This is a preliminary review of the ZL H52w I received today (2013-11-20) from Illumination Supply, and how it compares to earlier models (H51w final rev, SC52). I'm expecting more lights soon though, and I intend to add details about other H52* models as they show up.
First, the good news: The H52w is a nice upgrade over the H51w in almost every way. Tint, runtimes, output, build, etc. The only downside I've found is that it seems a bit less throwy (at the same levels) due to its larger emitter (but throw is usually not a big concern for headlamps).
Differences from the H51w:
Output | |||
H52w | H51w | Comments | |
Tint | 4400K | 4200K | The H51w always looked like an ugly yellow to me, but the H52w is a much nicer tint. It's much closer to the "gold standard" Nichia 219. |
Hotspot | 12 degrees | 11 degrees | Visually, the difference looks more significant; the H51w seems significantly more throwy at similar output levels but also lights up a smaller area. |
Min/Max Output | 0.01lm to 280lm (500lm on Li-Ion) | 0.18lm to 172lm | |
Special modes | Strobe group (3 clicks, 2 modes), battery check (4 clicks) | Strobe is a sub-level of 'high' | The battery check is a great addition, and it's nice having strobe in its own group instead of being attached to H2. Strobes are 4Hz or 19Hz at maximum output, and appear to have a 50% duty cycle. |
Batteries | AA or 14500 | AA only | I'm using protected 14500 batteries, Sanyo 840mAh from Intl-Outdoor. |
Runtimes | 3months@0.01lm 2months@0.06lm 3weeks@0.34lm 4days@2.7lm 27hrs@12lm 12hrs@25lm 7.5hrs@50lm 3hrs@108lm 1.7hrs@172lm 0.9hrs@280lm
|
16days@0.18lm 3days@2.2lm 26hrs@7lm 8hrs@26lm 2.4hrs@86lm 1.7hrs@120lm 0.9hrs@172lm |
Brighter and longer-lasting. |
Build | |||
Smaller | 76.5mm x 21.8mm |
81mm x 23mm |
|
Lighter | 32 grams |
35.8 grams |
|
Switch | Smaller, recessed, off-centered. |
Bigger, more textured. |
The H52w switch is harder to activate by accident, but also harder to activate on purpose. It's also much quieter, without the loud 'click' of the H51w switch. The off-center less-textured H52 switch is somewhat harder to find in the dark though, especially while wearing gloves. |
Clip attachment points | Two |
One |
The H52w clip can go on the tail or the base of the head, instead of just the tail. |
Heat fins | Beveled edges, goes all the way around the back of the head. |
Sharp edges, interrupted along the back of the head. |
|
Tailcap | Small circle removed, like on the SC52 |
Completely flat |
Differences from the SC52:
H52w | SC52 | Comments | |
Style | Angled (headlamp) | Straight (flashlight) | |
Tint | 4400K | 4800K? | The H52w is a nice, neutral 4400K, just a bit warmer than my Nichia 219 4500K. The SC52 appears slightly warmer (and greener) than a XM-L T6-3C (4800K-5000K), so I suspect the SC52 is actually about 4800K, not 6300K as advertised. |
Body | Smooth | Ribbed | Only the SC52 has a logo |
Size/Mass | 76.5mm x 21.8mm, 32 grams | 78.2mm x 23.6mm, 40 grams | |
Clip | Clips on, dark finish | Screws on, silver finish | The H52w clip may damage the body after attaching / detaching it many times. My H51w has scratches and minor damage from its clip. |
Modes | Separate group for strobes (2 modes) | Strobe is a sub-level of 'high' | Strobe on the H52w is easier to reach, harder to activate by accident, and includes more options. Win! |
Many traits are identical (or at least very similar) between the H52w and SC52: Output levels, run times, beam shape, button design, tail cap. Also, both models use PWM on the L1 level, but only when powered by a Li-Ion battery. No other levels appear to use PWM. It's slightly strange for PWM though, as it appears to be toggling between two levels rather than simply on and off. It appears to flash at around 3kHz or 4kHz, but I can only compare visually to other lights. (the speed seems faster than my iTP A3 EOS @ 2.5 kHz but slower than my Convoy S3 @ 4.5 kHz)
What's in the box:
With its siblings... Zebralight H51w, SC52, H52w:
I should mention that, even though the H52w in this picture is much darker than the other two Zebralights, you can't count on this when ordering. I specifically requested a unit with dark-colored anodization, and the guys at Illumination Supply did a great job picking one out for me.
Also, I think the shiny bit in the H52w's clip groove is a bit of wax (or something similar) which I haven't rubbed off yet. The dark bit in the H51w's clip groove is most likely part of the clip's finish which has rubbed off.
From the side:
... and from the back:
Next to some other AA, AAA, and CR123/16340 lights: (SK-68, JETBeam RRT01, ZL H51w, SC52, H52w, L3 L10, iTP A3 EOS, DQG Tiny AAA IV)
... and compared to a wider variety of lights: (Skyray King, XinTD C8 V4, Convoy S7, Convoy S3, DQG brass beauty, SK-68, JETBeam RRT01, ZL H51w, SC52, H52w, L3 L10, iTP A3 EOS, DQG Tiny AAA IV)
The business end of three Zebralights:
For closer comparison, here are the emitters individually:
ZL H51w, XP-G:
ZL SC52, XM-L:
ZL H52w, XM-L2:
... and the buttons on three Zebralights. I find the H52w button is the hardest of the three to press, and the H51w button is the easiest. The H51w is the only one I've managed to turn on by accident:
Compared to the earlier model (H51w), the H52w is slightly shorter:
Another little improvement in the H52w is the new beveled edges on the heat sink fins. They're no longer sharp like on previous models: (maybe it's just that I have soft skin, but I've actually cut myself slightly on the H51w fins)
My H52w is brand new and in mint condition aside from a bit of dust which got on it over the past couple days. However, my H51w is well-used and has gone everywhere with me for over a year. The only sign of wear on my H51w is some minor damage on its clip groove, from repeatedly putting the clip on and pulling it off again. This happens a lot because I keep the light clipped to my purse. Here's my H51w in its usual place:
Because of this, the clip groove has lost a small amount of metal:
I expect the H52w will have similar results, just a slight amount of damage over time. However, the rest of the finish is almost perfect even after a year, and my SC52 is virtually flawless despite being carried and bumped for about six months.
I attempted to do some beam shots... but the results are pretty poor. I'll have to try again later; the images do not look like what my eyes see in real life. However, it may at least serve to give a rough idea what the tints are like, and relative sizes of hotspots.
ZL H51w @ 7lm (left), ZL H52w @ 25lm (top), ZL SC52 @ 25lm (right), L3 L10-219 @ ~30lm (bottom). The H51w gets a significantly brighter hotspot (more throwy) at similar output levels, while the H52w lights up a much wider area (more floody). If I recall correctly, I had to use a lower setting on the H51w to get a similar lux as the other lights:
Without the L3 L10-219. ZL H51 (left), ZL H52w (middle), ZL SC52 (right). To my eye, the H52w looks the closest to white, and the H51w looks much more yellow than in this picture. The SC52 doesn't look anywhere near this green in person:
Zebralight says the SC52 is a color temperature of 6300K, but I don't believe it. Here is the SC52 (left) next to a Convoy S7 XM-L T6-3C (right), which is about 4800K to 5000K. Visually, the SC52 looks only a tiny bit cooler:
Here is the SC52 (left) next to a Convoy S3 XM-L U2-1A (right), which is about 6500K to 6700K. In person, the SC52 looks quite warm in comparison. I also have a shot with the SC52 next to my iTP A3 EOS, but it looks almost identical to the S3:
That's all I have for now; more details coming later.