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From camping to pre-dawn summit pushes to downhill moonless mountain biking, headlamps make our lives easier in the backcountry. On top of that, they’re essential while changing an alternator or making sure your barbequed chicken is fully cooked.
We took four popular headlamps and gave them to our meticulous testers. They scratched themselves, jumped up and down, ate a banana, and devised some ingenious ways to test the headlamps for brightness, usability, and battery life. Four headlamps enter, one headlamp leaves. Actually, no. They all leave. We love these things.
The Tests
Pogo Test
Each test is rated from 1 to 5 Goats, 5 being the best.
The Weigh Test:
Since our testers couldn’t figure out how to use a slide scale, they opted for the accuracy of a digital one. They weighed each headlamp (with batteries) 10 times, eliminated the highest and lowest values, and came up with an average. Somebody was listening in science class.
The Power Test: We tested each headlamp on its brightest setting. Our in-house photographers took a light meter, set it to 400ISO at ½ second exposure, and recorded the aperture. Essentially this is like you took your old manual camera (remember those), loaded it with 400 speed film, and opened the shutter for ½ second. The number represents the f-stop to get a proper exposure. All you really need to know is that the higher the number, the stronger the light.
The One-Handed Glove Test: When the temperature is below zero, it’s no fun to take off your glove to get some light. We asked our resident one-armed man to don a Black Diamond Guide Glove and finagle the doohikies.
Bob the Styrofoam Head
The Frozen Battery Test: Instead of telling you how long these headlamps will burn on their dimmest settings at a comfortable 80F, we’ll tell you how well they perform at full-blast in freezing temperatures. Cold weather and battery life don’t like one another. We slipped the headlamps onto Bob the Styrofoam Head’s noggin, threw him in the ice box, and performed the same Power Test we used previously. After eight hours in the freezer, Bob will tell you his thoughts.
At 3oz, the Black Diamond Spot is almost as light as a bandana, and it is the lightest headlamp of the four tested. It is a great choice for weight conscious nuts like alpine climbers. It’s a solid headlamp with 8 light settings: three spotlight intensities and one flashing light; three floodlight intensities and one flashing. The spotlight provides great coverage and brightness for hiking or skinning, while the dimmest floodlight is adequate for reading in your tent. Even when cold, it shines for a long time.
Spotlight
Floodlight - Brightest
Use For: Camping/climbing in cold weather, hiking.
Bulb Types: 1 HyperBright LED; 3 SuperBright LEDs
Weight: 3oz, 86g
Brightness: Spotlight brightest: 32.8
Floodlight brightest: 16.5
Glove Test:
Turning on: 4 Goats
Adjusting brightness: 4 Goats
Switching between functions: 4 Goats
Overall glove test: 4 Goats
Bob the Styrofoam Head in the Freezer says: 5 Goats. “This thing’s still shining, even after eight hours. Those frozen peas over there look good. Mmmm. Peas.”
Pros: Lightweight and small, long battery life, bright spotlight, good flood, easy to work with gloves
Cons: Batteries are difficult to access, not any features that sets it apart from the rest
Bottom Line: A simple, compact design make this a minimalist favorite.
Innovative features such as a power boost, wide angle diffuser, and battery charge indicator separate this lightweight headlamp from the rest. Its simple button design makes it easy to switch among brightness settings while wearing gloves, and its efficient LED lasted the full eight hours of our Freezer Test, making it ideal for morning summit approaches. The Tikka XP is a versatile headlamp for camping, climbing, and hiking.
Powerboost
Spotlight - Brightest
Floodlight - Brightest
Use For: Morning approaches, climbing, hiking, camping.
Bob the Styrofoam Head in the Freezer says: 4.5 Goats. “I’ve been looking at that Dreamcicle for 8 hours! Mind passing it over? Damn. It won’t fit in my mouth.”
Pros: Lightweight, small, lots of features, long battery life, easier to change batteries than other Tikkas
Cons: Diffuser difficult to slide over with gloves on, no small LEDs
Bottom Line: A long lasting, bright shining addition to any hiker/camper/climber’s arsenal.
We liked the snug fit, sturdy design, and focused beam of this Black Diamond headlamp. Around camp, the floodlight provided more than enough light to find firewood and the spotlight whooped some ass at light tag on the canyon’s wall (roughly 80ft away). It didn’t perform well in our glove or freezer test—the button was difficult to press with gloves on and after two hours the light was out. But after it warmed up a bit, the Zenix IQ fired up again. Notwithstanding, its firm fit and bright/wide light makes the Zenix IQ ideal for night trail runs.
Spotlight - Brightest
Floodlight - Brightest
Use For: Night running and mountain biking, summer big wall climbs, camping, hiking.
Bulb Types:1 1-watt LED, 2 SuperBright LEDs
Weight: 5.7oz, 161g
Brightness: Spotlight brightest: 32.2
Floodlight brightest: 11.5
Glove Test:
Turning on: 2.5 Goats
Adjusting brightness: 3 Goats
Switching between functions: 2.5 Goats
Overall glove test: 3 Goats
Bob the Styrofoam Head in the Freezer says: 3 Goats. “I thought I was blind until you opened the door. It bonked after an hour. But once it was warm again, it fired for another four!”
Pros: Has a sturdy design/feel, over-head strap gives snug fit while running or wearing over a helmet, bright 1-watt LED, handy battery indicator always blinks, which makes it easy to find in the dark
Cons: Difficult to turn on wearing gloves, a little bulky, mediocre cold weather performance
Bottom Line: A solid headlamp for summer big wall climbs, around the campfire, or for those who like the batteries at the back.
The Myolite 3 is a solid headlamp for times when you need a lot of light for a little while. Its xenon halogen bulb was the brightest in the test but conked out the fastest in our freezer test—it was dead after only about 1.5hrs. However, for activities such as trail running, the Myolite 3’s wide zoom range gives you an outstanding illumination area and the concentrated spot beats the rest in terms of power (and distance).
Spotlight - Brightest
Floodlight - Brightest
Use For: Night hiking, camping
Bulb Types: 1 Xenon halogen, 3 LEDs
Weight: 6.4oz, 185g
Brightness: Spotlight brightest: 45.6
Floodlight brightest: 12
Glove Test:
Turning on: 5 Goats
Adjusting brightness: 5 Goats
Switching between functions: 5 Goats
Overall glove test: 5 Goats
Bob the Styrofoam Head in the Freezer says: 1.5 Goats. “It was easy to turn on and was bright for about an hour. Then it all started to get dark… I think I have the grippe!”
Pros: Feels great on your head, has old-fashioned flashlight design, easy-on-eyes hue, super strong spotlight, a cinch to work with gloves on, LED has long battery life
Cons: Doesn’t fare well in the cold, heavy, bulky, only one LED setting, spotlight has short battery life
Bottom Line: A good headlamp when you need a lot of light.
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Bob the Styrofoam Head in the Freezer says: 5 Goats. “This thing’s still shining, even after eight hours. Those frozen peas over there look good. Mmmm. Peas.”
