Hiking Headlamp Review: Ledlenser H8R Tested in Kosciuszko National Park
When you are hiking, your schedule is entirely dictated by the sun. You rise with the sun, and you sleep with the sun, just like humans have done for thousands of years. But the new Ledlenser H8R is out to change that tradition. I recently undertook four days camping in the Kosciuszko National Park, and I decided to take the H8R headtorch with me to test its mettle.
As a multimedia journalist and hiking enthusiast, I have done a few long-distance overnight hike events, and I have had many headtorches die on me, so I was very excited to trial this new piece of tech. I had four days and 45km around the Mount Jagungal circuit to gather my thoughts about this bad boy, and here they are.
Pros: Brightness and Performance
This thing is bright, VERY BRIGHT. The sun going down made absolutely no difference to the amount of light we had around camp thanks to the H8R. Multiple nights in a row we arrived at our campsites in the dark, an occurrence that usually lengthens the tent-erecting process, but not so when armed with the H8R.
The different brightness settings came in very handy; I generally relied on the dimmest setting for all my evening activities and it was still the most powerful light in my group of six. It also had the ability to rotate a dial on the front of the light which would narrow or widen the light's sphere of influence, and that was phenomenal.
On our last night, we camped in a valley by the Tumut River, with ridgelines towering all around us. I was able to narrow the focus and make a pinpoint of light which shone right to the top of the ridge. It is a phenomenally powerful light. The H8R was great for locating the countless Kosciuszko wolf spiders crawling through the grass.
Good Battery Life and Comfort
According to the box, the battery life lasts 10 hours on full power, 15 hours on mid power, and 120 on the dim setting. Four nights out, with about 2 hours of use every evening, equated to about 8 hours of Headlight Usage Time. I saw absolutely no lessening of brightness as I continued to use it.
The fact that it has rechargeable batteries makes it so much more attractive as well. This headlight looks very different to other lights, mainly due to the prominent battery on the back of the elastic. If you are one for the aesthetics of your headtorch, then maybe this is not for you, but I found I had completely forgotten about the big battery on the back after just a few minutes of wearing it.
The balance was actually quite exceptional, normally I need to do a lot of adjusting on the band to counteract the weight of the torch on the front, but because the light on the front was counterbalanced by the battery on the back, it sat perfectly.
Sturdy Build and Warranty
Hiking is not always the gentlest activity. There is a lot of shoving stuff in bags, banging things on rocks, and accidentally dropping items in the river never to be found again. Fortunately, despite all of those things inadvertently happening to the H8R, it took them on the chin and lived on to fight another day.
I will say that it was more of a puddle than a river though, the headtorch has an IP54 waterproof rating, meaning it can survive splashes but not complete submersion. And if somehow you do break this thing, the H8R has a 25-year warranty so no harm done!
Cons: Drawbacks and Limitations
Now, despite all the great things about it, there are a few hiccups that I found using it. The first con is that it is too bright. Okay I know this sounds like I am clutching at straws but picture this: It is 3am, you have suffered through a -4 degree night on top of Mount Jagungal, you have been fighting off the urge to wee for the past three hours but it is finally reached a point of no return.
You slowly ease open your sleeping bag, so as not to wake your hiking partner next to you. You tentatively grab the headtorch at the top of your tent, aiming to only shine it long enough to find the tent's zipper. You hit the on button then BAM! Cut to the scene in Oppenheimer when the bomb goes off for the first time and all goes a blinding white light.
Okay yes, maybe a tad dramatic comparing the brightness of a headlamp to a nuclear bomb, but you get the point. I literally never used the highest power setting during the hike unless I was showing people how ridiculously bright it was. As I said earlier, I used the light on its lowest setting, lest I permanently blind my friends.
Bulk and Safety Concerns
Whilst the balance was great, the light itself was still quite bulky. It made it slightly challenging to store comfortably, especially in pockets. Once it was dark and on my head it was fine, but during the day it took up more space than I usually reserve for headtorches. It was also fairly weighty, not outrageously so, but enough to notice you had it on.
My final gripe comes from a safety perspective. The H8R does not seem to have a flashing light setting. Whilst not mission critical as you can still recreate a flashing motion with your hand if needs be, I like to have a headtorch that can flash itself in case of emergency, so it is easier to attract attention.
Conclusion: A Solid Investment for Hikers
If you are in the market for a higher end headtorch, the H8R headtorch is a great investment. There are other great headtorches for less, but the rechargeable battery and long battery life are very convincing selling points. If you do decide to buy it, you have got a torch for life. The H8R effortlessly lighting up a cliff face next to the Tumut River in Kosciuszko demonstrates its power and reliability in outdoor settings.
