Flyingtest
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- Dec 11, 2015
- Messages
- 9
(Picture heavy)
Hello everyone!
As this is my first post I thought I'd do something useful with it, a review of a light that has not been reviewed before: the Fenix HL23 headlamp.
This headlamp is a compact IPX-8 waterproof LED light running on one AA battery. It has a Cree XP-G2 cool white LED with orange peel reflector.
The LED driver in this headlamp is current controlled, so the LED will retain the same brightness until the battery is nearly empty. The light has 3 output modes.
On the side, there is an electronic soft-touch switch that lets you control the light. This also means the light has parasitic drain.
Press and hold the switch for 1 second to activate the light. It always starts on the high output, which is according to specifications about 150 lumens. Quick press the switch to go to low, 3 lumens, press again to go to medium, 50 lumens, and press again to go to high. After this the sequence repeats.
Press the switch and hold for 1 second to turn the light off.
The hotspot looks uniform thanks to it's orange peel reflector, is quite large, and has a smooth transition to the spill. This is mainly usefull for close range illumination.
(Low)
(Medium)
(High)
Here it is next to the hotspot of a Fenix LD10, which has a cool white Cree XP-G LED, with a deeper smooth reflector. Both lights are on their highest output. I seem to have lost the LED lotery with this headlamp, it has a strong shift towards green/yellow. As you can see the HL23 has a large hotspot.
The headlamp is made of durable type 3 anodized aluminium and the holder is made of sturdy plastic. It has a solid feel and gives the impression it can stand rough handle.
The LED is thermicaly connected to the outer case which functions as heatsink. I noticed that in static room temperature air the light can become quite hot on the highest setting, also the brightness decreases slightly because of this heat.
The whole light can rotate 180 degrees around in it's holder, which has teeth to hold the light in a certain angle. The light is not detachable from the holder. Those teeth are by the way only partialy present, when you want to point the light up or far down there are no splines. I think the teeth is a weak design that could wear out by excessive use, so best is to rotate the light as little as possible.
The battery compartiment opens on the side with a screw on cap. It has a good outer profile for grip to help tighten and loosen it. On the side of the switch there is the same profile to help you turning the screw cap.
The thread is, as often with Fenix lights, square, which aids waterproofness. On the end is a rubber ring. The whole screw thread is annodized, so lock-out of the light is possible for traveling or long storage.
There is plentyfull of room for an AA battery, so the fatter aa's out there should also fit nicely.
The light comes with an elastic headband, which is about 3,5 centimeters wide and feels soft and durable. The length of the band can be adjusted with a buckle.
The headband can be removed from the light holder, so you can use the light for other purposes, with a tie-wrap as helmet light for example.
Technical info (based on a fresh 2000mah nimh battery):
Output (lumens, these are manufacturer spec).
high: 150
medium: 50
low: 3
Runtime.
high: 55 minutes, after this automatic step down to medium.
medium: 5 to 6 hours
low: 80 hours
Weight (with nimh AA battery).
~100 grams.
Current drain from battery.
high: 2,1 A
medium: 0,36 A
low: 26 mA
Parasitic drain: 0,013 mA. The battery will be empty from parasitic drain alone after 18 years.
Verdict:
Pros: compact, IPX-8 waterproof, nice design, operable with one hand, sturdy, lock-out, runs on one AA.
Mediocre: average brightness for outdoor use. No soft cushion between the light and your head (only the elastic band).
Cons: parasitic drain, fragile-looking rotation mechanism.
I give it a score of: 8 out of 10.
Well, I hope this review was usefull. I like to hear your response! :huh:
Hello everyone!
As this is my first post I thought I'd do something useful with it, a review of a light that has not been reviewed before: the Fenix HL23 headlamp.
This headlamp is a compact IPX-8 waterproof LED light running on one AA battery. It has a Cree XP-G2 cool white LED with orange peel reflector.
The LED driver in this headlamp is current controlled, so the LED will retain the same brightness until the battery is nearly empty. The light has 3 output modes.
On the side, there is an electronic soft-touch switch that lets you control the light. This also means the light has parasitic drain.
Press and hold the switch for 1 second to activate the light. It always starts on the high output, which is according to specifications about 150 lumens. Quick press the switch to go to low, 3 lumens, press again to go to medium, 50 lumens, and press again to go to high. After this the sequence repeats.
Press the switch and hold for 1 second to turn the light off.
The hotspot looks uniform thanks to it's orange peel reflector, is quite large, and has a smooth transition to the spill. This is mainly usefull for close range illumination.
(Low)
(Medium)
(High)
Here it is next to the hotspot of a Fenix LD10, which has a cool white Cree XP-G LED, with a deeper smooth reflector. Both lights are on their highest output. I seem to have lost the LED lotery with this headlamp, it has a strong shift towards green/yellow. As you can see the HL23 has a large hotspot.
The headlamp is made of durable type 3 anodized aluminium and the holder is made of sturdy plastic. It has a solid feel and gives the impression it can stand rough handle.
The LED is thermicaly connected to the outer case which functions as heatsink. I noticed that in static room temperature air the light can become quite hot on the highest setting, also the brightness decreases slightly because of this heat.
The whole light can rotate 180 degrees around in it's holder, which has teeth to hold the light in a certain angle. The light is not detachable from the holder. Those teeth are by the way only partialy present, when you want to point the light up or far down there are no splines. I think the teeth is a weak design that could wear out by excessive use, so best is to rotate the light as little as possible.
The battery compartiment opens on the side with a screw on cap. It has a good outer profile for grip to help tighten and loosen it. On the side of the switch there is the same profile to help you turning the screw cap.
The thread is, as often with Fenix lights, square, which aids waterproofness. On the end is a rubber ring. The whole screw thread is annodized, so lock-out of the light is possible for traveling or long storage.
There is plentyfull of room for an AA battery, so the fatter aa's out there should also fit nicely.
The light comes with an elastic headband, which is about 3,5 centimeters wide and feels soft and durable. The length of the band can be adjusted with a buckle.
The headband can be removed from the light holder, so you can use the light for other purposes, with a tie-wrap as helmet light for example.
Technical info (based on a fresh 2000mah nimh battery):
Output (lumens, these are manufacturer spec).
high: 150
medium: 50
low: 3
Runtime.
high: 55 minutes, after this automatic step down to medium.
medium: 5 to 6 hours
low: 80 hours
Weight (with nimh AA battery).
~100 grams.
Current drain from battery.
high: 2,1 A
medium: 0,36 A
low: 26 mA
Parasitic drain: 0,013 mA. The battery will be empty from parasitic drain alone after 18 years.
Verdict:
Pros: compact, IPX-8 waterproof, nice design, operable with one hand, sturdy, lock-out, runs on one AA.
Mediocre: average brightness for outdoor use. No soft cushion between the light and your head (only the elastic band).
Cons: parasitic drain, fragile-looking rotation mechanism.
I give it a score of: 8 out of 10.
Well, I hope this review was usefull. I like to hear your response! :huh:
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