The Missing 2AA Headlamps

[DM51]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

I think Ediblestarfish has probably hit on a pretty good reason. Most amateur/occasional users really don't want a heavy 2-part headlamp. It means a harness rather than a single headband, extra weight, etc., etc.

Think SF Saint vs. Minumus. I have the Saint battery pack, but to be honest I would sooner carry an extra cell for it than have the extra weight and straps on my head; so I just use the Minimus configuration.

If I was a fireman or caver, or had to wear a helmet for some reason, it would be a different matter. I'm really just thinking of occasional users - people who go off for a weekend camping, or need a headlamp for changing a flat tire, cooking their night-time BBQ or whatever.

 

[B0wz3r]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

I think Ediblestarfish has probably hit on a pretty good reason. Most amateur/occasional users really don't want a heavy 2-part headlamp. It means a harness rather than a single headband, extra weight, etc., etc.

Think SF Saint vs. Minumus. I have the Saint battery pack, but to be honest I would sooner carry an extra cell for it than have the extra weight and straps on my head; so I just use the Minimus configuration.

If I was a fireman or caver, or had to wear a helmet for some reason, it would be a different matter. I'm really just thinking of occasional users - people who go off for a weekend camping, or need a headlamp for changing a flat tire, cooking their night-time BBQ or whatever.

Yes, exactly. I hate having an extra battery pack to deal with, either on the strapping itself, or separately worn on the waist; that is my absolute least favorite configuration for a headlamp. I can deal with an external pack on the strap, but not off the strap.

I use a two-fish block to mount my Q123^2 to the top of my helmet for biking, and I also have a mount for my H51w under my visor as well. My point though, is that even when wearing my bike helmet, I still want self contained units instead of dealing with external battery packs of any sort.

I feel this way too about lights on my bike itself. I commute regularly on my bike, and I need something I can pull off quickly and easily, and put back on easily as well, to prevent theft. Any kind of external battery pack just makes it that much harder. And, with LED lights as bright as they are these days, I don't see why an external pack is necessary except for those situations where you want extremely long run-times. My Q123^2 is brighter than most aftermarket dedicated bike lights, even with external battery packs, like most NiteRider systems. I've made people's jaws literally drop when I blow away their single emitter NiteRider with my Quark, that costs a third of the price.

 

[Bolster]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

Looks like there's a growing trend away from battery packs as lights get more efficient. Look at the recent survey...notice how many people currently own battery-pack style lights, and how few plan on purchasing another pack light in the future. It's a striking contrast.

My issue with battery packs is: I can't crawl around with them easily. They're either gouging into my hip as I crawl, or making a lump at the back of my head, meaning I can't easily rest my head on the ground, or smoothly rotate my head while lying down, which is a must. Not to mention tangling cords snagging on exposed nails & etc.

Of course, a pack's not being proposed in this thread...just the opposite...my question is about up-front aka "integrated" 2AA options. 2AA shouldn't be "oversize," particularly when compared to ubiquitous 3AAA and 4AAA lights sold everywhere. 3AAA can be contained in a box of about .90 cubic inch. 4AAA in about 1.2 cubic inch. 2AA also 1.2 cubic inch. Not much of a difference. .3 cubic inch at most. We know the reason for the many AAA lights...no boost converter needed, cheaper to manufacture. But for upscale manufacturers, so little offered in the 2AA range seems to be missing an opportunity for bright, long run lights that don't need a battery pack. I would consider multi-hundred lumen, and shift-long runtimes at high brightness, to be plenty compelling reasons for one more AA!

As is always the case with headlamps, usage determines what is considered "good." I can see how a night jogger or backpacker would not want a 2AA...for them, the extra weight of one cell up front would make the beam bobble more. But for me, crawling around in attics and crawlspaces, wearing a helmet already, NON-adapted vision and no way to adapt (due to daylight outside & halogen lights used for work) the longer runtime and brighter light of a headlamp that's 1AA larger in size would be well worth the tradeoff.

Petzl recognized the long-runtime 2AA need of working lights, but didn't get the execution right. I had such high hopes for the Pixa, but it just doesn't deliver on lumens (and it could, with an efficient emitter!). I hope that other manufacturers consider the needs of "working lights" in addition to "recreational lights." Not taking anything away from recreation, but most people on this board think of headlamps as devices for walking about at night (me included, when I do that). But there's a whole world of work-users out there, who could easily wear a slightly larger 2AA light for non-vigorous (ie, not jogging) work-style activity. I'm staking my hopes to the 2AA Spark, which I wasn't even aware of, when I posted originally. And I'm also watching with anticipation for the rumored 2AA SureFire.

So my original post was somewhat uninformed...it does in fact look like manufacturers are catching onto the need for 2AAs, after all. One's already out, and two are on the drawing board. Where's Zebralight's 2AA option?

 

[Lynx_Arc]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

It is a shame Fenix's 2AA headlamp once advertised vanished into oblivion without even a wimper. I would love to see a well orchestrated 2AA headlamp for both a higher output and longer runtime on a respectable medium level with a low that is decently bright enough to have on using for idling but not a super (~1 lumen) low.

 

[gcbryan]

I'm surprised that there are so few headlamps in one sense and so many in another sense and yet not much variety.

There is Surefire, Fenix, Spark, Zebralight, Petzl, BD, PT and a few others.

Surefire has one entry (or two depending on how you look at it).
Fenix has limited headlamps as well.
Spark and Zebralight seem to have similar products with Spark offering more high output options (I think).
Petzl, BD, and PT each offer one or two fully featured products and a whole string of lesser products. All fully featured products are similar to each other with something missing from each of them.

There still really isn't a lot of choice. You would think there would be a least one company that had a product line that included every possible choice.

It would be great for a headlamp to be like a DELL You go to the website and pick your housing, emitters, interface, optic and battery configuration

 

[tedh]

It does seem particularly odd there are very few good 2AA headlamps, as this form factor was very popular not so many years ago. The Petzl Micro, an REI lamp or two, and Princeton Tec, to name a few I recall. They were all comfortable enough. With LEDs instead of incandescents, you would think the sizes could get even smaller.

I can see how 2AA appeals to a more "industrial" user, while 1AA to a more recreational. The recreational user wants less bounce, and more comfort, and is willing to switch out a battery if the light starts to dim. The professional user needs to have a constant light for 10 hours, and can't afford the interruption of swapping batteries. It's a gross generalization, but I think it explains the design of the Pixa, both in battery choice and lack of a high output mode.

Ted

 

[gcbryan]

I wonder if the switch came with the LEDs. Incan has bulbs that match the batteries. LEDs don't. There's the form factor of AAA's of course in not sticking out as much resulting in thinner headlamps that don't stick out as much and less sag from 3 batteries instead of 2 (alkaline).

I'll bet it's not much more complicated than that. Cheaper drivers and no great demand from consumers either way. Headlamps aren't as prevalent as flashlights anyway and many people just treat them like a commodity (flashlights as well to a degree).

 

[Bolster]

Totally agree with Ted and Bryan posts above. Yes, Ted gets it: The industrial user and the emergency worker are not making the same extreme movements as the athlete; and we're often wearing headgear anyway. (My second major concern is what headlamp to use for my CERT emergency response helmet...basically, I feel I have no great options there).

And yes, I think Bryan nails the explanation: cheap drivers and an uneducated consumer base. For example, I posted about headlamps on another forum I visit, a tool forum populated with mechanics. There was a large interest (and surprise) in all these advanced headlamp options they were unaware of. What these guys use are primitive cheap ringy narrow generic headlamps they find at big box stores. A "good" headlamp to them was an Energizer 6-LED.

Those who purchased an Icon or a Zebralight or a Saint were blown away and happy as a rat with a gold tooth. The "industrial" base just doesn't understand how vital a piece of gear a good headlamp is (although firefighters do). The Pixa is a start, and a huge improvement for your typical industrial user.

I recently was visited by a professional electrician, who was crawling around my attic, holding a throw-away 2D in one hand. I was just...stunned; this guy had all this specialty gear, and a terrible light not fit for the task. So I loaned him a Zebra headlamp and he was blown away.

Actually that's how I lost a Zebra; I couldn't bear to take it away from him so I sent him home with it. Same for a plumber who visited, he kept borrowing my H501, saying he'd never seen anything like it. I didn't give that one away because it was my work light, but he got himself one in short order.

 

[B0wz3r]

I agree with you guys totally on all these points. I'm definitely a recreational user, even for things like bike commuting, and I just won't buy any headlamp that isn't self contained anymore.

However, I do also see the value in a 2xAA light, for the burn time it would give you. I don't think increased output would be an advantage, at least for me, because I find that 90% of my use of my H51w (which is really the only headlamp I ever use anymore, although that may change when I get my ST5-190), is on the low and medium settings.

The other 10% is at times like when I'm sewing a patch on a pack, or at my workbench and want extra light on the work (my old eyes ain't what they used to be, even with glasses). In those situations, a 2xAA light would certainly be useful, but so far 1xAA has been fine.

By the by, I'll take some pics of my bike helmet set-up tonight and post links for you guys to check them out. The way I've got my H51w mount set up is pretty nice actually, if I do say so myself.

 

[gcbryan]

When I started looking for a headlamp I initially thought 3 AAA was not so good and that 2 AA's was much better. Then I realized that 3 batteries when using alkaline could help with sag on higher settings and the AAA's could end up with a more streamline headlamp design as well.

With alkaline batteries I didn't really think about cost and didn't care that the 2 AAs have a slightly longer run time than 3 AAAs.

Tonight I went out and bought some lithium AAA batteries and saw that a 4 pack of AAs and a 4 pack of AAAs are the same price but 4 AAs are going to last twice as long as 2 AAAs and at lithium prices that is a valid issue.

It's only a price issue but it is an issue. I think it's ridiculous that AA and AAA are priced the same.

I guess I can ride the fence on this issue. I can see both sides

 

[Bolster]

OT: Lithium primary prices are screwy. I bought 8 lithium AAs for +$1 than 4 lithium AAs at Lowe's the other day. Choices were: $11 for 4, or $12 for 8. These are for lights I keep in the car where it gets hot. I'm way OT, sorry. Back to 2AA lights.

 

[gcbryan]

OT: Lithium primary prices are screwy. I bought 8 lithium AAs for +$1 than 4 lithium AAs at Lowe's the other day. Choices were: $11 for 4, or $12 for 8. These are for lights I keep in the car where it gets hot. I'm way OT, sorry. Back to 2AA lights.

Hey, before we get back on topic did you happen to notice if they had 8 AAA's for $12? I just paid $7 for 4 at Home Depot (Lowe's was just down the street as well).

 

[B0wz3r]

Just for reference I found this recently:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001SQNY08/?tag=cpf0b6-20

 

[Bolster]

OK, I'm OT again, 4xAAA at Lowe's was $7. There was no 8xAAA.

Sorry, sorry, apologies.

 

[9watts]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

...my question is about up-front aka "integrated" 2AA options.

... But for me, crawling around in attics and crawlspaces, wearing a helmet already, NON-adapted vision and no way to adapt (due to daylight outside & halogen lights used for work) the longer runtime and brighter light of a headlamp that's 1AA larger in size would be well worth the tradeoff.

I agree completely. Any updates on this front since 2011?

 

[mobi]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

I think the 18650 lights have muscled out any 2AA lights that may have been on the drawing board. Also, current AA lights can put out hundreds of lumens for close to an hour. I think the inconvenience of switching out a depleted Eneloop for a fresh one after an hour does not outweigh the discomfort of a bulkier battery tube.

 

[RI Chevy]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

Spark SD52. A 2-AA headlamp that comes in either cool white or neutral white. It is compact, light weight, nicely engineered, and puts out a good amount of light with good run times. You also have the options for bezels, flood or regular.

 

[Charles L.]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

That is an interesting lamp. Not that I need another!

 

[tychoseven]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

My first headlamp was a Princeton Tec Matrix (link) circa 1998/1999. At the time, I considered it "the best" headlamp, because it was waterproof and had a much longer runtime than my friends' incan headlamps. Probably put out 20lm, at the most, and had very little throw. I had that Matrix until some time in 2012, when I lost it, and bought a Zebralight.

I think most people (non-flashaholics) consider the single cell lights advantageous. I still carry two AAs, but now one is a spare. I'd love more runtime on the single-AA headlamps, but if I need more, 18650 is much more light output/runtime for less weight than my old PT.

 

[dwong]

Re: But I Want Overkill!

Was using my BD Storm last night and thinking of 2 AAA instead for weight...since I use HL for short duration only, work in house or moon hiking etc.