UKH

Torch technology moves on fast, and the latest generation of high power models are mind-bogglingly bright. Here we compare three headtorches that feature a dazzling 1000+ lumens of output. While they all have their impressive points, each is best suited to a slightly different use. Which would be the bright choice for you? 

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In reply to UKC/UKH Gear:

Disappointed you didn't get your usual Spice Girls references in when discussing headtorches.

In reply to Denning76:

Maybe I should have included them in the summary, although I can't remember which was which - or if the analogy even worked 😂

In reply to UKC/UKH Gear:

This lumen craze has gone too far. And for some even 1000+ isn’t enough. One of my friends has a Silva head torch for orienteering. It’s 10000 lumen. Ten thousand! It makes a day out of a night in the forest. Everyone else are blinded. 

In reply to Stefan Jacobsen:

10,000 lumens is an unfathomable amount of light...

In reply to Stefan Jacobsen:

Second time I did the High Peak Marathon one friend upgraded their Petzl Zoom with a halogen bulb and none of us could get our heads around how bright it was. How times have changed.......

In reply to UKC/UKH Gear:

Everyone will be on here punting their favourite head torch. So let me get in first ...

Fenix HM65R-T. Crazy bright. Wide and focused beams. If you need to light up a football pitch or find a stile on the other side of the field. You can run both lights together. It uses 18650 batteries, so you can swap them out easily. Having said all that, I tend to use only the low focused beam, unless I'm lost. Which happens regularly.

In reply to Stefan Jacobsen:

Au contraire. Enter a night race, sprint like mad at the start, turn that bad boy around and blind the competition.

Some might consider this to be underhand admittedly.

In reply to Denning76:

I spotted that the date for the Rivelin Landmarks race has just gone up on the Dark Peak website. Maybe that 10,000 lumen torch will be my route towards success, both in terms of blinding the competition and accurately locating the ever-elusive Wyming Brook Knoll. 

In reply to UKC/UKH Gear:

You can turn the red light off on the Nao+ Rob but you have to do so using the phone app. I find that a real faff just to carry out a simple operation. I'm not a fan of needing a mobile phone in order to control my head torch!

In reply to UKC/UKH Gear:

A detailed review, but no much comment on red light option which is an essential for map reading etc whilst maintaining night vision. My Petzl Tikka does well in this respect

In reply to fell running guide:

You’re quite right, I completely forgot about the App. Much like you I wasn’t a huge fan and as a result it’s existence has completely slipped my mind.

In reply to kevin stephens:

There was only one model which featured this mode and that was the Black Diamond Distance 1500. As such, I commented on it in there, but not within the other two.

I’ve never used the red mode in any torch I’ve owned. Yes, I get that it’s good for night-vision, but if I’m wearing a 1000+ lumen headtorch which is designed to give you a LOT of light, then what’s the use in night vision? If you want to see more, simply crank up the brightness, because there’s plenty of it available.

I’m aware that not everyone shares this viewpoint, but having done a lot of navigating at night - and never once had an issue with white light - I’m sceptical of how valuable a feature red light really is.

In reply to Rob Greenwood - UKClimbing: I’ve found the red light essential for sea kayaking at night, being able to refer to maps and charts but retaining sufficient night vision to recognise silhouettes of coastal features, whilst retaining access to a good white light for landing or dealing with incidents 

In reply to Denning76:

Are you Shure that's what you want, you really really want? 

In reply to Rob Greenwood - UKClimbing:

I don't have a Nao but I do have a Reaktik+ and the reactive lighting is great for map reading. Red light renders contours unreadable so a dimmed white light is perfect.

In reply to galpinos:

I’ve used the NAO+ for ages, so the NAO RL and reactive lighting felt very intuitive as a result of this. That said, when I then switched to the others I did end up blinding myself a fair few times whilst looking at either my map or my watch, before I learned either to dim it down before doing so or look out the corner of my eye.

In reply to kevin stephens:

Suffice to say I had not considered sea kayaking  when I wrote this review, although it’s interesting to hear of its application. Having never sea kayaked I can’t really comment, but I’m assuming you have far fewer features to navigate off at sea, whereas on land - especially with a 1000+ lumen headtorch - there’s usually a whole load more features you can use (and you’re more likely to see these with the headtorch on than you are with night vision having turned it off).

In reply to Rob Greenwood - UKClimbing:

Sure it may be a niche application but there are a surprising number of sea kayakers on UKC. I did pass a rather demanding night kayaking navigation assessment by recognising hill silhouettes from many years experience walking down hills at night, when retaining night vision was important too  

In reply to kevin stephens:

Maybe so, but I don’t think this review, or any of our reviews, were ever designed to cater for them - not least because I’d be woefully unqualified to comment on their needs.

We’ve definitely got a broad scope at UKC, but I’d say our focus has - and always will be - ‘mountain activities’. 

In reply to UKC/UKH Gear:

Red light is pretty nice and considerate of others in mountain huts/bothies or any sort of dorm sleeping situation, even sharing a tent with someone who doesn't have the same early start as you. 

In reply to Gemmazrobo:

Folk blazing about with a massively bright headtorch is almost as enraging as people incessantly rustling plastic bags.

+1 for red lights 

In reply to Rampart:

My torch brightness is the least of your worries, you've not heard my snoring!

In reply to Gemmazrobo:

You beat me to this comment.

I like red light as an option, but I think it I was opting for one of these 1000+ lumen torches I'd have a red light option as my in-sack emergency back-up/for use at tent/hut/hostel when the big boy is charging. 

In reply to UKC/UKH Gear:

My cree headlamp (see ebay) has done over 5 years of night orienteering and overnight BG supporting.. for the pricely sum of £10 -- plenty bright enough, easy to change batteries and cheap!

I can get behind the argument that spending a bit more on something more reliable as a safety bit of kit could be a good idea but for safer night escapades, this and a back-up is a much more accessible starter for anyone wanting to be able to see enough at night for orienteering (or the like).

In reply to kevin stephens:

A.K.A the Roxanne feature.