The capabilities of headlamps just keep improving and improving, blowing my mind what an incredible tool some companies can pack into a small little item. The Perun 2 by Olight is a prime example of this. Just released, the Perun 2 is sure to be key player in the headlamp market for hikers with its insanely high lumen output and hiker-specific features like an SOS function and waterproofness.

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Specs

Lumens:
Max 2500

Settings:
– Turbo 2500 lumens (2 mins, then decreases to 1700 for 130 mins, then 1360 for 45 mins)
– High 500 (240 mins, then 230 for 30 mins)
– Medium 120 (18 hrs)
– Low 30 (66 hrs)
– Moonlight 5 (12.5 days)

Light Throw:
Turbo 166 m (metres), High 74 m, Medium 36 m, Low 18 m

Weight:
161 grams / 5.68 oz (without band)

Size:
4.75″ length x 1.13″ diameter (light only)

Waterproof:
IPX8 Rating (underwater for 6.5 feet for 30 minutes)

Pros / What I Like

It’s so bright!
2500 lumens? I mean, come on! That is next level. Precisely what a hiker needs for dark nights in the forest. Granted this power level doesn’t last that long (see specs above), but a super high lumen output still does, and you rarely need 2500 unless you’re calling for help or doing the searching yourself, which bring me to my next point.

SOS Feature
Quickly press the power button three times and it shines a bright light in SOS mode – three long, three short, three long. This is an excellent feature for hikers if you ever get lost or need help. Many hikers don’t know the SOS signal so this takes the guesswork out of it.

Waterproof
Here in the PNW, it’d be silly to buy a headlamp that isn’t at very minimum water-resistant. Oddly, many headlamps on the market fritz out with a little bit of moisture. And we all know that here in Vancouver, we don’t just have a little bit of moisture, especially in the winter when we use headlamps much more often given the shorter days. The Perun 2 is IPX8 rated, meaning it is full waterproof. You could technically dive down 1.5 meters with it on, albeit just for a short time. But that demonstrates it can withstand hours of hiking in the rain.

USB Rechargeable
With the state of the world, it is so important to do as much as we possibly can to avoid waste such as limiting our consumption of disposable products. The standard for a long time with headlamps has been battery-powered. Having USB-rechargeable equipment like this headlamp is so important to me. External battery packs or even solar charging panels can always be carried for longer trips to recharge.

Low Battery Warning
The light will vibrate every 30 seconds when power level is less than 10% so you know it needs to be recharged.

Warranty
Olight stands behind the quality and craftsmanship of their products. Learn more here.

Smart Sensor
It has a built-in proximity sensor to decrease the brightness level in case of obstruction for safety.

Multi-Use
I really dislike single-use items. Having a trillion things laying around the house taking up space is not my jam. So I quite enjoy that this is essentially a flashlight as well as a headlamp. So it can be your emergency flashlight for when the power goes out, or used for various activities requiring a flashlight like some jobs. The flashlight can clip to your pocket if your head isn’t accessible (you’re wearing a helmet and hood ie). There are lots of hands-free options with this.

Cons / What I Think Could Be Better

Product-specific charging cable
This headlamp is charged with a magnetic attachment that is specific to this product. I personally prefer when products use standard attachments like USB C or Micro USB B to limit the amount of cables we need to keep and can re-use for multiple products. It does, however, decrease charging time compared to traditional cable charging.

Weight and size
Let me preface by saying the weight, nor the size, are terrible. They are perfectly adequate for hiking, and absolutely understandable given what this baby can do (I doubt you could get the same output in a lighter weight in an even a remotely similar price range). However, it does need to be mentioned as the average hiker typically uses a lightweight, plastic headlamp, which feels leaps and bounds lighter than this one, BUT at the expense of the brightness and range of light and durability, so the benefits absolutely outweigh them. Headlamps of this quality are always this range of size and weight.

Having a good-quality headlamp is one of the Ten Essentials because it is so important for your safety as a hiker. It also allows you to get out and safely enjoy nighttime hiking, which is oh so much fun!

So if you’re in the market for a new headlamp, check out the Perun 2 by Olight. You can learn more at olightstore.ca

Note that some links on this blog may be affiliate links. If you buy something after clicking one of these links, I might be paid a small commission (no cost to you though, don’t worry). That’s not why I’ve shared this info; I truly use and love all of these things, so thought they might interest you too. I manage Hikes Near Vancouver in my free time to help support the hiking community. I spend a whackload of my time and skills and earn just the tiniest bit of money from partnerships and affiliate stuff, which helps me pay for the many expenses I incur, such as the cost of running this website for example, which comes at a hard cost for me annually. So thanks in advance for your understanding and support!