But the Black Diamond Sprinter 275 continues to sit in our best-in-class spot. We found that we could see trees (and other neighborhood dogs) from a distance of about 100 feet. If you plan to use the Actik Core in another setting, the included mounting accessories allow you to attach it to a helmet or bicycle. Sure, headlamps are a practical purchase, but they can also be a fun gadget for kids to play with at the campsite or during backyard adventures. This headlamp also has an easy-to-use navigation system and red- and white-light settings.
When you hold down the button for several seconds, the color turns to red; when you double-click, you access the Strobe setting. But if you need a light for doing chores around the house, reading in the evenings, or walking the dog at night, the V800 will be more than enough. Its comfortable, easily adjustable strap keeps the lamp secured to your head while you run, and it weighs 4 ounces (a little more than the Spot 350, but not enough to feel heavy). Princeton Tec Remix: The latest version of this model now has 300 lumens but still no red LED. If a headlamp was rechargeable, we analyzed how easy it was to figure out the charging system and how quickly it charged up. This isnt a huge problem. But do keep in mind that this degree of water protection is intended mostly for accidental exposure, not intentional underwater adventures. Its well priced, costing a fraction of the price of models with similar features, and the V800 offers decent water resistance. The Sprinters IPX4 rating means that, like the Actik Core, its mostly dust-proof and resistant to water splashes, but it cant be submerged in water for long periods of time. 
Finally, the Spot was the only headlamp we tested in 2019 and 2020 that had a lock mode (which prevents the light from accidentally turning on in your bag). Compared with some other rechargeable headlamps (which required complicated clicking configurations to access the desired setting), the Actik Core was simpler, though we did lament its lack of a flood beam. The company also improved its setup strategy (press and hold the power button for 8 seconds to unlock). Like its competitors, the Tikkid turned off automatically after a few hours to protect its battery life. For one thing, if a headlamp has a higher lumen count, it will be considered burned out at a higher number than a light with a lower lumen count would be. Its perfect for backpacking trips. As with the BioLite 200, with the 750 you have to press and hold the power button for 8 seconds to turn on the headlamp. If not for the Black Diamond Wizs rainbow lights, wed have called this headlamp a winner. That said, we wish the light were brighter (its still only 168 lumens) and that it had a longer battery life (unlike the Spot 350, the V800 dimmed after just four hours of use). And if you need a headlamp for outdoor adventuring or runningor you want a headlamp for your kidswe have options for those scenarios, too. This Spot is not fancy, but its comfortable, and it has a half-day battery life. When you hold down the larger button, you can toggle through light settings (ranging from 350 lumens on high to 6 lumens on low). But we also think the Storm is slightly overbuilt for the average user. And the adjustability is better; now, you can position the light to hit the ground about 8 to 10 feet in front of you, which is useful for night runs and hikes. But the new update adds 75 lumens, and this change really does make a difference. The 3-ounce Spot 350 locks and is weather-resistant. The Wiz has just 30 lumens, but with three AAA batteries, those 30 lumens last a long time. At hour 12, the light was still as bright and strong as it had been at hour one. The Spot 350 is an easy-to-use, bright-enough headlamp that provides long-lasting battery life and reliable performance, year after year. (We also liked the double-button setup of the Black Diamond Spot and Vitchelo V800 a bit better than the Actik Cores single button.). When we removed the Spot from the water, the battery casing was filled with moisture (something Black Diamond mentions in the headlamps description, and an issue that several of this guides commenters noticed, too). We think compared with the other kids models we tested (all of which offered only red and white lights), this headlamp is both the right price and more fun to use.
The Sprinter stayed secure on our heads during bouncy runs, and at 4 ounces, it was light enough to wear for longer runs, too. (All of our picks except the Vitchelo V800 use the new standard.). We liked that we could adjust the headlamp to light up the sidewalk in front of us at our preferred angle (this wasnt the case with some of the other running headlamps we tested). The other two settings feature a white light and a red light. The lights color makes a difference in how you see it. It has just one button and three brightness options: low (6 lumens), medium (100 lumens), and high (450 lumens). (We should note that lumen count is more of a directional standard than a strict benchmark, but this is still an upgrade numbers-wise.) Have you ever tried picking up dog poop in thick grass in the dark? This model also has a red-light option (good for when youre switching the lamp on and off at night), a proximity flood-light option (which gives you a wider beam and more peripheral lighting, so its great for camping), and strobe options (perfect for throwing an emergency signal in the dark). But youre likely to notice that the Spot doesnt feel highly technical when you need a light that casts far into the distance (such as on trail runs or midnight trips to the bathroom while camping; for this, we recommend the Petzl model). The ReVolt offers 300 lumens, various charging options (USB, AAA batteries, and more), and an IPX4 rating for weatherproofing (higher than that of any other headlamp we tested). We think an easy-to-use and intuitive headlamp will always win out over something more complicatedand it should also be simple to operate right out of the box. Its also hands-free unless you want to switch between the two light settings and even then, all it takes is a touch of a button. Despite the extra lumens, the Spot 350s battery life doesnt suffer; we ran the light for 12 hours on high, and it didnt fizzle or dim, even for a moment. Is the headlamp bulky and does it fall off easily, or does it feel secure even after a long walk? The Black Diamond Wiz boasts a variety of rainbow colors, which dont cast very far into the distance (definitely not the advertised 26 feet on high). You'll get 5 hours of light on a full charge, and after which you can just plug it right into your USB or power bank charger to juice up. And in this guide and everyday life, well continue to use the word lumen to talk about lighting; it saves our brains from going into meltdown mode. And that sky-high lumen count youre paying for may only be temporary. Thats the run time you see on the box and on the company website. If you buy something from the links on this page, we may earn a commission. Yalumi Spark Dual: This light broke out of its housing during the tumble-dry test. The red-light setting allows you to see the trail (or the road) at night, without causing vision spots for your walking companions. We plan to look into it the next time we test headlamps. Why trust us? For example, per the ANSI/PLATO FL1 standard, if a headlamp is 200 lumens, it will hit its max run time when its light emits only 20 lumens. We turned the light back on each time for the duration of our 12-hour battery test, and things were still going strong; this is longer than Black Diamonds advertised run time of five hours on high. They still find the Spot to be superior to anything in the same price range. Led Lenser NEO, SEO 5, MH6: These three models are now mostly out of stock; when we tested them in 2019 and previous years, we found that they were expensive, fairly counterintuitive to use, and heavy. Add the physical components, such as the lens and the LEDs (which vary in shape, output, size, and arrangement, and influence how and where the light shines), and youll start to realize that lumens arent really the be-all and end-all when it comes to defining how a light looks and behaves while youre actually using it. Stay Grounded With These Nonslip Yoga Mats, 7 Best Wi-Fi Hotspots for Fast, Reliable Internet, Back-to-School Outfits for the Fashionable Teen, 7 All-in-One Desktop Computers for Home Offices, 11 Adorable Baby Dolls for Your Little One, This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. We took all of the headlamps into a dark closet and compared their beams against one another on a white wall to check out hot spots, light quality, and beam size. Ultimately, were glad the industry is starting to change the way we talk about light quality. We wore them when searching for items in the back of a dark closet and when reorganizing a small space under the sink. Compared with the Spot 350, which can withstand being submerged underwater, this model can only handle splashes. *At the time of publishing, the price was $25. Among the field of existing options, the Black Diamond Sprinter 275 remains at the front of the pack, as it has for four years. When youre car camping or even just digging through a closet, the newly updated Black Diamond Spot 350 provides exactly what you need: a bright beam, easy-to-navigate buttons, and long-lasting battery life (more than 12 hours). The FL1 standard measures more than just lumens; it assesses light output, beam distance, run time, peak beam intensity, impact resistance, water resistance, and waterproofing. The Sprinter is rechargeable, and during testing it lasted for 12 hours without dimming, beating all of its running-headlamp competitors by many hours. The Petzl Actik Core is easy to charge and weighs less than any of our other adult headlamp picks, so its ideal for outdoor adventures. But we were disappointed to find that we needed the manual to learn the complicated configuration of clicks that unlocked the headlamp. Instead of layering on more gear, clip this magnetic light onto your belt, running shorts, or vest straps. And you can swap out the rechargeable battery for AAAs, if youre worried about not having a place to recharge. The Spot has been at the top of our list since 2012 because its reliable and bright enough to light the way in most situations, whether indoors or outdoors. Best of all, the armband itself is sweatproof, waterproof, and chafe-free. The light is, indeed, really bright, and the articulated, adjustable front piece is much easier to use than the ones on past iterations of BioLites weve tested. Its very definition is confounding: Merriam-Webster defines a lumen as being a unit of luminous flux equal to the light emitted in a unit solid angle by a uniform point source of one candle intensity. Huh? After years of testing, we still havent found a running headlamp (with a head strap or harness, plus a taillight, that wont bounce off when you run) thats lightweight, secure, and bright. Even so, this headlamp performed as well as competitors that were many times the price. If youre planning to head out for a trail or city run in the early morning or after dark, the Sprinter is a solid option. Foxelli MX20: This model would have been our runner-up budget option had it offered two buttons, as the Vitchelo V800 does. We dropped the light into a shallow bucket of water for 30 minutes, after which it seemed to work just fine. We ran these headlamps through a series of king-of-the-hill tests to see whether the new beat out the old. Youll still have to experiment and click through various configurations, but we think the learning curve for accessing different modes is fairly quick.
A lumen is not the obvious indicator of performance it may seem to be. Well, this is the adult version, and it's made to keep fitness lovers safe outside at night. BioLite HeadLamp 750: BioLites newest headlamp has many more lumens750than the lines other models (and more than a lot of its competitors, too). Well keep using ours over the course of the year to see how it handles during outdoor adventures. Ive owned a Spot since 2015, and it has never faltered, even during rainy, windy days and on long hikes. Since theres just one button to click, this headlamp is intuitive to use while youre in motion. She used a headlamp for nearly everything, since her laundry, gear shed, and most of her storage were all outside. Petzl has ditched bulky elastic headbands that soak up sweat in the IKO Core Headlamp, which uses a brand new suspension system to evenly distribute the weight of a lamp and battery pack across your head. We liked the reflector strip (for safety) and the easily adjustable headband. The buttons were hard to find in the dark, too, especially when we were wearing gloves. You can wear these adjustable bands to fit around your ankles, wrist, or your arms for optimal visibility. We tested two rechargeable headlamps in 2019 (and weve evaluated nine others for previous iterations of this guide), and we think this light is the best for outdoor adventures. The lights are brighter than those in previous versions, but they are still not as strong as those on our top pick. If you need a low-cost headlamp for completing around-the-house chores, taking your dog on evening walks, or stepping out into the yard at night, this is a good option. The rating is kind of a disappointment compared with that of the Spot; though youre unlikely to need full-on weatherproofing (especially for dust and water) in a headlamp, its nice to have if youre headed outdoors. ), thats only while in turbo mode. The V800 also has a hot spot in the middle, though its not really noticeable if youre just using the light around the house or during an evening walk around the neighborhood. This headlamp also has fewer features, and it lacks the memory and locking modes we liked in our top pick. Black Diamond ReVolt: This isnt a terrible option, but our rechargeable pick came out on top due to its higher-quality light and quick charging time. More: 10 Women's Running Shoes We're Sporting This Season. Its 275-lumen lightup from 200 lumens in the previous version we testedis strong enough to illuminate 15 feet on your path, and the battery life is admirable. But wearing a headlamp is a practical safety decision, and it helps other runners and vehicles see you. Also, its rear blinker provides an important safety component. Coast FL85: This is a high-quality light, but its more than most people need. Rainbow lights make this kids headlamp fun to play with during camping trips or backyard adventures. But be wary: Though some customers rave about these headlamps, the quality seems inconsistent. Well test both soon; meanwhile, the previous versions (the Spot 350 and Sprinter 275) remain available. A 400-lumen light, for example, is considered burned out when it hits 40 lumensbut thats still more light than a 200-lumen light emits when its considered to be burned out. Once theyre in, however, the light turns on and immediately enters Rainbow mode. If youre planning to take this headlamp into the field for longer than that, pack a few extra sets of batteries (this lamp requires three AAAs).
*At the time of publishing, the price was $40. And during a test run, we found the beam to be relatively useless because we couldnt tilt it down far enough to point at the ground in front of us. Despite an upgrade, with a few additional lumens, the front light still wasnt as bright as wed like: It got a bit lost in the ambient city glow and didnt feel useful for navigation.
Throughout all of this, we ventured to use the headlamps without reading the instructions, determining whether the lamps were intuitive and easy to use straight out of the box. Black Diamond has released new versions of two picks: the Spot 400 andthe Sprinter 500. But a lumen count isnt the obvious indicator of performance it may appear to be at first, so we still think its worth looking beyond the numbers and testing the lights with your naked eye, as we have. Despite its low price, the V800 has a headband that was one of the most comfortable we tested. Three modes steady, slow flash, and fast flash alert approaching cars to your presence and guarantee you won't go unnoticed. This is why red light can be better to use at night, since its less of an affront to your eyes. Black Diamond has also updated our favorite runners headlamp, the Sprinter 275, with a stronger version, the Sprinter 500. The Petzl Actik Core is the best choice for backpackers, outdoor adventurers, and anyone who needs a headlamp with charging options (both USB and batteries). Keep your hands free on dark runs with lights that clip right onto your run belt, water vest, or even your body.