Australian Hiker

Rating

Black Diamond ReVolt Review

My wife and I own nine headlamps, mmmmm maybe its time to sell some of them! The oldest, is 12 years old and is by far the heaviest having a heavy rear battery housing seperate to the lamp unit and an incandescent bulb. I must admit I do use a number of my lights regularly keeping one in each car, another in the kitchen drawer for when I go for an early morning walk into our nearby bushland, and another for when I travel fast and light (pun intended). My newest Black Diamond Revolt has now become my go-to light but given I already own so many lamps including two previous ReVolt versions, why update when the previous ones are still working and in very good condition?

From my perspective there is no such thing as a perfect headlight and by perfect I mean one that costs very little, weighs almost nothing, has an extremely long battery life and has an adjustable beam (and with it the battery life) from a narrow beam that will fry possums at 300 paces to something that just lets you do some close up work when its dark. As a result I tend to pick and choose my light based on my plans :

• Will I be hiking at night or am I just hanging around camp?
• How well do I know the trail?
• What condition is the trail in; is it easy to locate and follow, or could it be dangerous in the dark?
• Is there a full or reasonably full moon?

I now have a three light arsenal I work between. The Black Diamond ReVolt for when I’m long distance hiking, the Petzl E+Lite for when I know I won’t be night hiking, and the Petzl Actik Core Headlamp (which I steal from my wife if she’ll let me) for when I’m doing serious night hiking on shorter trips.

The Black Diamond ReVolt was one of the first rechargeable battery powered headlamps on the market and this latest version retains this key function. When I do short overnight trips battery consumption isn’t an issue but when I am doing multi-week trips battery consumption becomes a challenge so I need a light that is going to keep on working. In addition on my longer trips I will usually try to do at least one or two night hikes. Overall I’m a heavy power user on my long trips and really appreciate all my gear being easily rechargable using a USB cable. On the recharging option you don’t need to open up the battery case to charge the torch, instead you just open a small plastic hatch and plug in the mini USB cable that comes with the headlamp.

For me where the benefits of purchasing a new headlamp are not only has this latest model of the ReVolt increased in power from 300 lumens to 350 lumens but this is also combined with a substantial improvement in battery life. The previous versions of the ReVolt used three rechargeable AAA batteries but this version now uses a flat rectangular battery pack that boots the life of the headlamp noticeably. Battery life will vary depending on the light intensity that you dial and the type of battery you use.

Battery Life versus Beam Intensity with Black Diamond BD1800 rechargeable battery (as purchased)

• 6 lumens     – 8 metres – 120 hours
• 180 lumens – 60 metres – 7 hours
• 350 lumens – 82 metres – 3 hours

Battery Life versus Beam Intensity with alkaline batteries (3 xAAA)

• 6 lumens     – 8 metres – 200 hours
• 180 lumens – 60 metres – 10 hours
• 350 lumens – 82 metres – 4 hours

While by no means the most powerful light on the market the beam intensity and coverage is pretty awesome  and while the previous version was good this one is even better. When compared to the original headlamps it’s amazing.

I usually find I will rarely use the 350 lumen setting unless I am night hiking in unknown or poor quality trails so my battery life usually does sit around the 7+ hour mark and that gets me though an 8 day before I need to use my battery pack to recharge.

This torch has three small little battery power lights on the side of the lamp. These little blue lights come on when you turn on the unit for a short period and has  six settings depending on how the battery is charged so you can tell within about 20% of where you are at. The final little flashing light indicates you are down to the last 10%.

Probably the hardest thing to work out with any headlamp are the light choices. This latest version of the ReVolt has:

• Full strength in proximity and distance modes
• Dimming
• White low level
• White Strobe
• White high level
• Red night vision
• Red Strobe
• Lock mode to parent the light accidentally coming on

The light will always turn back on to the last setting which is a handy feature. There is also a power tap button on the right hand side of the headlamp that will instantly take the light to the maximum on that particular mode by a single tap to the correct location on the lamp housing. A second tap returns the lighting to where it was. This is quite handy when you have it set on low and want maximum power.

This extensive range of settings can become confusing at times and even when I have used the previous versions for a number of years it’s only when I’m using it over multiple nights that I remember what the settings are.

Black Diamond is big in weather proofing their lights and this latest version of the ReVolt is rated IPX-4 which means that regardless of the rain its going to survive. I have never had issues with this light regardless of the weather.

Colour wise there is choice for everyone including Aqua, Graphite, Aluminium, Dark Olive and Octane (red). The headband which is the standard style neoprene headband also changes colour with the headlamp colour.

The Black Diamond ReVolt continues to improve with each model and this latest version has taken this long standing industry favourite to new heights.

Black Diamond ReVolt in packet

Black Diamond ReVolt current version Octane colour

Black Diamond ReVolt showing the current version at the bottom with the two previous versions above

Black Diamond ReVolt battery pack in case. You can use standard AAA batteries if you want

Black Diamond ReVolt charging port

Black Diamond Revolt buttons

We Like

• The ability to recharge means that unless you are doing some really long nights you can top up this torch while you sleep and its ready to go the next day – no extra batteries needed
• Comes with rechargeable batteries that can be recharged through any power source connected to a mini USB. This keeps your ongoing power cost to a minimum
• Up to 82 metres of good visibility on ‘high beam’ provides excellent vision at night when way finding keeping you safe on the trail
• A range of lighting choices that will provide just the right amount of light for any circumstance
• The red night-vision mode provides low level light when you don’t want to fry the wildlife and a locater beacon when you want to be seen
• Lock mode can be engaged during travel to ensuring that you don’t flatten your batteries when the lamp is in the pack
• Six level power meter (four lights) shows remaining battery life
• Waterproof (within reason)

We Don't Like

• The pressure switches that many headlamps have in common these days take a little while to getting used to. Choosing the right lighting setting is a bit of trial and error when you first use this light
• If using this for long periods on full power you will need to use non rechargeable batteries or have a spare set of rechargeable batteries

Best Uses

Great all round light for when battery availability is an issue. Can be easily recharged off a battery pack or solar panel or used with lithium or alkaline batteries when extra power is needed

Buy One

You can purchase the Black Diamond ReVolt Headlamp online from Amazon Australia

Disclosure:  We may earn a small commission, at no additional expense to you, if you click through and make a purchase. Please note that our affiliations do not influence, in any way, the independence of our reviews. If we don’t like a product, you’ll hear about it from us!

Investment

AUD $99.99 RRP (this headlamp is being phased out and at this price its well worth buying)

Other Versions

Black Diamond produces a large range of headlamps and adds new models on a regular basis

Current Black Diamond ReVolt rechargeable headlamp model

Disclaimer

This review was done with product purchased from a retail store by Australian Hiker

Last updated

25/11/2023

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