I tested the Biolite 200 Headlamp and believe I may have found the last headlamp I'll need.
Biolite has been on the scene for a while, making quality, battery-powered smokeless fire pits and campstoves, as well as recharging power banks, camp lights, and headlamps. They're doing their part to rid the outdoor gear space of disposable batteries while simultaneously giving back by providing energy and electricity to impoverished countries in Africa and Asia.
It's a pretty great company doing some meaningful things, and their gear is top notch. I got the opportunity to try out one of their innovative headlamps, the Biolite 200, and have been thoroughly impressed.
I got to the the Moss Green version, but it also come in Midnight Gray, Ocean Teal, and Ember Red.
Whether it's for backpacking hikers, early-rising fishermen, or stealthy hunters moving before sunrise, the Bioite 200 Headlamp will fit your needs well.
Technical Specs
The micro USB rechargeable headlamp churns out 200 lumens and has a run time of 40 hours on low, but the battery life only lasts three hours on high. It runs on a 700 mAh Lithium Ion battery that's recharged with the included USB cord. The light modes it features include a white strobe, red strobe, white spot (with dimming), and red flood (with dimming). The red flood light can be seen for eight meters, and the white spotlight can stretch out to 50 meters of beam distance, plenty for my kind of uses.
The Biolite 200 has IPX4 water resistance and features a lock mode as well as brightness memory, so each time you switch it on it will return to the previous brightness setting it was at when turned off.
There's a reflective strip on the back of the strap, and the two easy-adjust clips make it a cinch to adjust from full-sized down to child-sized. My five-year-old can wear this headlamp just as comfortably as I can, and that's a plus in my book.
Exceptional Fit
There's something special about the way the Biolite 200 Headlamp fits and feels on your head. For one, the light housing is part of the band; it's actually integrated into the strap so that the front is nearly completely flush. This prevents any bouncing when you're moving fast, a problem most headlamps have but this one avoids. It stays flat and doesn't move, which I really liked about it.
The light tilts easily with one hand, and doesn't change or shift the weight at all when pointed down.
Plus, the headband itself is made of a moisture-wicking tech fabric, and the whole thing weighs in at an ultralight 50 grams. It's the lightest headlamp I've ever strapped to my dome, and it has subsequently made every headlamp I've put on since feel heavy and bulky. Though it decreases the overall burn time, there's no additional battery pack on the strap like some headlamps have, which helps make the fit and feel even better.
Best Uses
I particularly like the red light option, which has worked well for arranging things in a ground blind before dawn. Using a bright white light can ruin your chances of approaching and entering a pre-sunrise hunting situation, because deer or ducks can see it too easily. The red, at least as far as I'm concerned, works much better in those cases. The fact that it's dimmable makes it all the better.
It's also a definitely go-to headlamp for all backcountry or front country camping trips. A small portable charger, one that I'd bring with me anyway, does a good job of quickly juicing the rechargeable battery when needed.
Though I haven't done much in the last year, this headlamp would be great for trail running, thanks to the no-bounce construction, and would look and feel just as good on women's heads as it does men's.
Biolite also offers a Light Diffusing Stuffsack which can turn the Biolite Headlamp 200 into a camping lantern, which I think is a great added bonus.
There's a 30-day warranty, dubbed the HolyFit Guarantee, tied to all Biolite headlamps, which adds more peace of mind.
To find out more about the Biolite 200, as well as the rest of what Biolite has for outdoorsmen and women, go to Biolite.com.
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