Our Storm 500-R is a great head torch, but it’s pretty large. The Black Diamond Spot 400 is our everyday go-to: a great middle ground between portability, performance and run time. Both have come on our trips around NSW, mostly beach camping, and worked a treat. It’s a 400-lumen head torch that runs on three AAA batteries or a rechargeable pack, and weighs 78 g with batteries.
What’s in the box
A red head torch with white and red LEDs behind one lens, two buttons on top and a grey and red headband. It comes with three AAA batteries, which sit in a compartment behind the lamp. Black Diamond’s BD 1500 rechargeable battery fits the same compartment, but it’s sold separately.
What we like
- Runs on AAA or a rechargeable
- Light: 78 g with batteries
- Tap the side for full power
- Red light without the white first
- IPX8: rated to be submerged
- Battery meter
What we don’t
- Max lasts 2.5 h on AAA
- Rechargeable pack sold separately
Quick Specs
| Spec | Details |
|---|---|
| Brand | Black Diamond |
| Colour options | GraphiteDark OliveOctaneAzul BlueBlackDark Tan |
| Weight | 78 g |
| Brightness | 400 lumens |
| Throw | 100 m |
| Light | WhiteRed |
| Batteries | 3 × AAAOr BD 1500 rechargeable |
| Water rating | IPX8 |
| Warranty | 3 years |
Brightness and run time
On max, the Spot 400 puts out 400 lumens with a throw of up to 100 m. Black Diamond’s figures, to the ANSI FL-1 standard, on AAA alkalines:
The BD 1500 rechargeable pack runs longer: 4 h on max, 8 h on medium and 225 h on low.
Modes and buttons
The red light comes on without cycling through the white first, so you don’t blind anyone at camp, and it dims and has a strobe too. Like the Storm, the Spot has Power Tap: tap the side to jump from your normal setting to full power. A battery meter of three LEDs shows how much power is left in six steps, and there’s a lock for the bag. The buttons, one by one:
Batteries and weight
The three AAAs sit in a compartment behind the lamp. With them in, it weighed 78 g on our scale, the same as Black Diamond says. Spare AAAs are easy to find, and the BD 1500 pack is there if you’d rather recharge.
Vs our other head torches
The Storm 500-R is great but pretty large: it’s the bigger, rechargeable one, with more throw and coloured light. The Astro 300 is the simplest, on the same AAA batteries but with white light only. The Spot sits in between. The Wuben H4 has more output and a separate spot and flood, but it’s fiddlier to use and charge.
This review Spot 400 |  Astro 300 |  Storm 500-R |  Wuben H4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Tap | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Throw | 100 m | 55 m | 120 m | 66 m |
| Light | White, Red | White | White, Red, Green, Blue | White spot, White flood, Red |
| Water rating | IPX8 | IPX4 | IP67 | IP68 |
| Brightness | 400 lm | 300 lm | 500 lm | 800 lm |
| Run time on max | 2.5 h on AAA | 4 h on AAA | 7 h | 2.3 h after turbo |
| Power | 3 × AAA or BD 1500 | 3 × AAA or BD 1500 | 2400 mAh built in, micro-USB | 1700 mAh pack or 3 × AAA |
| Weight | 78 g | 82 g | 101 g | 99 g |
| Our score | 9.4 | 9.0 | 9.1 | 8.5 |
Conclusion: Black Diamond Spot 400 HeadlampConclusion
The Black Diamond Spot 400 is a light, simple head torch: 400 lumens with a 100 m throw, Power Tap, a red light that skips the white, a battery meter and IPX8, in 78 g with three AAA batteries. Full power is short on AAAs and the rechargeable pack costs extra, but at $80, as a compromise between performance and portability, it’s a great head torch.
A 78 g head torch on AAA batteries or a rechargeable pack, with 400 lumens, Power Tap, a red light and IPX8.
Full power is short on AAA, and the pack is sold separately.
- Hikers
- Car campers
- Emergency kits
Yes. $80 gets you a 78 g head torch with Power Tap, a red light and IPX8 that runs on AAAs or a rechargeable pack. For more throw and coloured light, the Storm 500-R is bigger and dearer.
