Black Diamond Cosmo

Summary

Just what the doctor ordered! A perfect balance between brightness, features, and cost! 70 Lumens, multimode with a red led for night use, and only $30.

I picked this light up when it was still an REI exclusive. It was the replacement for the outgoing Cosmo that still had the more rounded chassis design.  This one has the new angular look that Black Diamond has moved to.

Lights
The reason I went with this light was the price and the features it came with for that price.  It has an super bright single LED in the middle (dimmable), two lower power LED's (also dimmable), and then a single red LED.  It takes a little getting used to how the to access the red LED, but once you get the hang of it it's easy.  Also it has a memory mode  where it will remember the mode you last used, like red for night time, and will go back to it versus blinding your wife with 70 lumens to the face…sorry hun!  

Comfort
The light is pretty solid but also lightweight.  It definitely doesn't weigh down your head or cause the light to slip off your forehead.  I'm only doing hiking mind you, so runners…YMMV.  The strap is comfortable as most of these single strap lights are, but it doesn't have any kind of anti-slip gel on the inside like my old Petzl did.

Build
Access to the battery compartment is easy…with a screwdriver.  I did have trouble trying to pry the little tab up with my fingernails, but i'm sure you could do it if you needed to.  I still preferred a flathead screw driver if you have it.  The one button that the light has is easy to press but a little difficult to find by touch, and even more so with gloves on.  It could use some kind of texture or shape that you can feel more easily.  It's also fairly easily pressed and there's no lock out mode like the higher end Black Diamond lights.  This light is rated for water resistance IPX4, I haven't used it in the rain, so I have no opinion on that.

Battery Life
Unfortunately, haven't really put that to a test either. But there are plenty of sites that do.  I'm running eneloops in mine; love those things.

Summary

Three different light settings. Can dim in any setting. Comfortable strap.

After using this light a few times, I can say that it meets my needs just nice. I am not into buying really expensive lights becuase they do get lost, but this one was a steal at $30. I got the white/orange color combination and it's great. Would recommend to anyone that wants a low cost light without sacrificing quality. 

Summary

Great headlamp, lots of light for the price.

I am a fan of Black Diamond products and their headlamps are another quality product. This headlamp delivers a lot of brightness for a good price. The battery time is also really good and I haven't had to switch out batteries yet despite some pretty good usage. Great product!