Princeton Tec Corona LED Headlamp - Is it any good

I'm looking for a light weight and bright headlamp with good run time. What do you think about the Princeton Tec Corona LED Headlamp?

I like the weight of the petzel 3-4 led headlamps but they are not bright enough.

Princeton Tec Corona LED Headlamp specs:

Eight super bright white
- wide angle LED's
- allows the user to switch between 8, 5, 3, or 1 LED
- Emergency and flashing signal modes
- 10,000 hours of bulb life.
- Runs on 3 AA batteries (included)
- Weight: 9 oz.


Here's a pic:

http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?memberId=12500226&productId=39155659

The Corona is a well made light. I think it's good if you want a AA light with variable output. It should give long runtimes on the lower settings and it is fairly bright on high.

If you want a light with more throw I recommend a Princeton Tec Yukon HL

How does the Corona's throw compare to the Princeton Tec Yukon HL? Is it half the distance?

Princeton Tec Yukon HL seems to be a favorite on this board. I read posts praising it. But the Princeton Tec Yukon HL seems to be a heavier headlamp. I am looking for a light weight headlamp.

I paid a visit to REI just yesterday to "check on inventory"! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif I own several headlamps (Petzl Tikka, Princeton Tec Auroras, Princeton Tec Yukon HL <--love this one!).

Got my first chance to play with one of the Coronas. Nifty lamp! I really like the versatility of the being able to light up 1,3,5, or 8 LEDs as well as high/low modes...has a strobe too, eh?

I think the Tikka & Aurora will do just fine for me in "near to medium" situations...the PT Yukon HL has good throw and can give me that "near to medium" light as well with it's 3 5mm LEDs.

Though...I've got to say...I certainly enjoyed "blinding" myself with all 8 of those Corona LEDs gleaming on high! Couldn't see for some time while browsing throughout the rest of the store!

Sorry, didn't really get a chance to check out "throw" in th brightly lit store. If I didn't have the Tikkas & Auroras all around my house, vehicles, & BOBs...I think I'd have to get one of these!

nonbox,

I recommend a Petzl Tikka Plus for a light weight headlamp.

Here are the weights for the Tikka Plus & some other good light weight headlamps.

Tikka Plus 2.7 ounces
Tikka 2.5 ounces
Zipka 2.2 ounces
Zipka Plus 2.3 ounces
Princeton Tec Aurora 2.8 ounces

Here are the weights for other good headlamps that I don't consider light weight.

PT Corona 8 ounces
PT Matrix 2 5.9 ounces
PT Yukon HL 8 ounces

The Corona is a nice looking light. I talked to someone just this weekend with one that discovered that it doesn't do well if subjected to full immersion. If you usage doesn't require this capability it is probably worth a try.

The Tikka Plus, Tikka, Zipka, Zipka Plus are too weak for my needs. I have a Tikka and I love the weight of it but it does not offer enough illumination.

I went to REI and I tried on the PT Yukon HL and it seemed to be heavier than the PT Corona. PT Yukon HL was top heavy.

PT Matrix 2 is definitely a top pick because it offers a lot of light for a low price.

PT Corona felt well balanced on my head.

How do the Black Diamonds compare to the PT Corona?

I just tried on the Yukon HL & Corona. I couldn't tell any difference in balance or fit /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif

I weighed them with lithium batteries.
Yukon HL 7 ounces
Corona 7.2 ounces
The weights I posted before were the weights listed at R.E.I.

The Corona on high is quite a bit brighter than my Zipka, but dimmer than the Luxeon of the Yukon HL.

Sorry I don't have the Black Diamond.

What are the modes with less LEDs good for?
Is it for changing the light angle or just for a lower brightness?
For the latter one this is a very silly technique, as having more LEDs running at lower currents actually have a better effiency (and less stress on the LEDs if that counts).
I personally would not take any light which offers LED switching on and off as I assume that the rest is also designed in a not too professional way. Of course I know that it is easier to suit for the mass market when people can see more difference when playing with the lights at the shop...

The modes with less LEDs are good for close up reading.

I agree with Pelu in that all the extra brightness levels are overkill. All you need is a high and a low setting. Princeton Tec should redesign the corona.

[ QUOTE ]
nonbox said:
The modes with less LEDs are good for close up reading.

I agree with Pelu in that all the extra brightness levels are overkill. All you need is a high and a low setting. Princeton Tec should redesign the corona.

[/ QUOTE ]

If the two levels were user-selected from more possibilities, I might be able to agree with you. But the factory has no way of anticipating my purposes. I've been in dark areas where the low beam of the PT was more than enough. I've put layers of tape over a CMG Infinity (non-Ultra) to lower the output. I'd much rather turn down the light and increase runtime.

With almost any adjustable light, the high beam is too weak and the low beam too much. Being able to push them up or down would be more useful to me than a third setting, definately. Also, having two settings at my fingertips is simpler than scrolling through millions of settings.

[ QUOTE ]
nonbox said:The modes with less LEDs are good for close up reading.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes, but it would even be better to have all LEDs on for the lower levels and just having them running at a lower current (even with a resistor you get a better overall efficiency).
One further thing is, that usually you need the brighter modes more focuses as you will look at more distant objects with it. And vice versa, the lower modes should be more flood lighted. So if you do a serious switching, it has to be the other way round.
But as the mass market will not understand that, they cannot sell such a product.
I have several small headlamps modded to get a good reading light. Most of them are just too bright. I have a Petzl Tikka (broken now) which I used with cells another person wanted to throw away. I read maybe 3000 pages with them.

Sorry for bringing up an old thread and i`ve been reading about this compared to the yukon one. but has anyone owned this? I've read there and you can select the number of LED's on at one time to set how bright you want it(seemed everyone hated that). "BUT" there's also a option to fine tune EACH of those modes into however bright you want for 1 led, or 4 LED's or 8LEDs. So it seems like this headlamp is MUCH more intelligent than we think it is besides just switching the number of led's on or off. can someone who owns one confirm this? Right now i'm leaning towards a princeton tec EOS and i own a tikka+ already so just want something brighter but small too. And from the sound of this the corona seems very high tec and there must have been a reason why this one was priced at 50 bucks at e headlamps for a 8 led headlamp.

they also stated somewhere that this headlamp is current regulated. if this was the case it would be awesome. instead of another Direct drive headlamp. did anyone like roy do a runtime graph of this?

Check out the EOS - it's got a lot more throw in a tiny package

I use my Corona almost every night while getting ready for going to bed. I like to have the house dark before I go to bed so my eyes are dark adapted, instead of having bright lights on, then off with no transition.

I think it is a great headlamp for what I use it for, a task light for close up lighting, or as a wide area light outside to light up a wide area close to me.

I think it probably has a very long runtime, but I used NiMH's and I just charge them up when the light isn't putting out full power.

I haven't used the EOS yet, but it might be better if throw is more important. I have incandescent headlamps for throw, so I use the Corona for close up lighting.

The Corona has 4 settings: 8, 5, 3 and 1 led's. Then you can choose between %100 or %40-50 power, or flashing.