# Anyone have the Nitecore HC30W?



## Koam (Apr 12, 2016)

Great site!

After a bit of research here, decided to go with a bundle of Nitecore products. I have a HC30 arriving tomorrow and now notice they have a new neutral white version of this light. There were a couple of complaints about the color of the original HC30 in the reviews/comparisons on this site. Wondering if I should return and repurchase the W version. Use will be mainly walking dog at night and working around the house. I guess what I should do is order the W and compare, then keep the one I like best.

On a side note, as I was typing this I received a call from Zebralight, as I had just ordered a SC600WIIIHI (back ordered) since there was a glitch with my order online and they wanted to confirm with me I had placed an order with them. Ended up talking with the guy about 30 minutes, with him giving me tons of info about their lights, CRI, what chargers to look at online and just lots of useful info. Even talked about my HC30 I ordered. Great guy to talk to and he really praised this site with all the useful info and reviews. One thing he mentioned was Zebralight will be opening a manufacturing facility in Dallas, hopefully by the end of the year so the lights for the US and maybe North America will be USA manufactured. Pretty cool!


----------



## CivilGear (Apr 13, 2016)

That's pretty neat that he spent so much time talking with you and also glad to hear the potential factory in Texas! It would be great it the Texas plant helps bring down the prices a tad lol. I don't have the HC30 yet and didn't realize there was a neutral white offered, good to know. Thanks for sharing!


----------



## Woods Walker (Apr 13, 2016)

I have a HC30 and working on a field use review for it. A fantastic headlamp and was happy to see a NW option but the CW is good.


----------



## Koam (Apr 13, 2016)

I just ordered the W so will see how they compare.

I just posted this in a different thread but I notice I can make a difuser that snaps over the bezel by cutting the threads off of a Costco Kirkland 16.9 oz water bottle cap with scissors. There's a lip inside the cap that fits over the bezel.


----------



## Koam (Apr 13, 2016)

Woods Walker said:


> I have a HC30 and working on a field use review for it. A fantastic headlamp and was happy to see a NW option but the CW is good.




Look forward to your review.

Difuser...


----------



## Woods Walker (Apr 15, 2016)

Koam said:


> Look forward to your review.
> 
> Difuser...




That's neat. The field testing showed the heat regulation system actually works and to me is amazing. Also it survived the nasty murky water dunk...rather drowning test. LOL! Working on the video now.


----------



## saypat (Apr 15, 2016)

I have the HC30. I want the NW :mecry: There is quite a drain on this light. I ruined one cell already. Lesson learned. Do the tailcap lockout.


----------



## Koam (Apr 16, 2016)

Well that was fast! Received my HC30W today. I'll post some night pics this weekend. Only outward difference is a NW after the serial number. Here are a couple day shots of plain white paper.





Third setting with with brightness setting on phone dialed down...





Lowest setting...





Pics taken with 6s+.


----------



## hiuintahs (Apr 16, 2016)

saypat said:


> I have the HC30. I want the NW :mecry: There is quite a drain on this light. I ruined one cell already. Lesson learned. Do the tailcap lockout.


 Anyone know what that drain is?

As far as the CW vs NW goes, I bought a CW HC30 for my son in law for his birthday and checked it out before giving it to him. I thought the tint was great for a CW light.......just bright white with no color tones........as good if not better than any other CW light that I have. At the time I wished I had bought two after seeing the tint because in my experience, these things can vary from one unit to the other. That way I could have picked what I would have considered the better tint for myself and he would never know the difference.


----------



## Koam (Apr 17, 2016)

Hard to get pics with the iPhone showing the difference. Right trunk is the NW. I do think I like the NW better.


----------



## Lou Minescence (Apr 26, 2016)

Ive had the HC30 for a few months and just got the HC30W a few days ago.
There is a slight difference in the switch between the 2 lights. The rubber is more recessed feeling on the HC30W because the ring that retains it protrudes more from the body of the light. That is an improvement.
I went for a walk in the woods with the HC30W at night. The 1 lumen low seems higher than 1 lumen, but I was wanting a higher setting. The next level up is too much of a jump. For walking in the woods at night I will stick with my Zebralight or Armytek. There are many more low settings on those lights. For work I will use both Nitecore HC30 lights. They have perfect mode spacing and can take drops on concrete with no trouble at work.
I laugh at how much Nitecore has copied Zebralight with the HC30. Look the same and now a " W " designation for neutral white.
I guess Zebralight has established a naming convention for various models of headlamps. [emoji3]


----------



## hiuintahs (Apr 26, 2016)

Lou Minescence said:


> ............The 1 lumen low seems higher than 1 lumen, but I was wanting a higher setting. The next level up is too much of a jump...........


I was thinking of getting one of these but after seeing the huge jump between the lowest and the next level up I got discouraged.


----------



## Sulik (Apr 26, 2016)

Custom HC30 absolutely floody. 
http://forum.fonarevka.ru/showthread.php?p=869843#post869843


----------



## tatasal (Apr 30, 2016)

Hey guys, this HC30*W* (neutral white) is currently in a group buy I organized, anyone interested may check it out here:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...HITE-Compact-HEADLAMP-Group-Buy-Amazing-price

Thanks


----------



## flash415 (May 3, 2016)

Koam said:


> Look forward to your review.
> 
> Difuser...




First I'd like to say thanks for the bottle cap diffuser idea. It works great on my new HC30W. I need to find a way to make it more secure. A thicker bezel on the HC30W would make attachments a possibility. 

I've enjoyed comparing the Nitecore HC30W to my Zebralight H600W MKII. Here's some observations:

Cons for the HC30W vs ZL H600W

HC30W has a smooth reflector which makes the hotspot more noticeable at short distances. It's not a big deal in my book. The HC30W doesn't recognize flat top 18650s and the ZL handles both type of 18650. I put a thin washer above the positive end of the battery to fill the gap on the HC30W and this works fine and hasn't killed my light. The HC30W needs another couple low itensity modes. The ZL UI dominates the HC30W in low light settings. I figure if you really need a mid range mode between the HC30W two lowest spots, you could put a piece of masking tape over the lens to reduce the amount of light. I haven't found where I can buy extra silicone holders for the light. I attached an extra ZL silicone holder on my bike helmet and would like this option for the HC30W. The ZL's holder will work on the HC30W, but it's not a perfect fit.

Pros
Amazing price point for nearly all the same major features as the Zebralight. With some promotions advertised on this website, you could buy two HC30Ws for one ZL H600W. I still love my ZL with all it's modes, but the HC's price is hard to beat. I like the included pocket clip. The throw on the HC30W is quite similar to the ZL H600W. I don't have any instruments to judge which is better, but they both lit up trees in a similar intensity from the same distance. I plan to take the HC30W for a bike ride to test its effectiveness for riding at speeds great than 20 mph. The neutral white is a great improvement over the cool white of the original HC30. Green trees look green again and not blue-green. I like the HC30W's fast strobe...this mode works great to get the attention of someone like a distracted driver while you go jogging/biking.

In short, if you're low on cash, I would go straight for the HC30W and spend the savings on a couple batteries and a charger if you don't have those yet.
If money is not an object, then the ZL has superior features and UI.


----------

