm light)
Another important feature of the headlight is its adjustable beam settings.
There are a variety of options for all your nighttime lighting needs.
The following are the most common settings:
spotlight:
The spotlight setting provides a high intensity and sharp beam, like a spotlight for a theater performance.
This setting gives the light the furthest, most direct beam, making it ideal for long distance use.
floodlight:
The light setting is to illuminate the area around you.
It provides low intensity and broad light, just like a light bulb.
Compared to spotlights, it has a lower overall brightness and is best suited for close-range activities, such as in a tent or around camp.
Signal lights:
The semaphore setting (aka “strobe”) emits a red flashing light.
This beam setup is intended for use in emergencies, as the flashing red light is visible from a distance and is widely considered a distress signal.
5. Waterproof: (at least 4+ IPX rating)
Look for the numbers from 0 to 8 after “IPX” in the product description:
IPX0 means not waterproof at all
IPX4 means it can handle splashing water
IPX8 means it can be completely submerged in water.
When shopping for headlights, look for products rated between IPX4 and IPX8.
6. Battery life: (recommendation: more than 2 hours in high brightness mode, more than 40 hours in low brightness mode)
Some high-power headlights can drain batteries quickly, something you have to take into account if you’re planning a backpacking trip for several days at a time.
The headlight should always be able to last at least 20 hours on low intensity and power saving mode.
That’s the few hours you’re guaranteed to be out at night, plus some emergencies
Post time: Apr-11-2023