# So what is the verdict: Do people like the Zebra H600?



## witness (Mar 26, 2012)

Now that people have had a chance to play with the H600 is there a concensus. Is it a keeper or is the battery too big of a PITA?


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## iron potato (Mar 27, 2012)

Am still waiting for my H600, still on the way :shrug:
Thinking to exchange for the H600F flood version, but I have got an extra Fenix ad401 diffuser, see if I can mount onto it, then I'll keep it


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## gcbryan (Mar 27, 2012)

iron potato said:


> Am still waiting for my H600, still on the way :shrug:
> Thinking to exchange for the H600F flood version, but I have got an extra Fenix ad401 diffuser, see if I can mount onto it, then I'll keep it



There's always Scotch Magic Tape! That the approach I used on my H51.


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## 127.0.0.1 (Mar 27, 2012)

oh my gosh is this serious ?

I have H600 and H600w and both are the best headlamps I have ever seen or used.
the design is brilliant. the best balanced headlamp ever, no flopping of the beam from the weight of the head
assembly. 

I run eagtac protected 18650 on xtar wpa-II charger and everything works great
in all conditions. rain/sun/below zero/above 100 rock and roll 

big light and long runtimes, ez lockout with tailcap

the only thing it needed was...a second strap to go on the rubber mount. I ordered extra straps when I got the lights.

p-e-r-f-e-c-t headlamp IMHO


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## Gimpy (Mar 27, 2012)

Still waiting for mine to arrive. Rest assured, you'll have trouble shutting me up (one way or another) once I finally get a chance to test it out


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## Changchung (Mar 27, 2012)

Whaaaaattt???? No problem with protected ones, my best light so far...


SFMI4UT


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## iron potato (Mar 28, 2012)

gcbryan said:


> There's always Scotch Magic Tape! That the approach I used on my H51.



:devil:


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## finn (Mar 28, 2012)

I got it specifically for the battery. My h51 was wrecked by a defective alkaline.


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## Jeffro2690 (Mar 28, 2012)

I've only had my H51w for a few weeks and love it. No real plans on getting an H600 at the moment although my lumen addiction grows stronger everyday, so I'm sure it's just a matter of time


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## TEEJ (Mar 28, 2012)

Jeffro2690 said:


> I've only had my H51w for a few weeks and love it. No real plans on getting an H600 at the moment although my lumen addiction grows stronger everyday, so I'm sure it's just a matter of time



You will be illuminated.


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## varuscelli (Mar 28, 2012)

Gimpy said:


> Still waiting for mine to arrive. Rest assured, you'll have trouble shutting me up (one way or another) once I finally get a chance to test it out



They can't shut you up _now _and you don't even have one yet.  :nana:


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## varuscelli (Mar 28, 2012)

I've found the H600 to be a great headlamp for my personal uses. I've been using mine for about four months now and find it highly useful. 

I'm not sure I understand what you mean about the battery perhaps being too big of a pain. Do you mean as in too heavy a battery or too hard to figure out which brand of battery to use or just the idea of having to approach things differently by purchasing a somewhat specialty battery and charger? If it's any one of those things (or combination of them), my answer is, "No, the battery is not a PITA." 

All around, I give the H600 a big thumbs up. It's hard to beat the hands-free output and run times in such a small package.


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## Outdoorsman5 (Mar 28, 2012)

I have owned many headlamps over the years. Currently my favorite general use headlamp is the all flood zebralight H501w, but it's only useful for things that are right in front of you....not enough throw for hiking or running. I like my zebra H51 & H51w, but only use them for short distance running or short hikes since it's a single AA light. The Zebra H600 is the best all around headlight IMO, especially for long distance running or hiking, or long trips. The runtimes are incredible, so battery changes don't come often. The output is also incredible for such a small & lightweight rig....just amazing that something so small can produce 750 lumens. The beam is nice (very floody, but has some throw due to the very large hotspot.) With the great output it throws plenty for running or hiking, and I do a lot of trail running with it before the sun is up (I like 270 lumens for 4 hours of runtime.) Just an all around great beam profile without the annoying small bright hotspot in front of your face. For runners I recommend getting the $5 NiteIze head band for this light. The zebralight headband is fine, but bounces around too much when running. The NiteIze headband is perfectly secure and is comfortable.


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## TedTheLed (Mar 28, 2012)

I find it basically unacceptable.
the runtime on high is short, very short on non aw battery.
when the battery runs down, the light blinks for a moment on high, then shuts off, for good, until you unscrew, then rescrew, the battery cap.
then the light will blink off again, unless you remember to push and hold the button for a lower setting.
I wouldn't want to lend it to anyone since it could blink off at any moment, not to restart unless they know 'the trick.'
How anyone can call this brilliant design must work for the Zebra co...

phooey.


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## Outdoorsman5 (Mar 28, 2012)

TedTheLed said:


> I find it basically unacceptable.
> the runtime on high is short, very short on non aw battery.
> when the battery runs down, the light blinks for a moment on high, then shuts off, for good, until you unscrew, then rescrew, the battery cap.
> then the light will blink off again, unless you remember to push and hold the button for a lower setting.
> ...



You have a faulty light because the light is designed to step down as the battery runs down. I have tested this with my H600, and it does in fact step down slowly & runs for a very very long time on the lower modes. Send yours back cus the light should not just blink out. 

This kind of behavior was found in the SC30/H30 and the H31/H31, and discussed at length on CPF. I think Zebralight was listening, and began redesigning the newer lights to step down instead of blinking out. Here's a link to that thread - http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?324877-Why-one-of-my-most-pricy-headlamps-is-relegated-to-th-bedside-Zebralight-fans-beware

Also, you are faulting the light for the performance of your batteries. I've seen where people have reported using all kinds of 18650's that worked fine. Yes the better quality batteries & batteries with a higher mah will work better, but that's what you get em for. The cheaper ones are simply that "cheap."

Anyway, I think you should test a different battery in your H600. If that doesn't make it work right then I'd return it.

Good Luck


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## TedTheLed (Mar 28, 2012)

this is a h600w that was a replacement for a mistakenly shipped h600..both have the same problem. it was ok at first but just started with the erratic behavior the other day, again. btw, a have sc600, designed the same, same problem, and although zebra admits it, they won't replace it because 'it was designed that way'... in other words they say it isn't broken. double phooey.


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## Viper715 (Mar 28, 2012)

My H600W is about a month old. I've been in the woods and some caves with it several times now. Mine works just fine on high and has the step down. I haven't had to change the battery in the field during any of my excursions. So far so good. I like the light and hope it keeps working great. I wish thy would design an over the head strap for their headbands though. That is too much bulk at the front with no support. I've taken a strap and rigged it but I would prefer an OEM solution. I've considered buying the fenix headband and trying that.


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## witness (Mar 28, 2012)

Outdoorsman5 said:


> The zebralight headband is fine, but bounces around too much when running. The NiteIze headband is perfectly secure and is comfortable.



I don't get it. The NiteIze headband I found is for front lens light. It will work with the H600?


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## varuscelli (Mar 28, 2012)

Outdoorsman5 said:


> I have tested this with my H600, and it does in fact step down slowly & runs for a very very long time on the lower modes. Send yours back cus the light should not just blink out.



Yeah, my H600 does a proper step down, too, without blinking off. I'm pretty sure the one I received was one from the first batch made available in the US since I preordered before they were actually available (if that has any bearing on things). 

I also have an older SC600, which I bought via the CPF Marketplace second hand, and it was one of the early releases of the SC600. It does have that blink off issue when juice runs low when running it on high. But I've never seen that behavior with my H600.


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## Outdoorsman5 (Mar 29, 2012)

witness said:


> I don't get it. The NiteIze headband I found is for front lens light. It will work with the H600?



Yeah, looking at the picture that NiteIze uses on their advertisements shows a goofy looking dude wearing the strap with a forward facing flashlight on the side of his head...which works fine. For an angle-light / headlight to work in it you just wear it on your forehead instead on the side of your head. You slide the H600 into the loop on the headband, wear it on your forehead, and it faces forward.


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## Outdoorsman5 (Mar 29, 2012)

TedTheLed said:


> this is a h600w that was a replacement for a mistakenly shipped h600..both have the same problem. it was ok at first but just started with the erratic behavior the other day, again. btw, a have sc600, designed the same, same problem, and although zebra admits it, they won't replace it because 'it was designed that way'... in other words they say it isn't broken. double phooey.



I still think that either your batteries are faulty, or the light is faulty. Even on zebralight's website the H600w is advertised as having the step down feature. Here's what the site says... 

"Features

Automatic stepping down from High to Medium, and from Medium to Low when the battery capacity is low"
Regarding your SC600, the first ones were designed that way, and I've read that zebralight won't replace those...which I thinks sux for those that paid good money for the early ones. I guess to their defense the light was designed that way, and there was no promise of the light being able to step down. After some complaints though, they redesigned the light to step down, so the second generation SC600 all should step down...mine does.

By the way, I'm not trying to be a fanboy here. If I'd received two lights in a row that failed, I'd prolly lose all faith in the brand too, especially if it were the first two I'd ever bought from em. I still think though that the odds are your batteries are at fault here. Hope you get it worked out.


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## 127.0.0.1 (Mar 29, 2012)

Outdoorsman5 said:


> I still think that either your batteries are faulty, or the light is faulty. Even on zebralight's website the H600w is advertised as having the step down feature. Here's what the site says...
> 
> "Features
> 
> ...



agreed.

I have 2 ZL 600 running on eagtac protected 3100 18650 and both of them run long times, no issues whatsoever.
these light beat expectations and beat the specs and runtimes printed up for them.


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## Changchung (Mar 30, 2012)

TedTheLed said:


> this is a h600w that was a replacement for a mistakenly shipped h600..both have the same problem. it was ok at first but just started with the erratic behavior the other day, again. btw, a have sc600, designed the same, same problem, and although zebra admits it, they won't replace it because 'it was designed that way'... in other words they say it isn't broken. double phooey.



Are we seeing the same??? 

Your problem is the batteries... Three lights the same issue...

Edit; BTW, I just check mine with a old 2400mah panasonic cgr18650d and the light make the step down in 3 min, in a very soft way.


SFMI4UT


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## DIΩDΣ (Mar 31, 2012)

witness said:


> I don't get it. The NiteIze headband I found is for front lens light. It will work with the H600?



Here is a pic of the NiteIze I took with my H51w (same format) and a head shaped pot... 










Changchung said:


> Are we seeing the same???
> 
> Your problem is the batteries... Three lights the same issue...
> 
> ...


Yeah, sounds like the batteries are cutting out. Are they protected cells?


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## Changchung (Mar 31, 2012)

DIΩDΣ;3912897 said:


> Here is a pic I took with my H51w (same format) and a head shaped pot...
> 
> 
> 
> ...



No protected, working great...


SFMI4UT


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## DIΩDΣ (Apr 1, 2012)

Changchung said:


> No protected, working great...
> 
> 
> SFMI4UT


Sorry that comment was intended for TedTheLed with his light that shuts down on him.


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## evgeniy (Apr 1, 2012)

Very good headlamp. Large sweetspot (usable without flood-diffusion filters even in caves).


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## iron potato (Apr 1, 2012)

OMG OMG, I got my H600 last Sat, it has a nice kinda gradual beam (flood), since I have got one Fenix AD401 diffuser around, I mounted onto it (only with double sided tape tho) now I can have diffused beam for readings, closeup etc, swing away the diffuser for around house usage, overall is good, I like the two medium beam, not as bouncy as Spark ST6, its a keeper for sure :thumbsup:


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## hemdale (May 16, 2013)

Indeed but I've noticed that my H600 get quite...hmmm very hot on HIGH after just a few minutes...
Any other users have experienced the same overheating ?


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## Changchung (May 16, 2013)

hemdale said:


> Indeed but I've noticed that my H600 get quite...hmmm very hot on HIGH after just a few minutes...
> Any other users have experienced the same overheating ?



Mine too... That is normal...


Sent from my phone with camera with flash and internet on it...


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## hemdale (May 16, 2013)

any risk to damage the LED if used too much on the high setting ? I hope not otherwise it would be really a shame...


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## Changchung (May 16, 2013)

I am not sure, but I think that the light had a thermal sensor


Sent from my phone with camera with flash and internet on it...


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## Lampas (May 23, 2013)

I've never read about a thermal sensor, i don't think there is one integrated. But the turbo supposedly cuts back after 3 minutes, within these it can get really hot.


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## lampeDépêche (May 23, 2013)

I like my H600w a lot. A lot a lot.

No problem with the step-down. 

I run it on strobe for hours on long bike rides--during the day the strobe on the front of the bike is an attention-getter, but not too blinding (as it would be at night). Point is: it runs for hours and hours and hours--better than my legs do.

I also use it as a headlight, and very much like the beam profile. Love the XML in warm.

The reflector in the H600 is almost exactly the same dimensions as the reflector on the SC52, but I think the H600 is more textured, the SC52 more smooth. That means the H600 is more diffuse, the SC52 more throwy. Which, in fact, I think is a good call for headlamp vs. hand-held straight torch.

All of which makes me think: the H600 is a pretty good forecast of the H52 (if there ever is one), given its emitter, reflector, and beam profile. The only difference is the battery. It would be nice to be able to run AAs and 14500s, but then again it is also very nice to have the run-times and turbo outputs of the 18650.

Feeling bad because there's no H52 out yet, or even predicted? Don't feel bad. Get an H600.


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## Lampas (May 23, 2013)

Unfortunately, H600, H600w etc. are all out of stock at Zebralight and right now, they haven't even set a production date for the next batch.
Im wondering, if they come up with a successor anytime soon..


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## cyclesock (Jun 1, 2013)

lampeDépêche said:


> I run it on strobe for hours on long bike rides--during the day the strobe on the front of the bike is an attention-getter, but not too blinding (as it would be at night). Point is: it runs for hours and hours and hours--better than my legs do.
> 
> I also use it as a headlight, and very much like the beam profile. Love the XML in warm.



Do you think the H600 is enough to use as a handlebar bike light on its own? Is the throw good enough for speeds around 30 km/h? 

I want to get the H600 for jogging, but I also want to use it on my handlebars as my only light.


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## Stefano (Jun 27, 2013)

gcbryan said:


> There's always Scotch Magic Tape! That the approach I used on my H51.



Interesting idea.
But let a question, when you remove as thoroughly clean the lens from adhesive residue?
Translated with google translator


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## Stefano (Jun 27, 2013)

cyclesock said:


> Do you think the H600 is enough to use as a handlebar bike light on its own? Is the throw good enough for speeds around 30 km/h?
> 
> I want to get the H600 for jogging, but I also want to use it on my handlebars as my only light.



I have never used H600 bike but I think you can easily do.
I H600 from about 9 months and since then my other lights are unused.
When will it be released H600 MKII and I'll be forced to buy 
Translated with google translator


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## 127.0.0.1 (Jul 16, 2013)

cyclesock said:


> Do you think the H600 is enough to use as a handlebar bike light on its own? Is the throw good enough for speeds around 30 km/h?
> 
> I want to get the H600 for jogging, but I also want to use it on my handlebars as my only light.



yes it is plenty bright for handlebar duty, on road or off-road, before during and after the turbo 3 minutes

but since it is so dang light and doesn't flop around, I just strapped a rubber holder to my helmet and stick the 600 in it,

pop in a freshie 18650 and ride. repeat next day....for 1.5 years now works great


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