Inexpensive and reliable LEDs have transformed dive lights in the past ten years. Mark ‘Crowley’ Russell rounds up the best, for everything from an occasional night dive to deep cave penetration
Nobody forgets their first night dive. Many divers of a certain age won’t forget their first underwater torch, either. It was big, garishly coloured, had a filament bulb that burned very brightly until just after you jumped, or perhaps went ‘pop’ when you turned it on, out at sea, in the dark, with no spare batteries.
Thankfully, time has moved on and today’s dive lights are brighter, smaller and much more reliable than their predecessors. Improvements in battery technology have been dramatic, but the game-changer was the advent of inexpensive, white-coloured LEDs.
What is an LED?
A diode is an electrical component that allows electricity to flow through it in only one direction, and a ‘Light-Emitting Diode’ – LED – emits light while doing so, through a process known as electroluminescence. The colour of the light emitted can be varied depending on the material used in the LED’s construction.
Red LEDs are the easiest to produce and became commonplace in the 1970s in the displays of electronic pocket calculators. White LEDs first appeared in 1996, and while they were initially more difficult and expensive to manufacture, developments have since seen LED lighting come to dominate the market.
LEDs are brighter, use less energy, last longer, and are less prone to damage than filament or halogen bulbs. With advances in battery technology to match, most modern torches can last for several hours at their highest output before the batteries either need replacing or recharging.
Tips for buying
There is a huge range of dive lights available on the market today, but as with other types of gear, you can narrow down your selection by the type of diving you are most likely to do. If you’re the sort of diver who makes one or two easy night dives a year in a tropical resort-based location with five other divers and a dive guide, then a small and compact, lower-priced torch is probably all you will need.
If you’re making night dives in a more remote or challenging environment, such as from a liveaboard, then you might want to invest in something of a higher specification. Spend more money if you have it, but it’s worth pointing out that turning up to a recreational night dive with a light that is too powerful sort of defeats the object of diving in the darkness – and won’t win you any beer-table buddies if you frighten all the critters away.
The larger canister lights are generally the preserve of cave or wreck divers, and techies will not need advice from this feature to make their buying decisions. However, those who might be seeking to join the dark side in the future might want to look at lights that are brighter, have a wider range of power modes, longer burn times, and can be used with a hands-free grip.
Thanks to the versatility of LED technology, there is an increasing number of lights that can be used both for peering at things in the darkness, or as video lights. If you think you might want a light to use for both options, make sure it has an adjustable beam angle. Remember that a torch is used for signalling underwater, which requires a tight, narrow ‘spot’ light to be effective. Wide-angle ‘flood’ lights don’t do this and shouldn’t be used as general-purpose torches.
Recharging
Some lights have removable, rechargeable batteries, some of which can also be used with single-use alkaline (such as AA, CR123 etc…) batteries. Other lights are sealed and can only be recharged using an appropriate cable (sometimes USB, sometimes not). For most people, it won’t matter either way, but if you might be diving in a location where power supplies are intermittent or unavailable, then being able to swap for a spare set of batteries might be a nice option
DIVE LIGHTS – BASIC
Lights that are well suited to recreational night diving, some of which might also be considered as backup lights for more advanced and technical divers.
DivePro D5-3 £79.95
DivePro has an extensive range of both handheld torches and video lights. The D5-3 is the most compact at just 12.5cm in length, but if size and price don’t matter, the D20 at £159.95 is almost twice the size, twice as bright and burns for twice as long.
LED/Power: CREE XP-L/1380 Lumens
Colour temp: 6500K
Modes: High, Med, Low, Strobe, SOS
Beam Angle: 10° spot
Burn Time: 110min (high), 220min (low)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 125mm/88g
Battery: 1×18650 Li-ion rechargeable
www.divepro.com
www.nautilusdiving.co.uk (UK)
Hollis LED 6 £99.95
Tech specialists Hollis produced the LED 6 as a backup light to its primary canister systems, but recreational divers will find a robust and dependable torch in the LED 6.
LED/Power: CREE LED T6/320 Lumens
Colour temp: 5000K-7000K
Modes: single-mode operation
Beam Angle: 8° spot
Burn Time: 360min
Depth: 180m
Length/Weight: 147mm/340g
Battery: 3xC single-use
Body: Anodised aluminium
Switch: Mechanical
Light & Motion GoBe S500 £92
Light and Motion’s GoBe range is designed with the same sort of sporty philosophy behind action cameras. The range includes IR and UV models and the 60° GoBe 1000 wide-angle video light at £165
LED/Power: CREE LED/500 Lumens
Colour temp: N/A
Modes: High, med, low, extended, SOS
Beam Angle: 8°
Burn Time: 90mins (high), 720mins (low)
Depth: 120m
Length/Weight: 125mm/172g
Battery: Rechargeable only, USB
www.cpspartnership.co.uk
www.lightandmotion.com
Mares EOS 3RZ £102
The entry-level torch in the Mares RZ range – ‘R’ for ‘Rechargeable’ and ‘Z’ for ‘Zoomable’ in reference to the adjustable beam width. The 5RZ, 10RZ, 15RZ and the top-of-the-range, 2300 lumen EOS 20RZ, priced at £266, complete the line-up.
LED/Power: CREE XPE LED/320 Lumens
Colour temp: 6700K-7800K
Modes: Full, low, flash
Beam Angle: ‘zoomable’ 11° – 75°
Burn Time: 55mins (high), 120mins (low)
Depth: 120m
Length/Weight: 137mm/152g
Battery: 1xICR14500 Li-ion
Metalsub XRE 1250 Rechargeable £275
One of a limited number of wirelessly charging torches, the XRE 1250 also includes an LED visual indicator for remaining burn time, deep discharge protection and an overpressure relief valve for battery gas leakage.
LED/Power: Metalsub/1250 Lumens
Colour temp: 5700K
Modes: 100%, 75%, 50%, 25%, strobe, SOS
Beam Angle: 10°
Burn Time: 120mins (100%), 360mins (25%)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 220mm/500g
Battery: Rechargeable, wireless
www.cpspartnership.co.uk
www.metalsub.nl
Scubapro Nova 850 / 850 Wide £131/£149
The Nova 850 and 850 Wide are the same product with a different beam angle, machined from heavy-duty aluminium and featuring battery off-gas pressure relief valve. Rechargeable 850R and 850RW versions are also available with a marginally higher price tag.
LED/Power: CREE XPL LED/850 Lumens
Colour temp: 4200K
Modes: Full, 50%
Beam Angle: 8° (Nova)/ 80° (Nova Wide)
Burn Time: 120mins (full) 420mins (50%)
Depth: 150m
Length/Weight: 253mm/292g
Battery: 3xC
Seac R5 £125
Seac’s rechargeable range starts with the R3, a compact and lightweight pocket dive torch priced at £85, but limited to a 9° spot at 400 lumens. The R5 is larger, brighter, with light intensity and beam width adjustable through a rotating switch.
LED/Power: CREE XPG2/500 Lumens
Colour temp: 5700K-7300K
Modes: Variable with magnetic switch
Beam Angle: 12° – 75°
Burn Time: 120mins (full), 24hours (very low)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 166mm/300g
Battery: 1x 18650 Li-ion / USB recharge
SeaLife Sea Dragon Mini 1300S £130
A compact and powerful torch from underwater photography pioneers SeaLife. The Mini 1300S takes either a single lithium-ion rechargeable battery (not included) or two CR123 alkaline cells.
LED/Power: Luxeon V /1300 Lumens
Colour temp: 6000K-7000K
Modes: Full, 50%, 25%, blinking, SOS
Beam Angle: 8° spot
Burn Time: 85mins (full), 340 mins (25%)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 157mm/174g
Battery: 1x 18650 Li-ion / 2 x CR123
Tovatec 1000 USB £85
Integrated USB charging means the battery never has to be removed from the Tovatec 1000 torch, with the magnetic toggle switch having a visual LED charge indicator.
LED/Power: Lifetime CREE LED/1000 Lumens
Colour temp: N/A
Modes: 100%, 50%, SOS
Beam Angle: 12°
Burn Time: 60mins (100%), 125mins (50%)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 160mm/125g
Battery: 18650 Li-ion USB recharge
www.cpspartnership.co.uk
www.tovatec.com
Underwater Kinetics MiniQ-40 Mk2 £63.95
Something of a go-to-light for many divers who need to keep their hands free underwater. The lightweight MiniQ-40 Mk2 is a new take on a classic light, packaged with a mask strap for busy divers.
LED/Power: eLED/250 Lumens
Colour temp: N/A
Modes: On/Off
Beam Angle: variable 12°– 60°
Burn Time: 300mins
Depth: 150m
Length/Weight: 190mm/254g
Battery: 4xAA Alkaline
www.sea-sea.com
www.uwkdive.com
DIVE LIGHTS – ADVANCED/TECHNICAL
Lights that go beyond the requirements of recreational diving and into the world of deep tech, cave and wreck penetration, where adequate lighting can become a matter of life and death.
DiveRite EX35 £1099.99
Tech specialist DiveRite’s EX35 Primary Canister Light is a powerful lamp dedicated to hardcore cave diving techies. Up to six hours’ burn time in 100% mode (1hr full power; 5hrs gradual taper), and a staggering 600 hours at 1%.
LED/Power: CREE XHP35/4300 Lumens
Colour temp: 5700K
Modes: 100%, 50%, 25%,5%,1%, Strobe
Beam Angle: 6°
Burn Time: 360mins (100%), 600 hours (1%)
Depth: 150m
Length/Weight: 86mm+300mm/1930g
Battery: 150 Wh Li-Ion canister
www.sea-sea.com
www.diverite.com
Hollis LED 1200 £699.95
Hollis’ successor to its popular L16, the 1200 packs a brighter beam and lower weight. Standard and sidemount configurations are available, both packaged with an elastic goodman handle – a mounting which secures the torch to the top of your hand, allowing you to use your fingers.
LED/Power: OSRAM LED/1200 Lumens
Colour temp: 6000K
Modes: single mode operation
Beam Angle: 6° spot
Burn Time: 300min
Depth: 180m
Length/Weight: 200mm (canister)/1.08kg
Battery: 57.5wH Li-Ion canister battery
Light & Motion SOLA Dive 2500 S/F £550
Toggles between a wide 2500 lumen flood or narrow 1200 lumen spot at the flick of a switch, the SOLA Dive 2500 is packaged with a hands-free Goodman style mount but can be converted for use with a camera tray. The battery pack is sealed but recharges is 1h45m thanks to Light & Motion’s ‘Fast Charge’ technology.
LED/Power: CREE LED/2500 Lumens
Colour temp: N/A
Modes: High, med, low, SOS
Beam Angle: variable 12° spot or 60° flood
Burn Time: 70mins (high), 280mins (low)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 102mm/265g
Battery: Built-in Li-ion, rechargeable only
Body: Factory sealed
Switch: Mechanical
www.cpspartnership.co.uk
www.lightandmotion.com
Mares XR DCT Canister Light £578
A slimline canister system from the Mares Extended Range line, capable of 27 hours burn time in very low power mode. DCTS sidemount model available at £533 and 120° beam DCTV video light model at £622.
LED/Power: 3xCREE XML2 LED/3200 Lumens
Colour temp: N/A
Modes: high, medium, low, very low, strobe
Beam Angle: 9°
Burn Time: 130mins (high), 27hours (very low)
Depth: 200m
Length/Weight: 73mm (head)/754g
Battery: 3×26500 Li-ion
Metalsub KL1242 Cablelight (6350 Lumen Pony Release Version) £910
One of the deepest-rated technical dive lights, the KL1242 is available in either 6350 or 2400 lumens, with several different battery pack options giving a burn time on full power from 3 hours for the 6350 lumen model to six-and-a-half hours for the 2400 light.
LED/Power: Metalsub/6350 Lumens
Colour temp: 5700K
Modes: variable 0 – 100%, flash, strobe, SOS
Beam Angle: 10° spot
Burn Time: 120mins
Depth: 250m
Length/Weight: 160mm/550g (head)
Battery: 340mm, 2.5kg NiMH 12C 10Ah
www.cpspartnership.co.uk
www.metalsub.nl
OrcaTorch D630 £499.95
The D630 has an adjustable cable which allows for 90° and 180° rotation between the canister and light head, making the light suitable for both back- and side-mounted configurations.
LED/Power: 5x CREE LED/4000 Lumens
Colour temp: N/A
Modes: High, medium, low
Beam Angle: 7°
Burn Time: 300mins (high), 24hours (low)
Depth: 150m
Length/Weight: 96mm+209mm/1370g
Battery: 89Wh canister
www.sea-sea.com
www.orcatorch.com
Seac R40 £260
The top end of Seac’s rechargeable range, the Seac R40 contains 3 LEDs with a variable width beam and a switch-lock to prevent accidental ignition.
LED/Power: 3xCREE XPL /2300 Lumens
Colour temp: 5700K-7300K
Modes: High, low, flashing
Beam Angle: Variable 12° – 75°
Burn Time: 120mins (full), 300 mins (low)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 206mm/594g
Battery: 1x 26680 Li-ion / USB recharge
Tovatec 3600 £220
A powerful handheld torch with a zoomable beam adjustable from spot to wide flood. Takes two Li-ion rechargeable batteries but is packaged with an adaptor for single-use AA batteries when charging is not possible
LED/Power: Lifetime CREE LED/3600 Lumens
Colour temp: 5600K-6800K
Modes: 100%, 50%, 10%, Strobe
Beam Angle: variable 12°– 100°
Burn Time: 70mins (100%), 960mins (10%)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 272mm/644g
Battery: 2×26650 Li-ion / 6xAA
www.cpspartnership.co.uk
www.tovatec.com
DIVE LIGHTS – MULTIPURPOSE
Lights that have additional settings or wider, variable beams that can be used as handheld torches for night diving, or fitted to a mounting bracket and used as video lights
DivePro S11 £129.95
DivePro makes a series of specialist video lights as well torches but the S11 combines the best of both worlds with a ball mount, three diffusers and two snoots included as standard.
LED/Power: CREE XPL-V6/1380 Lumens
Colour temp: 6500K/5000K/3000K
Modes: High, Med, Low, Strobe, SOS
Beam Angle: 10° spot, 60° wide
Burn Time: 110min (high), 220min (low)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 140mm/99g
Battery: 1×18650 Li-ion battery
www.divepro.com
www.nautilusdiving.co.uk
Light & Motion Stella CL 1000/2500UW £460
Designed as a video light for use both underwater and topside with a colour rendering index of 91. The beam angle can be focused using the included snap-on Fresnel modifier.
LED/Power: L&M COB/2500 Lumens
Colour temp: 5600K
Modes: High, med, low
Beam Angle: variable 25°– 120°
Burn Time: 70mins (high), 280mins (low)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 110mm/277g
Battery: Integrated Li-ion, rechargeable only
www.cpspartnership.co.uk
www.lightandmotion.com
Mares EOS 10RW £115
A wide-angle dive and video light with visual battery life indicator, Mares also produce the EOS 10RW video set which includes two torches, flexible arms and an action camera mounting tray, priced at £266.
LED/Power: CREE XML2 LED/1053 Lumens
Colour temp: 5800K-7300K
Modes: Full, low, SOS
Beam Angle: Wide
Burn Time: 135mins (high), 255mins (low)
Depth: 120m
Length/Weight: 186mm/537g
Battery: 1xICR26500 Li-ion
SeaLife Sea Dragon Mini 1000F £165
A versatile light suited to action camera users as well as underwater photographers. Can be hand-held for night diving, or mounted as a camera accessory. YS adapter and mounts included.
LED/Power: Luxeon V /1000 Lumens
Colour temp: 6000K-6500K
Modes: Full, 50%, 25%, blinking, SOS
Beam Angle: 130° wide
Burn Time: 90mins (full), 360 mins (25%)
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 159mm/195g
Battery: 1x 18650 Li-ion / 2 x CR123
Tovatec Fusion 1500 £120
Easily changes from hand-held torch to video light by mounting the Fusion 1500 in one of Tovatec’s camera trays and zooming the beam angle to 100°. Accepts either rechargeable batteries or AA Alkaline if necessary.
LED/Power: Lifetime CREE LED/1500 Lumens
Colour temp: 5600K-6800K
Modes: 100%, 50%, 30%, strobe
Beam Angle: variable 12°– 100°
Burn Time: 105min
Depth: 100m
Length/Weight: 200mm/485g
Battery: 26650 Li-ion / 3xAA
www.cpspartnership.co.uk
www.tovatec.com
Underwater Kinetics AquaLite Pro 100 £259.95
A low-profile wide-angle light packaged with accessory mounts, the operating mode of the AquaLite Pro is selected by the rear rotator switch. Lamp heads can be swapped for 20° narrow beam and UV heads (sold separately)
LED/Power: eLED/1200 Lumens
Colour temp: N/A
Modes: 100%, 60%, 40%, 25%, SOS
Beam Angle: 100°
Burn Time: 70mins (100%), 720min(25%)
Depth: 150m
Length/Weight: 128mm/180g
Battery: 1×18650 Liion
www.sea-sea.com
www.uwkdive.com
Getting technical
LUMENS A lumen is the SI measurement of the total amount of visible light emitted by a light source. Putting it briefly – the larger the number of lumens, the brighter the light.
SMD, COB AND CREE Surface Mounted Diode (SMD) and Chip On Board (COB) are methods of LED manufacture. COB is the most recent and most energy efficient, but SMDs are still widely used. Cree is the name of a leading manufacturer of LEDs.
BURN TIME ‘Burn time’ is a measurement of how long a light should operate continuously on a particular power setting from a full charge. This is realistically only a useful approximation. Different batteries last for different lengths of time, rechargeable batteries fade with repeated use, and the surrounding temperature can affect how quickly a battery discharges.
COLOUR TEMPERATURE The ‘colour temperature’ of a light is a measurement of how ‘hot’ the light appears to be (but not how hot it actually is). For example: an iron bar will glow red, then yellow, then white as it gets hotter, hence red is a ‘low temperature’ light, and white is a ‘high temperature’ light. Colour temperature is important for underwater photographers and videographers, as it helps to balance a camera’s sensors with the available light (white balancing). Colour temperature is measured in Kelvins on a scale ranging from an orangey-red 1,500K to a bluish-white 30,000K. Just to confuse the matter, low temperature orangey light is referred to as ‘warm’, and high temperature bluish-white light is called ‘cool’.
BEAM ANGLE Beam angle is a phrase commonly used to describe the width of the beam of light emitted by the torch. ‘Spot’ lights are narrow, between around 6° and 12° of width, and are best for general purpose diving – don’t forget that a dive light is also for signalling, which requires a tight, narrow beam to be effective. ‘Flood’ lights illuminate a much greater area – anything from around 45° to 120° – great for use with cameras, but poor for signalling underwater and shouldn’t be used as a primary light unless the beam angle can be tightened.
MODES Some lights are On/Off, others have variable power settings – 100%, 50%, 25% or variations thereof are common. Some lights have a strobe mode, which is a continually flashing signal designed to attract attention; others have an SOS mode, which repeatedly flashes the emergency signal at high power, should the need arise. Using lower power modes to extend battery life where possible is recommended, switching to high power only if it becomes necessary.
This article features in the Autumn 2019 Print Issue of DIVE Magazine. Buy a single copy or subscribe for a year from as little as £17.99 in the UK, or get it delivered right to your doorstep anywhere in the world with a postal service.
