The flood beam is very wide and homogeneous, while maintaining a sufficient amount of throw capability; the same goes for the spot beam: throw focused, but maintaining a good spill, both in terms of brightness and width. In the first test the Nitecore HC68 was put in TURBO mode at 2000 lumens numerous times for a time of 20 minutes and more.

I had previously been using a hand-held or floor light when working on cars, but while working on my daughter’s car, the utility of a headlamp like the HC68 became apparent. For reference, here’s a baseline shot, with all the room lights off and almost nothing hitting the sensor.An interesting note – the same power is being delivered for both flood and spot emitters, and is changed smoothly – almost no change in current was detected when ramping between flood and spot. A built-in battery voltage indicator under the button will display battery voltage each time the battery is installed and the end cap is tightened. These threads are fairly fine and quite long (it takes a lot of twisting to remove this tailcap), but because they’re anodized (and lubed), they’re very smooth.

I have had a couple of accidental activations by storing it in a jacket pocket so just beware the button protrudes slightly. TURBO and HIGHER Availability: The TURBO level and HIGHER level are only accessible when using an 18650 rechargeable Li-ion battery with a discharge current over 8A. The Nitecore HC68 headlamp has a maximum output of 2000 lumens and a beam range of up to 202 meters.The HC68 is an indispensable tool you can count on no matter if you are at work or have fun outside. You can continuously adjust the beam profile between a focused spotlight and a wide flood light beam. With a max output of 100 lumens and a wide-range 150° flood beam powered by the included 2 x AA batteries, it is one button operable for 3 brightness levels. A side switch turns the light on and off with each full press, while the + / - buttons on top of the torch control the brightness level. It could also be due to different binned emitters being used, but I don’t think this is likely when Nitecore runs their ship as tightly as they do.

In the centre of the main LEDs there are two red auxiliary LEDs that offers a constant red output with high/low setting and a red flashing setting.

The minus and plus for degrees of light instead of scrolling up through the options for brighter or dimmer light like most do. Hold down the (+) button for stepless adjustment up to 1800 lumen piercing spotlight or hold down the (-) button for a wide beam up to a 1400 lumen floodlight. Opening the box we find inside the flashlight with the included accessories which are: NITECORE 18650 lithium-ion rechargeable battery (NL1835HP 3,500 mAh), 2x spare O-ring, USB-C charging cable, headband and bracket. Red light preserves your night vision and is good for wildlife observation, astronomy and night photography.