Princeton Tec Fred Headlamp, Black

Very light, compact and well built, comparing to similar, but cheaper products you can buy from Home Depot. I barely can feel "it is there", when I put it on. This headlamp turned out to be surprisingly useful, perhaps, one of the most useful things I got in this price range this year! I bought it mostly to use as 1) a night red light to avoid blinding myself; 2) a reading light; 3) jogging when it is dark. It is really great for all of these. For 1), an added bonus was this light is useful when putting on contact lenses in the dark (those who use them know the eyes can be very sensitive to this procedure when you are sleep deprived). The direction of the light is fully adjustable (the lowest down is achieved with one of 2 possibe orienations). The band around the head is comfortable after I took time to adjust it. The battery compartment is easy to open with a tool included on the band buckle (someone complained it is hard to open - apparently without reading the manual). You can also use a screwdriver or coin to prop open the cover. The red light (2 settings) and white light (2 settings) are dim or bright enough for most tasks. It takes a little practice to learn how to choose a specific setting (red/white/dim/bright), but it is really easy to turn on red dim or white dim and power off with one push. The absolute longest time you can use this headlight continuosly (on red dim setting) with one battery set is rated for about 8 days (hopefully you won't find youreself in the situation for such a need). The light is rated as waterproof. I do not know for how long the head band will last upon aging, that was my only concern. No problem after 6 months. I compared this headlamp to one of those that are only sold at Home Depot: those could be brighter, but usually heavier. I found that for any of my purposes, a brighter light is not necessary (sometimes could be too bright), and less weight and compact size is actually preferred, even though costs more.I agree with one reviewer, that "black" headlight was not correctly pictured. I got black, it looks like as others pictured, and it is slightly cheaper than others (combine price+shipping).UPDATE (1.5 years later). My family is still enjoying this headlight. The head band is just fine, no signs of deterioration. The batteries last for almost a year with average use. I loved this headlamp so muach that I bought 2 more as gifts!

Nice light. Important that the default on is low red, for those using it to preserve their night vision. However, low red only gives enough light to move around--not very good for detail. Brighter red is ok for that.For the white light, there are brighter ones. I recommend the BrightSpark Headlamp; A Compact, Waterproof, Lightweight and Powerful Flashlight, CREE Light Source Delivers 100 Lumens Plus Red LED. Best for Hiking, Running, Camping, Fishing, Hunting, Kids, Reading, which is 100 lumens vs. the 40 lumens of this one.

It's better than some other headlamps I've had, but nowhere near as good as the one I had originally from Paddy Pallins 15 years ago. This one still slips down on my forehead sometimes, and when I tighten it to keep it up, it's tight enough to give me a headache the next morning. I also find the buckle at the back to be sometimes annoying. The light is good - very bright if needed, and brightness can be lessened easily by pressing the button on the top of the light; angles for the light are good; it has a red light for those who want one. Until I can find a better one, it's the one I'll use for fieldwork in places without electricity.

I really like this headlamp. The first one I received was defective, it would not turn off, and I had the option of a refund or a replacement. I choose to replace it and I am very glad I did. It is light weight, comfortable, and gives me plenty of light. I like very much that it turns on in red mode and will turn off without cycling through all the light modes (low red, high red, low white, high white). I have been using it everyday since I got it about a month ago and the batteries are still strong and haven't dimmed at all, that I can tell. And I've used it at least 20 minutes, sometimes more, a day. The only thing that has taken getting used to, is the on/off switch. It is definitely not a one finger switch like my old, cheap energizer headlamp. It requires at least two fingers and a good bit of pressure to turn it on and off. In reading other reviews I realized that this is a design feature to prevent it accidentally turning on and draining the batteries. So I'm ok with that, it just took some getting used to.I use this headlamp mainly for walking my dogs at night in the woods and I'm very happy with the illumination. The high red is usually bright enough to see by and the tilt adjustment is in small enough increments that I can adjust it precisely, unlike my previous lamp. It did not cost much more than that one, but to me it's worth a lot more and I think it's a terrific value for the money.

The headlamp works good. The only problem is the end cap broke and trying to get a hold Princeton Tec customer service is a joke. All I was trying to do is to replace the end cap to the headlamp, even if I have to pay for it. However, these people don't answer my emails or voicemails. I make contact with Sean McKinney and he was going to send it to me but it's like to doesn't exist. I will never buy this brand again, poor customer service.