Tag: hiking light

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Wowtac H01 Review (Headlamp, $16, 16340, USB Rechargeable)

Wowtac has a new headlamp on the market with the H01 and it’s been getting some positive buzz in the flashlight community for it’s low price and high value. It’s running a Cree XP-G2 LED, a 16340 battery, and has onboard recharging. Thanks to Wowtac for sending it to me to take a look at. Wowtac has provided a discount using my code below for the month of July, so if you like this one be sure to check that out and save a few dollars.

Wowtac has provided a discount code to get 20% off the H01 for the month of July by using code 20LiquidRetr at https://amzn.to/3iKFu3Q bringing the final price down to $15.99.

 

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Packaging & Accessories

Wowtac’s package is a small cardboard box with everything packed in tight. Good luck getting it to fit like it arrived ever again. The outside has just the brand, model number and emitter. In this case it’s a cool white. Included in the package is the light itself, a Wowtac wrapped standard 16340 battery, a basic Wowtac head strap, microUSB cable for recharging, 2 extra orings and a spare usb cover, and the manual.

 

Construction

The light is made from aluminum and machining is pretty good for the price, my only small complaint is the milled heat syncs in the rear of the head still have slightly sharp edges. The tail allows for it to tail stand but there is no magnet. There is nuzzling in the body section that’s pretty standard. Threads between the head and body tube are anodized, short and square cut. There is only a spring in the tail of the light with the head having a small brass post. 

The head has the microUSB charging port directly to the left of the emitter when looking at it head on. The port cover sits flat but the little pull tab does stick out more then I would like. On top the semi transparent silicon covers the button and sits slightly domed and smooth. There are LED underneath that are used to indicate the battery charge level and during recharging. The lens is a deeply recessed TIR style optic held on with a exterior retaining ring. 

 

Size & Weight

I measured the length at 67mm, diameter of the body at 21mm, maximum diameter of the head at 22mm. Weight with the battery was a light 47.7g. The light is IPX8 rated.

 

Comparisons to other 16340 sized headlamps.

Retention

 

No clip is included with the H01 which is a little disappointing but I can see why they did this given the price point and it would have been a tail down carry most likely given how the body profile is cut. The headstrap itself has a silicone mount with 2 loops and the light will mount in either direction. The straps are black with Wowtac woven into them. There is no silicone grip strips on the inside of the around the head design. I found the headband comfortable with how small and light this light is.

 

LED & Beamshot

The H01 is running a Cree XHP G2 LED in cool white. No specific tint is given. This does the job pretty well without any undesired tint issues like the XHP-G3 LED has so I appreciate Wowtac making this selection. My beam pattern here has a centered hot center from the TIR with a good amount of spill. There is a big of a square pattern to the spill of the beam, it’s especially noticeable at shorter ranges. There is some PWM in the middle modes, but it’s not anything I notice or my eye does. 

 

Specs

  • Turbo – 614 Lumens
  • High – 198 Lumens
  • Medium – 62 Lumens
  • Low – 16 Lumens
  • Firefly – 0.5 Lumen
  • SOS – 176 Lumens

 

For my nightshots see the video version of this review.

 

Runtime & Heat

For my runtimes I ran the light with the included 650mAh 16340 battery. Turbo in my tests lasted for 70 seconds, a little shorter then what Wowtac quotes, from there it continues running in the 35% relative output while slowly falling over the next 80 minutes following the decline of the batteries voltage. It’s a regulated driver but the regulation isn’t’ the best. The FL1 standard comes in at 1 hour and 27 minutes of total runtime but the light continues making light out to 2 hours and 13 minutes. The last 30 minutes of runtime the light does flash on and off every  few minutes, it’s impossible to still notice if you’re using the light at the time. When the light completely shut off I measured the voltage at 2.895V. Maximum heat I saw was 42C.

I did try to run this light with a CR123A battery as it physically fit’s in the light but the driver isn’t designed for the lower voltage range and you end up getting the low power warning which is the light flashing on and off in kind of a beacon mode.

 

UI

UI here is pretty standard from WowTac and Thrunite. Long press from off to get to the firefly mode. From off a quick press gets you low, and holding the button down then starts the light progressing up it’s 3 available modes. The light does have memory mode in the normal L-M-H modes. Double press takes you to Turbo, and Triple press gets you to the only blinking mode SOS. 

 

Recharging

Recharging the light is accomplished via the onboard MicroUSB port on the side of the light. The LED’s under the switch turn red when charging and blue when charged. While it would have been great to see USB-C here, but this light was built with a low target price so MicroUSB it is. I measured the total recharging time to take 1hr and 33 minutes, maximum charge rate was 0.52A, so just below 1C. I measured the charged battery at 4.15V.

Pro

  • High value, small and lightweight
  • Standard 16340 Battery
  • Neutral white may be available in the future.

 

Con

  • Unlike many other headlamps it’s not designed for pocket EDC use, there isn’t a pocket clip or tail magnet. This does help save cost.
  • Driver isn’t designed to use a CR123A battery and gives a low voltage warning if one is used. 
  • A bit of a square pattern to the spill of the beam

 

Conclusion

If you have watched my reviews before, you know I am a headlight proponent. I use a headlamp often around my house and car when cleaning, doing home repair projects, and just other stuff, because it allows me to have both hands free. The Wowtac H01 offers a good, low cost, basic headlamp that gets the job done. It has enough runtime on the lower modes for moderate sized tasks and is a great value for getting a complete package here with the battery included, and fast shipping from the US. If you want longer runtimes of light with a larger battery it’s going to be better suited.

 

My con’s list isn’t that big of a deal given the cost here and the focused headlamp only use. It’s been a while since I have seen a light with this square of beam pattern, it’s not my favorite for sure but something a non flashaholic won’t notice probably. I can recommend the H01 if you’re looking for a small low cost, rechargeable headlamp with decent runtimes, it’s certainly a much better option then genetic headlamp options from brands you have never heard from that’s available on Amazon.

 

Wowtac has provided a discount code to get 20% off the H01 for the month of July by using code 20LiquidRetr at https://amzn.to/3iKFu3Q brining the final price down to $15.99.

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Klarus E2 Review (1600 Lumens, 18650 deep carry EDC)

Today I have Klarus’s new Deep Carry EDC light, the E2. This is the second light in the Klarus E series, and I reviewed the E1 last year. Make sure to check the description for a link to that review. This light is designed with EDC in mind to minimize the size of an 18650 light while providing a good amount of output and features. Thanks to Klarus for sending this to me to take a look before it’s widely available. 

 

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https://youtu.be/XaKEkkzY8dw

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Packaging

Packaging is a nice white Retail box with a red hanging tab. It has a photo of the light on the front, with the model number prominently displayed.On the back and side there are stats about the light and a chart telling more specs.

Inside the package you get the following. The light itself, along with a Klarus 3600mAh 18650 battery, deep carry pocket clip, lanyard, extra o’ring, micro USB charging cable, and small gray felt bag. 

 

Construction

The Klarus E2 is made from Aluminium and hard anodized a semi gloss black. It’s a nice fit and finish as recent Klarus lights have been. The tail and body are all the same as the E1 had. Starting at the tail cap, we have a dual switch design. The main switch is a larger round button that sits up somewhat proud, next to it is a paddle that acts and the secondary switch There is half a shroud built up around the larger button on the outside, to help it from getting pressed accidentally, and it’s the lanyard attachment point. This is nicely styled and works well from my experience but the downside is it’s not magnetic and it can’t tail stand. 

Threads are anodized, acme cut, and fairly small. There are springs on both ends of the light, and a dual ring system in the head like we saw on the Klarus XT21X. The body section of the light has concentric rings milled into it which gives some grip but not a ton. The head of the light is one piece with the body, in fact the entire diameter of the light is the same. There are no buttons and only minimal labeling. In my example the laser engraved serial number is not straight. The clip fit’s up on the head, and does rotate around, it can be removed if you wish. Up near the very top there is a very small tricolor LED on the side of the light that’s used for a power indicator and when changing UI modes. The front of the light unscrews in theory, and under it is a plastic lens I believe. Under that is the reflector which is similar to a TIR style optic. As a result you can’t really see the LED underneath. 

 

Size & Weight 

I measured the length at 115mm, and the diameter at 23mm. Weight with the included battery and clip was 110g. 

 

Comparisons

When compared to the E1 the E2 is 8mm longer, and the same diameter. For me for the lights I own, the Olight S2R II and S30R III, both being small 18650 lights with TIR style optics.. Diameter wise they are identical. 

Retention

The light carries in my front pocket really nicely. It’s an incredibly deep pocket clip that can also be used to attach to the bill of a hat to use as a makeshift headlamp in a pinch. Being a head up carry, it does require you to flip the light around in your hand to turn it on without having a side switch. I found this a little awkward and I think I prefer a side switch for this reason on this style of light but it was a minor complaint. The slim diameter, relative shortness, and deep carry pocket clip make for a comfortable EDC in my testing. 

 

LED & Beamshot

The Klarus E2 receives an upgraded LED and outputs from the E1. It’s using a Cree XHP35 HI LED in cool white. No tint data is given but it’s not crazy cool. The beam here is nice out of the TIR style flat optic, you get a hot center thats a majority of the light with minimal diffused spill and it throws further then you think with Klarus quoting 190 meters of 9025 candela.

  • High 1600 lumens
  • Medium 400 lumens
  • Low 100 lumens
  • Moon 8 lumens
  • Strobe 1600 lumens
  • SOS 60 Lumens.

 

Runtime & Heat

For my Runtime and heat tests I used the included Klarus branded 3600mAh battery. The lights high output of 1600 lumens began stepping down from the moment it came on and it was down to 46% of relative output at 1:10. This is an a much faster decline then I expected. The light does have some active thermal management and the light increased slowly over the next 4 minutes to 62% relative output before decreasing again around the 8:30 mark down to the 46% relative output. From here it sat pretty flat out to 10% relative output at 2:40:00 mark. Just before LVP kicked in on the light at the near 8 hour mark it did gain in brightness the last 20 minutes by 6 relative percent. You notice heat quickly on this light in high mode, the hottest I saw was 51.9C at the 45 second mark.

 

UI

UI on this light is the exact same as the E1 and controlled all with the switches in the tail cap of the light. Like other recent Klarus lights, there are 2 UI modes on this light. Factory default mode is Outdoor Mode, which I found to work for EDC pretty well. 

 

You have a paddle switch that starts allowing the light to work on low either in momentary if just clicked briefly or if you click and hold for about 1 second it will stay on. Once in the on position this paddle can be used to step through the lights 4 main modes in increasing order. 8LM, 100LM, 400LM, 1600LM. 

 

Also on the tail cap is a larger round mechanical switch that will give you instant access to turbo. You can half press this for momentary or full press to lock on. Once the light is on you can use the paddle to cycle between modes. 

 

To switch modes when the light is off, press and hold the paddle for 5 seconds and the battery indicator on the front side of the light will begin flashing red/green. Then click the large primary switch without releasing the paddle. 

 

The second mode is a tactical setting where the primary button turns the light on to high, then use the paddle to change modes, and in tactical the light goes from high and decreases in brightness to medium (400 lumens), Low (100 Lumens), and then Moonlight (8 Lumens). To enter the strobe while the light is on, hold the paddle for 2 seconds. When the light is off, pressing the paddle will give you direct access to the strobe. 

 

Lockout in either mode can be accomplished via unscrewing the tail slightly to reset.

 

Recharging

The Klarus E1 again uses a proprietary battery here, where both the positive and negative terminals are on the traditionally positive end of the battery. The positive terminal has a plastic spacer around it that sticks out a bit. A normal flat top battery will work in the light with a magnet spacer but you will lose the recharging feature of the light. The light uses MicroUSB for recharging which is disappointing in mid 2020.

Speaking of recharging I charged the light from LVP at 2.86V to full at 4.18V in a total of 4 hours and 25 minutes. Charge speed was around and ranged from 0.66A to right at 1A. Definitely on the slower side but safe. What I didn’t like was the light’s LED indicator on the side changed from red (charging) to green (Charged) before the light was completely full. I got the full indicator an hour before the light actually stopped using current and I tested the battery here at 4V. It would be good to see the light actually go green when it was done charging instead of being almost done.

Pro

  • Good factory deep carry clip, but it only allows for tip up carry and it rotates a bit to easily.
  • Good fit and finish, it’s a good looking production light. 
  • 2 UI modes for users to pick from. 

 

Con

  • Minimal change from the Klarus E1
  • Proprietary battery, this time it’s larger capacity at least.
  • Doesn’t tail stand, or is magnetic, because of the dual button configuration on the tail cap.
  • Wasn’t a fan of taking it out of my pocket and having to change grip to turn it on.
  • Moonlight mode here is brighter at 8 lumens than the E1 which isn’t moonlight at all.

 

Conclusion

The Klarus E2 looks familiar because it is largely the E1 that’s slightly longer, with a different LED to produce more output (still in cool white only) and comes with the battery the larger capacity E1 should have shipped with originally. 

 

I like it’s size for an 18650 light, it’s short, and about as narrow as possible. It has a pretty good UI and I love that it has the optional Outdoors mode or Tactical mode. The light isn’t perfect though, I found in my daily IT work I missed the ability to tail stand and a magnetic tail cap, and I didn’t love having to rotate the light in my hand when pulling it out of my pocket to use it. Moonlight mode is too bright here at 8 lumens, and it steps down super fast from it’s highest output. It’s good to see they went with the larger capacity battery here vs the E1. I hope before the light ships they revise the firmware to let the green charged light come on at closer to 4.2v vs the 4.0v it comes on in my example. 

 

MSRP at a few retailers who are listing the light for sale now at the time of this video is about $70 which is a little on the steep side with the competition and a big step up from the E1. A drop in price would make the light more competitive. If you liked the E1 you will like the E2 as it’s basically the exact same light with a brighter LED and higher capacity battery that’s just slightly longer overall.

Pick it up at the Klarus Store https://klaruslightstore.com/products/e2-klarus-rechargeable-tail-dual-switch-tactical-flashlight

Full Image Gallery https://imgur.com/a/6eku23l