[77outdoor] High CRI + RED 660nm dual led headlamp D25LR

Thanks, Stephen, great review. I was hoping for a full runtime table for all modes… like the tables for other sofirn lights.

I am really interested in runtimes of the red modes since I read that it takes significantly more light to stimulate L-cones with 660 than with 630 nm light. Thus I wondered if there’s much more light / energy consumption than “meets the eye”. :wink:

BTW: The D25LR makes for a great helmet lamp. I use it with the low red light mode in the city and then pierce the dark forest with the other LED in high mode. Very nice!

Review from Prepared Guy
www.youtube.com/embed/9me5VIstsQs

Review from TodayFeelLike
www.youtube.com/embed/9Gys29gkgLw

I have bought two of these now and if you release a 2700k version I’ll buy two of those also!

bought 2 D25LR units from sofirn’s webpage. ‘ships from USA’ (battery included was only option for me)
made it to me in 2 days via USPS. :+1:

i have an extra large head. the headband has enough adjustment to fit and then a little bit more. wish it had a little more padding on the inside of the light bracket.
something easily fixed though. wearing a thin watch cap i’m out of adjustment but it fits. THANK YOU for not printing ‘LED HEADLAMP’ all over it. lol

both units came with sofirn 3000 mAh 18650s. they seem to be two different cells. one had a ring on the negative side. one was at 3.6v, the other 3.58v. good so far. internal resistance (measured with Zanflare C4) was 77 and 84 average. measured internal resistance 3 times for each battery across the 4 terminals. probably not the most accurate tester for this. capacity was 2852 mAh, and 2892 mAh. ~note i took 10% off the reading to get these numbers as the C4 reads high. i’m hoping to do some more tests after 10 or so cycles.

using the lights with a couple of 30Q cells, they seem to have the same output according to my eyeOmeter. tint was ever so slightly different. both very good though.
shining at a white wall there is a little green to them. more so on dimmer settings. not really noticeable in normal use. the spot size being floody is perfect for a head lamp IMO.

the interface is straight forward and good for a head lamp. love the fact the white, and red settings have their own memory! setting 1 is low but bright enough to navigate in the dark or see things in your hands. setting 2 is bright enough for working at bench or at arms length. setting 3 is bright and gives you more range. the light gets a little warm on 3 but not bad for continuous use. setting 4 is a bit brighter with a full battery but the light gets kinds hot. i didn’t run it long in that mode.

i found the light dims as the battery drains. (FET driver?) noticed it at around 3.1v on setting 3. bumping up to setting 4 increased the brightness but didn’t make the light hot at this voltage. so i use setting 4 as a ‘reserve’ if im desperate for more light later on the batteries charge.

the red led settings are pretty great. setting 1 i could see using fishing at night on a boat with others. walking around on setting 1 is also good. the range of brightness of the red led was unexpected. it gets bright! found my cats eyes reflect like crazy with it even at low settings.

the light blinks 3 times when the battery reaches 3v. it doesn’t nag you. it didn’t blink again til 2.9v, then again at 2.8, 2.78, 2.75v. the light then shut itself off @ 2.72v. excellent. :+1:

charging the 30Qs that were 2.72v with the D25LR, charging started drawing 120mA for a while. (measured via USB with a UNI-T UT658) sorry i didn’t time it.
then bumped up to 910mA to 940mA. later in the charge it dropped down as time went on till fully charged. batteries in both units charged to 4.17v which is great. i’d rather a little low than a little high. there is not much capacity in the top .09v anyway! it seems like when the batteries are below a certain voltage it charges them at 120mA. charging the battery when it starts flashing (3v) it charges at full power straight away. :slight_smile: so keep that in mind if charging time is a factor for you.

i gave one to a fishing/camping friend along with a 30Q.

TLDR; it’s a great light that has incredible value. good simple interface with memory, good tint, floody beam, red LED, and internal charging.
cons are very minor. a little uncomfortable for longer periods without extra padding/bandana etc. micro usb.

think my 2¢ ran out a few paragraphs back. :beer:

love this head lamp.
well done sofirn!

guys, would you love a flashlight with single SST20 DR 660nm?

Which model do you like it with SST20DR? SP10V3 or SC31T?

I need your suggestions!

SC31T with SST20DR would be awesome for me!

SP10 with red LED sounds good. Mostly you want very low brightness with red and I think the SP10 would be a good host for that purpose.

Thank you Barry! I would like to see a SC31 with the DR emitter.

SP10.

I can’t see anywhere review or news about sofirn h05b headlamp.

Would be nice if they use hi cri SST20 4000K instead of 6000K

have you seen any 4000K SST20 emitters in the wild? been out of the scene for a while.

I have been out of the scene for a while now too. Not checking new lights. Now that you mention it certain light like the AA E03 also no longer comes with 4000k.

Did they stop making it?

Maybe start a new thread for this? Otherwise you’re only going to hear from members who have come here to read about the D25LR.

I think the SP10V3 would be the better choice because it’s smaller so would be easier to justify and carry as an extra light, and because it’s AA so more suitable for gifting than a li-ion based light.
I’m not sure the brightness difference between the two will be all that significant but the SC31T will obviously have more runtime so will appeal to some, especially those who need a good general purpose red light.
I see a good argument for both hosts.

I already have red lights, including the C01R, but if i didn’t i’d be more tempted by the SP10V3.

I get the impression they have been drowned out by the Nichia 519A. KD still sell them but i don’t know if they’re still made, good question.

A D25LR with 519A would make the best budget headlamp even better.

don’t know. all i know is i kept asking about 4000K-5000K SST20s only to have manufactures release 6000K. felt like a paper launch at warmer tints. as marc suggested, you may want to start a thread.

It would be nice if sofirn use them m more.

I found a review on Youtube

Just ordered 3x D25LR, would be nice to have a warm white SST20 3000k, 3500k or 4000k CRI 95 version!!