I have been looking at a bunch of headlamps recently and I wanted to check the performance of the Fenix HL16.
Here is my review:
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I know you have to walk a fine line if you want to keep getting products to test for free. You say you wish the beam was wider but then you put a “throwy beam” in the pro category. You put “build quality” in the pro category. You say you’d be afraid to drop it because you’d be afraid it would break. Please remove those two from the pro category and place them in the con category. Unless you specify you are comparing them to other junk that uses three AAA batteries.
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I asked for the Fenix HL16 so that I could test it and save others the hassle of trying it out for themselves if it didn’t meet expectations (i.e. something lightweight with a good runtime and decent light output). I wanted to check out some ultra-light Nitecore headlamps too but I have too many torches to review.
I am disappointed with the runtime.
I should probably replace my comment “but I would not want to drop it on a hard surface. The plastic hinges might break.” because I recently dropped the headlamp a dozen times onto a hardwood floor and it didn’t break. The batteries flew out the first few times until I closed the battery compartment properly.
I was comparing the Fenix HL16, perhaps unfairly, with a cheap Arlec headlamp. The clip for the battery compartment on the Arlec headlamp breaks easily under regular use.
My concern about the hinges breaking were influenced by a review of the Nitecore UT27 by 1lumen and a personal experience with a Pelican Micro Case 1040 hinge breaking within the first week of having it after dropping it once while it was empty.
I’d prefer a floodier beam to see around the periphery while going slow. But it is good for seeing up ahead while moving fast (e.g. cycling). It is just as throwy as the Acebeam H16.
Thanks for the review.
Honestly I still don’t understand why flashlight manufacturers keep making 3xAAA headlamp nowadays.
I avoided buying 3xAAA headlamp because it takes more batteries than others, it means more weight. Also, most primary batteries are sold in 2 and 4pcs per pack.
Even if I would like to use rechargeable NiMH, I can only charge max 4 batteries at once.
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Does not exactly live up to the Fenix reputation.
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TimMc, thanks for the review, I wish it was available a week earlier because that was when I was searching for a simple battery headlamp and this kind of technical information wasn’t available anywhere yet. But I finally bought it and may add some of my own observations after a short period of use.
First, regarding battery life I’m actually quite pleased with this torch. I used the included alkaline batteries to test the runtime. I ran it in turbo mode continuously but every few minutes cycled through all the modes to see if the turbo mode it still brighter than the lower modes. The brightness gradually decreased with time and after about 90 minutes the turbo mode became equal to the high mode. But even though the turbo mode stopped working after 90 minutes the light still kept working for many more hours in the high, mid and low modes so contrary to what the runtime graph in the manual presents there was no steep decline and final death of the light after a certain runtime period - rather gradual switching to lower modes and slowly draining the batteries in the final stages. Whether that’s good or not I’m not an expert but given the fact that alkaline batteries have very mild discharge curve I suspect it’s good because the torch can pull as much as the battery can provide at its current state of charge, and being in a remote area we are not threatened by a sudden death of the light source.
At the beginning, when the turbo mode was still powerful the whole light got pretty warm and when I placed the lens directly against my hand the skin started hurting from the heat after a few seconds.
I believe the real problem with runtime is that manufacturers use the ANSI standard that says the time is measured until the light emits 10% of lumens that were emitted 30 seconds after turning on. So if the maximum output is 450 lumens then the runtime is measured until it drops below 45 lumens - and it might even be locked to 45 lumens for the majority of the time! I think the ANSI standard must have been specifically designed to mislead and deceive customers but allow manufacturers to print highly inflated runtimes that have little to do with reality. In this case at least we should give Fenix credit for providing runtime graph in the manual.
Having said that I’m realistic and I know you can’t pull too much out of 3 AAA batteries and I never intended to use this torch for its 450 lumens. But for the high, mid and low modes I think it does a pretty good job and I don’t find anything to complain about except for the official misleading ANSI runtimes printed in the specs.
I measured the current draw with the fresh batteries:
- turbo: 0.95 A (increased to 1 A after a few seconds - probably the DC converter did it’s thing to stabilize the output as the voltage dropped)
- high: 0.23 A
- mid: 0.07 A
- low: [it was so low I didn’t bother to test it in a more accurate multimeter mode]
What else remains interesting for me is how the torch performs with lithium primary cells. I might buy a set one day and see how it goes.
This is interesting because I don’t find the Fenix very throwy - but then I’m not an owner of many torches. The cheap ones I have usually have a much more focused beam and I like that the Fenix is wider. However, what I like most is that the spill is very wide, even though weak outside the main beam, and the main beam smoothly transitions to low intensity spill around. I find the spill very useful for walking outdoors because I can see the path under my feet even if the light is pointed forward. I can compare it to a small Convoy T3 whose beam is similar but the spill is narrower, which results in a kind of tunnel vision where there is darkness under my feet. There’s no tunnel vision with the Fenix. Actually, the beam and spill is what I like most about the Fenix, for me it’s perfect for outdoor walking.
To be honest, I’m not fond of 3xAAA’s, either. I was looking for a decent 1xAA headlamp but couldn’t find one available in my country. I was considering Fenix HM23 but I in my research I found its runtimes are horrible and it couldn’t even keep the lumens in lower modes for any reasonable length of time so I gave it up. The HL16 seems pretty good to me in all other respects (except the 3xAAA) so I decided to compromise on the battery source. On the positive side, 3xAAA’s are thinner than 1 AA, which is good in a head torch, they have a little more power and the LED driver is more efficient with the higher voltage.
Overall, I’m quite pleased with this torch, it’s light, small, comfortable, has a nice beam, easy to operate, no stupid strobes, no PWM, good battery life, decent build, comfortable battery changing and good water resistance. I walked in the mountains at night and the mid and high modes were sufficient. The low mode was just perfect inside the tent or for searching things close up like in a backpack.
I wish the max output was lower - 450 lumens is absurd and is clearly intended for promotion only, what use is of 450 lumens if they are available only in the first few minutes? The turbo mode should be more like 250-300 lumens so at least we could have sustained output for any usable period of time. The first 3 modes seem to be reasonably and equally spaced visually but the turbo mode stands out much further from them all - it’s very bright, too bright for a 3xAAA power source, I think it’s designed to impress rather than be useful.
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Thank you for sharing your perspective!
I’m kind of glad that my the runtime graphs didn’t dissuade you.
The graphs for a ReyLight Pineapple Mini aren’t very impressive but it is my favourite EDC torch. I don’t use it on 100% and instead use Moonlight or 2% so the runtime ends up being more than enough.
I suspect that the Fenix HL16 may be more than enough with the Low and Med nodes.
I’d say your review was slightly too late for me because I bought the torch just before you published it but I don’t think your graphs would have dissuaded me. Do you know of a 3xAAA torch that performs noticeably better with its runtime curves? From my research even the most reputable brands boast very high lumen outputs for long periods of time but when you look at the actual runtime graph it turns out it’s all far from the truth. Therefore, I conclude this Fenix does very well and keeps steady output for all but the turbo mode, even with alkaline batteries.
I believe Fenix made its graph and measurements with alkaline batteries, which can usually provide longer runtimes than NiMH but with lower power so I think they might actually be telling the truth and the light can chug along for its rated runtimes keeping 10% or more of its initial output to be compliant with the ANSI standard. I just can’t believe why such a misleading standard has been adopted among the torch brands.
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I don’t. 
It’s pretty good.
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A few days ago I did a simple runtime test with Varta Ultra Lithium batteries:
They are similar to Energizer Ultimate Lithium but a bit cheaper where I live. Rumour has it that the Energizers are better but I haven’t tested this claim.
I simply let the Fenix run continuously at the highest mode. I cycled through the modes quickly every couple of minutes to see if there is any noticeable difference in brightness levels. The light appeared to sustain its highest brightness for about 2 hours 15 minutes and then it gradually got dimmer. At 2 hours 24 minutes the turbo mode became equal to the high mode. At that moment the batteries measured 2.8 V.
At 2 hours 37 minutes the brightness became even lower and the high mode became equal to the medium mode. It ran in the medium mode for about half an hour until it became very dim - then I stopped measuring the time but soon only the lowest mode was functional.
There are some interesting observations for me. First, after a few minutes the batteries got pretty hot. I don’t know if the majority of heat came from the emitter or the batteries themselves but it was not comfortable to touch them. Second, at the beginning the voltage dropped to around 3.7 V but when I checked it an hour later it read 4.2 V. I once caught the voltage rise pretty fast from 4.2 V to 4.4 V. I think the rising voltage might be due to the rising battery temperature but probably also from the driver decreasing load in order to avoid overheating. When I cycled through all the modes back to Turbo I think I noticed a few times a little increase in output after the cycle - but it was very slight and hard to confirm without measuring equipment.
Overall I think the performance on the lithiums was pretty good - they certainly provide more power than the NiMH Eneloops but are not cheap. I think they would make most sense in freezing temperatures.
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You’re correct, as Fenix lists FL1-compliant specs, and FL-1 specifies that performance data must be obtained using the type of cells recommended for / supplied with the light.