H501 or H501w Poll

CaNo · Jun 4, 2010

Battle of the tints. I have just bought the H501w and think I made the right choice. But I did step away from my comfort zone by not buying a thrower/cool tinted light. Now I am wondering if the H501 would have been a better choice...

So for you H501/H501w owners.... please vote on which version of this excellent light you prefer over the other. And if you can justify your vote as well. Thank you. :popcorn:

chenko · Jun 4, 2010

First voter!

my vote goes to the H501W, much nicer tint for an almost unnoticeable decrease in brightness. No doubts. It's a great headlamp for use in the woods, why having it in cool white when you have the choice? You made the right choice.

davidt1 · Jun 4, 2010

Can't answer this because I only have the cool H501. There is no H501w for me to compare it to.

Never mind: you are asking owners of both.

skyfire · Jun 4, 2010

i couldnt decide which to get either, so i got both. :grin2:

after giving them a try outdoors, indoors, and on books. i went with the H501w. my h501 seemed to have some purple in the tint. but that could also be because im comparing it to the h501w. i probably wont notice the purple if i didnt have other lights to compare to.

so i gifted the H501 to a mechanic friend..... later found out he gave it to his wife! so he didnt care for it much, hope his wife is making good use of it.

Brian321 · Jun 4, 2010

I own both the cool and warm versions, I really like the warm for camping or outdoor tasks, and it is great inside to. But i find myself using the cool for tasks inside the house.

IMHO the warm makes things outside look more natural and depth perception is better. And the cool makes the greys and white walls inside look better.

I like using them both. But YMMV.

Brian

kramer5150 · Jun 4, 2010

I went for the slightly extra brightness and got the regular one. My eyes can adjust to tint shifts, so long as theres not a lot of blue/purple.

Happy with my choice, as mine is a pale-cream white color. Not a trace of cold.

Woods Walker · Jun 4, 2010

I have both but prefer the H501w. To be honest the tint on the standard H501 is kinda nice too and in actual field use it would be hard to pick which one is brighter. I just like the warmer tint a bit more.

CaNo · Jun 5, 2010

davidt1 said:
Can't answer this because I only have the cool H501. There is no H501w for me to compare it to.

Never mind: you are asking owners of both.

LoL no davidt1, I value your input as well! I mean do you feel your H501 does the job and is bright enough? Your opinion on tint color?

CaNo · Jun 5, 2010

skyfire said:
i couldnt decide which to get either, so i got both.

after giving them a try outdoors, indoors, and on books. i went with the H501w. my h501 seemed to have some purple in the tint. but that could also be because im comparing it to the h501w. i probably wont notice the purple if i didnt have other lights to compare to.

so i gifted the H501 to a mechanic friend..... later found out he gave it to his wife! so he didnt care for it much, hope his wife is making good use of it.

Wow... interesting story! That's crazy!

Brian321 said:
I own both the cool and warm versions, I really like the warm for camping or outdoor tasks, and it is great inside to. But i find myself using the cool for tasks inside the house.

IMHO the warm makes things outside look more natural and depth perception is better. And the cool makes the greys and white walls inside look better.

I like using them both. But YMMV.

Brian

Interesting point you brought up about depth perception... never really took notice to that but you are absolutely correct. Also I agree, using a warm tint indoors is not as beneficial as using it outdoors. I too also prefer a cool tint indoors. But since I wanted a little outdoor searching/observing light for items in close range, I think the warm tint is a suitable choice.

Woods Walker said:
I have both but prefer the H501w. To be honest the tint on the standard H501 is kinda nice too and in actual field use it would be hard to pick which one is brighter. I just like the warmer tint a bit more.

Funny thing is... I woulda guessed that you would like the warm tint version more since your sn is "Woods Walker", and I would assume that you pay alot of attention to the details of your hikes and value the ability to differentiate colors of your surroundings. But you said that you cannot tell the difference in brightness between the two?

CaNo · Jun 5, 2010

Another situation I wanted to point out is when I use a warm tint to read, it is quite relaxing, and like candlelight it is very easy on the eyes, but is too relaxing! It relaxes me to the point where I fall asleep right away and not even get a chance to enjoy what I am reading! With the cool tint, I am more alert and do not feel as comfortable to fall asleep right away. Which I guess is a good thing in this situation as you will be able to read alot more without fear of getting to comfortable.

Swedpat · Jun 5, 2010

davidt1 said:
Can't answer this because I only have the cool H501. There is no H501w for me to compare it to.

Never mind: you are asking owners of both.

For you and other who have not both I made some beamshots so you can get some idéa about the difference HERE

Woods Walker · Jun 5, 2010

CaNo said:
Wow... interesting story! That's crazy!

Interesting point you brought up about depth perception... never really took notice to that but you are absolutely correct. Also I agree, using a warm tint indoors is not as beneficial as using it outdoors. I too also prefer a cool tint indoors. But since I wanted a little outdoor searching/observing light for items in close range, I think the warm tint is a suitable choice.

Funny thing is... I woulda guessed that you would like the warm tint version more since your sn is "Woods Walker", and I would assume that you pay alot of attention to the details of your hikes and value the ability to differentiate colors of your surroundings. But you said that you cannot tell the difference in brightness between the two?

The warmer tint makes it easier to ID trail markers from tree moss etc but both are kinda good as the tint on my H501 is vanilla white. I think ZL picked Q5's with a better tint if I recall correctly. I mostly just like the way the 5A tint looks. Even with both lights side by side it is hard to tell what one is brighter given the differences in tint. Maybe the H501 looks brighter but then again maybe not. I think it takes more of an increase before the human eye can pick it out. Alone it's nearly impossible to distinguish which one is brighter.

Brian321 · Jun 5, 2010

Woods Walker said:
The warmer tint makes it easier to ID trail markers from tree moss etc but both are kinda good as the tint on my H501 is vanilla white. I think ZL picked Q5's with a better tint if I recall correctly. I mostly just like the way the 5A tint looks. Even with both lights side by side it is hard to tell what one is brighter given the differences in tint. Maybe the H501 looks brighter but then again maybe not. I think it takes more of an increase before the human eye can pick it out. Alone it's nearly impossible to distinguish which one is brighter.

Id have to agree with Woods Walker on this one. As for the brightness, I cannot tell a difference either. They look exactly the same when i compare them side by side.

Brian

kramer5150 · Jun 5, 2010

5A is a GREAT tint IMHO. Its whiter than incan tint and very closely matches 1:00 afternoon sunlight.

CaNo · Jun 5, 2010

Swedpat said:
For you and other who have not both I made some beamshots so you can get some idéa about the difference HERE

Thank you Swedpat for the indoor beamshots! They were very extremely helpful for picking between the two lights before. But now, it would actually be interesting to see beamshots in an actual woods or backyard scenario, and how the color differentiating/brightness comes into play...

CaNo · Jun 5, 2010

kramer5150 said:
5A is a GREAT tint IMHO. Its whiter than incan tint and very closely matches 1:00 afternoon sunlight.

Funny you mention that Kramer, I was outside yesterday next to the lake with my fiancee and I took out my H501w. She was wearing a pink tank top and I blocked the sun, and unblocked it. Then i blocked the sun and used the zebralight and almost got the same exact color as the sun was giving out. It was a match to the naked eye. I did them side by side, connecting the zebralight and the sun and they merged beautifully. :twothumbs

CaNo · Jun 19, 2010

20-6. I think the majority has spoken... :thumbsup:

red02 · Jun 19, 2010

Walked through a park the other day with both in the late evening. No contest, the H501w made everything look wet/weird while the H501 was the most like natural sunlight.

CaNo · Jun 19, 2010

red02 said:
Walked through a park the other day with both in the late evening. No contest, the H501w maked everything look wet/weird while the H501 was the most like natural sunlight.

That's very interesting. Going against what the majority say about warm tints outdoors. I find it interesting you say that red02, because I find that the use of cool tint indoors makes you feel uncomfortable, while using the warm tint indoors, leaves you feeling relaxed and less tense. :sssh:

skyfire · Jun 19, 2010

CaNo said:
Funny you mention that Kramer, I was outside yesterday next to the lake with my fiancee and I took out my H501w. She was wearing a pink tank top and I blocked the sun, and unblocked it. Then i blocked the sun and used the zebralight and almost got the same exact color as the sun was giving out. It was a match to the naked eye. I did them side by side, connecting the zebralight and the sun and they merged beautifully. :twothumbs

LOL i have to applaud your fiancee for allowing you to use her to play with your flashlights!

my sister sees me comparing lights all the time, at first she would get alittle irritated, but now i think shes used to it

and my 9 year old niece would always have some kind of comment as soon as I turn on any light.

on another point, i noticed the H501 was brighter than the H501w, because it was able to better illuminate further objects just a tad more. but it wasnt enough for me to choose it over the h501w. besides, i use it for close up duties.

I keep my h501w with clip, and attached magnets closer to me than any other light i have. in fact its the only light thats always with me, at work, at home, and out of the house.

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