Thrunite TH01 Headlamp Testing
Thrunite has the Thrunite TH01 headlamp, “the brightest headlamp with a single 18350 battery.” Read on for some testing and thoughts about it!
Official Specs and Features
Here’s a link to the Thrunite TH01 Headlamp product page.
Versions
The TH01 is available in NW and CW. No other options exist.
Price
The TH01 retails for $49.99 but can be had on Amazonfor $39.99. (referral link)
Short Review
There’s a lot to like in this lightweight package. No surprise, though; Thrunite makes a good product.
Long Review
The Big Table
| Thrunite TH01 Headlamp | |
|---|---|
| Emitter: | Cree XHP50 (CW) |
| Price in USD at publication time: | $39.99 on Amazon |
| Cell: | 1×18350 |
| Turbo Runtime | High Runtime |
| LVP? | Yes |
| Switch Type: | E-Switch |
| Quiescent Current (A): | ? |
| On-Board Charging? | Yes |
| Chargetime | |
| Power off Charge Port with no Cell? | No modes. With the cell, the lowest two modes. |
| Claimed Lumens (lm) | 1500 |
| Measured Lumens (at 30s) | 1684 (112.3% of claim)^ |
| Claimed Throw (m) | 126 |
| Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s) | 233lux @ 4.602m = 4935cd |
| Throw (Calculated) (m) | 140.5 (111.5% of claim)^ |
| All my Thrunite reviews! | |
^ Measurement disclaimer: Testing flashlights is my hobby. I use hobbyist-level equipment for testing, including some I made myself. Try not to get buried in the details of manufacturer specifications versus measurements recorded here; A certain amount of difference (say, 10 or 15%) is perfectly reasonable.
What’s Included
- Thrunite TH01 Headlamp
- Headband
- Spare silicone light holder for headband
- Charge cable (USB to micro-USB)
- Spare o-rings (2)
- Spare charge port cover
- Manual and papers
Package and Manual
The box is a typical Thrunite box, and quite small for this tiny light.
Same for the manual – typical Thrunite. That’s good; Thrunite makes good manuals.
Build Quality and Disassembly
This is a tiny headlamp, and it’s nice to see a 18350 headlamp being made. The build quality is good.
Since it’s not a “right-angle” light, it’s decidedly a dedicated headlamp.
The knurling on the tailcap is quite aggressive, and on both caps. Only the non-switch cap is removable, though.
The body has a little bit of surface area dedicated to cooling.
The tailcap has a spring, and the threads are nicely short.
The positive terminal (inside the body) is only a button; no spring. No issue there, as you’d not be using this as a weapon light anyway. Since the 18350 wrapped by Thrunite is quite long, this could conceivably cause fitment issues with normally sized 18350 cells (more on that later).
The switch end of this light didn’t budge, though I’m sure ultimately it’s just threaded on. Probably some Loctite keeping it in place.
Size and Comps
Officialy:
- Weight: 52g without battery & head-strap
- Dimensions: 64mm (Length) x 33.6mm x 28.5mm
The included cell weighs 27g.
The included headband weighs 53g.
It is a diminutive light!
Here’s the test light with the venerable Convoy S2+. Mine’s a custom “baked” edition Nichia 219b triple. A very nice 18650 light.
And here’s the light beside my custom-engraved TorchLAB BOSS 35, an 18350 light. I reviewed the aluminum version of that light in both 35 and 70 formats. Same cell fits these two lights below!
Retention and Carry
The only included way to carry this light is the headband. It’s a very stretchy band and has an over-head strap as well. The over-head strap is not removable, as the back connection forms an integral part of the headband.
The light fits into the silicone holders in either direction.
And since the switch is on one end, the TH01 is well-suited to a left- or right-handed setup.
The cell may be easily accessed even while the light is in the headband.
Power and Runtime
The TH01 runs on a single 18350-sized cell, and an appropriate one ships with the light.
It’s a 1100mAh cell and is longer because of protection added by Thrunite.
The terminal is button-top-ish, but the button just barely sticks up.
Even though the included cell is quite long, and there aren’t springs on both ends of the internals, even the shortest 18350 (i.e., a 35mm long one) does work fine in the light.
Here’s a runtime on Turbo. The initial output is nicely held for over 3 minutes. The subsequent stepdowns hold for a time, and ultimately, the light shuts off with LVP. The initial stepdown is to 1000 lumens (or so), which is more than twice that of the next level. This intermediate level – the first stepdown – is much higher than the “High” sort of means we can consider “Turbo” to last around 17 minutes, which isn’t bad (note that’s not at all how Thrunite phrases it; just an interesting thought.)
Runtime on high is very stable and lasts for around an hour, which is grossly less than Thrunite’s claim of 3 hours. Even including the stepdowns, the spec isn’t met here. Not sure what happened.
Note that in both runtimes, the light does what the manual says – the main emitter blinks to indicate low voltage. Then the light shuts off entirely. Also, while running, the switch indicates blue.
Charging
As mentioned, the TH01 has onboard charging. The charge port is directly beside the switch and covered by a press-in silicone cover.
An appropriate cable is included: USB to micro-USB.
Charging is very consistent, at around 0.55A, and requires around 2.5 hours. These are reasonable specs; more importantly, the charge graph looks very well regulated.
During charging, the indicating switch is red. When charging is complete, the indicating switch turns blue. If charging is abnormal, the switch will be purple.
Modes and Currents
| Mode | Mode Claimed Output (lm) | Claimed Runtime | Measured Lumens | Tailcap Amps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turbo | 1500/430 | 5m/80m | 1684 | 3.34 |
| High | 450 | 3h | 505 | 0.76 |
| Medium | 85 | 6.5h | 90 | 0.13 |
| Low | 9 | 44h | 6 | 0.02 |
| Firefly | 0.6 | 20d | ~ | ~ |
Pulse Width Modulation
No PWM! Modes below are Lowest to Highest.
Here you can see a “baseline” – a chart with almost no light hitting the sensor.
Then there’s the Ultrafire WF-602C flashlight, which has some of the worst PWM I’ve seen. It’s so bad that I used a post about it to explain PWM! Here are multiple timescales (10ms, 5ms, 2ms, 1ms, 0.5ms, 0.2ms) to make comparing this “worst” PWM light to the test light easier. That post also explains why I didn’t test the WF-602C at the usual 50us scale.
User Interface and Operation
The TH01 has a single e-switch on the tail. Or head – I suppose it’s a matter of perspective. The switch is very proud and very easily differentiated from the charge port cover. There’s also some grip.
Here’s a user interface table!
| State | Action | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Off | Click | On (memory, LMH only) |
| Off | Hold | Firefly |
| Any | Double Click | Turbo |
| Any | Triple Click | SOS |
| On | Click | Off |
| On | Hold | Mode cycle (LMH only) |
Notably (and thankfully) absent is a Strobe, though a beacon might be welcome.
LED and Beam
The emitter here is a Cree XHP50 in CW. NW is also available, and that’s what I’d likely recommend (even though this CW is not bad). The reflector is shallow and broad and has a very light orange peel texture.
Beamshots
These beamshots always have the following settings: f8, ISO100, 0.3s shutter, and manual 5000K exposure. These photos are taken at floor level, and the beam hits the ceiling around 9 feet away.
Tint vs BLF-348 (KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b version) (affiliate link)
I compare everything to the Killzone 219b BLF-348 because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!
Conclusion
What I like
- Complete package light
- Good build quality
- Lightweight
What I don’t like
- Knurling is a bit aggressive – much more than needed (reeding would be an even better choice here)
- Runtime on High is confusing(ly short)
Notes
- This light was provided by Thrunite for review. I was not paid to write this review.
- This content originally appeared at zeroair.org. Please visit there for the best experience!
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