Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

This light is extremely bright. Hands down the brightest I've used (when set to brightest setting). The choice of spotlight vs LED is nice, because it allows you to have ambient light for night hikes, or spot light for close work.

The PROBLEM with this headlamp... is the durability. This light will crack at the hinges and it will crack along the screws that hold it together. It will start out as just a crack (there goes your water resistance...) and then it will get worse, and the low-grade plastic will actually begin to chip away.

Don't buy this light until they come out with one that has metal hinges and a rubberized housing... stick with a cheaper light so that when it cracks you don't feel so badly about it.

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

I own a Petzl Tikka Plus for camping and backpacking and that worked fine until I took up adventure racing. Then I bought this Apex Pro so I had more light to spot control points at night and to spot further down the trail when running at night.

This light is hands down brighter than my old mountain biking headlamp and burns a lot longer. The low power wide beam mode is more than bright enough to find your way around your tent or campsite at night while providing days of burn time on low. Most of the time I only find I need the wide angle setting on high even for running at night. The high intensity spot burns through battery life fast for an LED but still will outlast anything else that bright. I can spot a 12"x12" flag from 100 yards while running with that beam.

The headlamp takes a few easy seconds to get adjusted properly for fit and is solid on my head with almost no bobbing when running.

My only complaint is that the screw tabs that retain the light to the strap system cracked on the first one I owned due to a silly design flaw that made it prone to cracking if over rotated forward. I noticed on my free replacement (thank you REI) that the design had been changed to aleviate that problem and I have had no issues since. I think the design change was made in early summer 07.

I would definately reccomend this to those who want or need a light that will outshine and outlast their competition.

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

Do your research! I bought this headlamp at [...] and loved it, absolutely loved it, all throughout the first 4-day trip it took with me. Unfortunately, when I got home and started reading online about my new purchase I found many many reports of chronic cracking of the headlamp housing above the two screwholes which hold the housing shut (making it water resistant). Some even reported pieces of plastic falling off as a result. I looked at my housing and sure enough, after about 10 hours of use over the course of a 4-day trip, it was cracked. I returned it to [...] without any issue and picked up a Black Diamond Icon Rechargeable which was rated brigter than this Apex PRO. Unfortunately, it does not use CR123 batteries which are common to my surefire lights and my SteriPen Adventurer, which was convenient for me. Also, subjectively, the Black Diamond does not seem as bright - though I may more reasonably be able to attribute that to the fact that I haven't had to trust my trip to this new contender yet in a new moon after my eyes have adjusted properly (the Apex Pro saved me on my 4-day during an unexpected long night trek during Septembers new moon).UPDATE 06OCT07: I was looking at the Princeton Tec website today and cannot locate the Apex PRO anymore, only the AA Apex. I contacted Princeton Tec about this to ask if they are revising or recalling the model. I'll write more when I find out for sure. I sure hope they improve the housing materials and re-release it. I loved that light.

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

I is great for dark nights and night hiking

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

I spend a lot of time outdoors in the darkness. I've used other brands in the past, but they didn't have the durability of PrincetonTec (PT). A few years ago I started out with a PT Corona (which I still own and use daily), which is a good overall headlamp, but it didn't have a spotlight function which would allow me to leave my Surefire flashlight(s) at home. Once I checked out the PT website (check it out, it's great!), I knew I needed the PT Apex Pro, since it would give me the wide-angle usability of the PT Corona, a spot function close to a 2-cell Surefire, plus the added benefit of the 123A batteries (i.e.:Surefire compatibility, much smaller battery compartment and 1.2oz lighter overall than the Corona). Another significant benefit is the digital controller of the Apex, which truly keeps light output at maximum regardless of battery level (the PT Corona, with it's AA batteries, tends to spend most of it's time at the 40-70% illumination output level, in my 2 years of experience with it.) I also like the battery level indicators of the Apex, which includes a warning flash pattern of the main light and a small status led light which blinks red to remind you to change out batteries back at home/base.
I've been using the Apex Pro for 11 months now on a nightly basis for around 45min each night (dog-walking). The wide setting works great for hiking speeds and around camp use. The high-output/wide setting is a good choice for rough terrain hiking. The spot settings (both low and high) are quick to switch to from the wide setting since they have their own dedicated switch, and lets you quickly ID animals or humans out to 100 yards and terrain features out to maybe 250 yards. The spot setting is also very useful for minor medical procedures and gear fixes which seem to always need as much light as possible.
As for battery life, using the the lower power setting in the wide-mode 45min. a night, and a few 5min high-output spot sessions a week for minor dog inspections and "surgeries", a pair of batteries tend to last me about two weeks. That's great for my usage-model, and I buy 123A batteries in 50-packs online so it doesn't seem to cost all that much more to run this model over the Corona in disposable AA battery costs.

Bottom Line: If you use 123A flashlights, this is a must have headlamp; it matches the quality and performance of the higher-end Surefire models. If you don't use 123A batteries, you might be better served by the Apex AA model (and perhaps an Energizer AA rechargeable kit solution, if you plan on using a headlamp regularly)

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

I recently got a hold of this headlamp for a 2 day backpacking trip. On the second night of our trip we got caught in a serious thunderstorm. We threw our pack covers and our ponchos on and fought through the storm. My Apex Pro stood beside me and did not show any sign of weakness. It split through the rainfall and fog and lit the path for our safe trip. My friend's headlamp could not break through the rainfall and was useless. I ended up taking lead. At the campsite it was very useful and the four led's provided a broad light beam and was very useful. We hung up the headlamp and used it as a tent light all night long. Woke up the next day to check to see if I needed to replace the bulb, but it still shined as bright as when I put new bulbs in. I would highly recommend this headlamp to anyone. At it's highest output, it is the equivalent of my smallest Surefire flashlight.

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

The choice of settings and brightness is a nice plus and can save battery life. Very bright focused beam. Relatively light even when worn for extended time. Easy to use with gloved fingers, but avoid pressing buttons when raining...it may short out.

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

This is a great light. It is very, very bright, not too bulky, and relatively light in weight. Further, I didn't realize how much better it would feel psychologically to have a bright light (there is a certain sense of security in being able to shine a light a couple hundred feet into the forest). The only down side is the battery, but I bought rechargeable batteries so I don't have to buy the super expensive ones.

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

I like this light. Quite a bit more, in fact, than any other headlamp I have owned and I've owned quite a few going back into the early 1990's. I've seen other reviewers criticize the CR123 batteries. That seems a bit odd to me, sort of like buying a V8 car and then complaining about the gas mileage. If you want the power, you have to make some trade-offs. In this case, nothing really packs the punch of CR123's for such minimal weight and bulk on your head. I haven't noticed the battery life being worse than lamps using AA's, but if you are worried, take a spare pair; they weigh next to nothing. I really like the fact that I can now buy one set of batteries for my headlamp, Surefire flashlight and Steripen. They are definitely becoming more mainstream; I recently found them at a [...] in Ridgecrest California on my way to backpack in the Domelands.I have not had any durability issues and I've used the lamp for almost two years doing everything from sea kayaking, general hiking/mountaineering, climbing to a late-night oil change under my Jeep and trying to find things in my attic. I actually use it once a week in the summer for a mid-week night mountain bike ride. It is brighter than any of the dedicated bike lights that my friends use. Our ride is usually 2-3 hours long and I can get about 1 1/2 rides out of a set of batteries. It gets expensive but, again, trade-offs... My only gripe is that the buttons to switch from spot to flood and between high and low settings are a bit tricky to find, especially with gloves on. Even harder when speeding through tight single-track at night. To be fair, however, Princeton doesn't really advertise this as a bike light.All in all, its been a tough and very bright light that has worked for me in all sorts of different situations for several years. If you are worried about the expense and availability of the batteries, go for a different model. If not, this is a great lamp.

Comments about Princeton Tec Apex Pro LED Headlamp:

Both my wife and I have had this headlamp for about a year and really like it. We have taken it backpacking a few times, and I have used mine for night cross-country skiing, hiking, working on the house and car, etc. The beam is very bright and even, and the batteries last a long time in the cold--much longer than my Petzel Myo did--and the regulator keeps the beam bright for most of the battery life.

While we are not abusive, we aren't too protective of the headlamp either, and we have not had any cracking as other reviewers have experienced. I'm not sure if they used the high beam more and/or exposed it to more heat, or what, but we have not had an issue.

Another reviewer said that the battery meter drains the batteries, but we have not experienced that and I find it hard to believe. It turns off after a certain number of hours and the tiny power indicator LED flashing every 10 sec probably drains less than turning on the headlamp for 1 second.

I would definitely buy this headlamp again.