Jun 14, 2023
6 Important Factors to Select Headlights

The headlight is easy to use, and the most attractive part is that it can be worn on the head, so as to free up the hands, so that the hands have more free movement space, and it is convenient to cook dinner, set up a tent in the dark or travel at night. 80% of the time, your headlights will be used to illuminate small items at close range, such as gear in a tent or food while cooking, and the remaining 20% ​​of the time your headlights will be used for short night walks. Also, note that we're not talking about high-powered lamps that light up campgrounds. We're talking about an ultralight headlamp designed for long backpacking trips.


Factors to select  headlights

1. Weight: (not more than 60 grams)
Most headlights weigh between 50 and 100 grams, and if they are powered by disposable batteries, you must carry enough spare batteries for long hikes. This definitely adds weight to your pack, but with rechargeable batteries (or lithium batteries), you just pack and carry the charger, which saves weight and storage space.

2. Brightness: (at least 30 lumens)
A lumen is a standard unit of measurement equal to the amount of light a candle emits in one second. Lumens are also used to measure the amount of light emitted by headlights. The higher the lumens, the more light the headlight emits. A 30-lumen headlight is enough.

For example, most indoor lighting ranges between 200-300 lumens. Most headlamps offer a wide range of light output settings, so you can adjust the brightness to suit your specific lighting needs. Remember, bright headlights with high lumens have an Achilles' heel - they drain batteries surprisingly quickly. There are ultralight backpackers who actually hike with a 10-lumen keychain flashlight clipped to their hat. That being said, lighting technology has advanced so much that you rarely see sub-100-lumen headlights on the market anymore.

3. Beam distance: (at least 10M)
Beam distance refers to the distance at which the light illuminates, and the beam distance of headlights can vary from as low as 10 meters to as high as 200 meters. However, today's standard maximum beam distances offered by rechargeable and disposable battery headlamps are between 50 and 100 meters. It all depends on your needs, like how many night hikes you plan to do. If hiking at night, a strong beam can really help traverse thick fog, identify talc at the intersection of streams, or assess the slope of a trail.
 

4. Bright mode settings: (spotlight, floodlight, alarm light)
Another important feature of the headlight is its adjustable beam setting. There are a variety of options to meet all your night lighting needs. The following are the most common settings:

1) Fpotlight:
The spotlight setup provides a high-intensity and sharp beam, just like a spotlight for a theater performance. This setup gives the lamp the furthest, most direct beam of light, ideal for long-distance use.

2) Floodlight:
A floodlight setup is to illuminate the area around you. It provides low intensity and broad light, just like a light bulb. Compared to a spotlight, it has a lower overall brightness and is best for close-up activities, such as in a tent or around camp.

3) Signal lights:
The beacon setting (aka "strobe") emits a red flashing light. This beam setup is intended to be used 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 fully 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-powered headlights can drain the battery very quickly, which is something you have to consider if you are planning a backpacking trip for a few days. The headlight should always be able to last at least 20 hours on low intensity and power saving modes. That's the few hours you're guaranteed to be out at night, plus some emergencies.


KASSICO, a leading aluminum box factory in Ningbo, China, has 21 years of production experience. Since 2015, combining the advantages of camping kitchen boxes, KASSICO has expanded its business scope to outdoor camping gear and equipment, including design and supply of camp kitchenware, camp furniture, camping tent, camping lights and tools, etc. With multiple sets of outdoor products solutions, kassico provides customers around the world with hundreds of innovative and affordable outdoor products, we will be your reliable suppliers, and we will try our best to serve you better and to be your honest partner. 
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