Not too long ago, Thrunite dropped the Joe Robinet H01 headlamp – aka JR H01. This is a 16340 headlamp with an indicating e-switch. And most importantly, it’s orange!
Official Specs and Features
Here’s a link to the Thrunite Joe Robinet H01 headlamp product page.
Versions
There are two versions of the Thrunite H01 headlamp. “BSS H01 Green” and “JR H01 Orange” (seen here). They seem to differ only in body color.
Price
Both versions are available now for $29.99.
Short Review
This is a pretty neat little headlamp, with a lot that’s right. Orange body is right. User interface is right. The cell is right. Unfortunately there are negatives too – Cree XP-G3 is wrong. There’s PWM on all middle modes. But at $30, it’s still a reasonable value.
Long Review
The Big Table
| Thrunite Joe Robinet H01 Headlamp | |
|---|---|
| Emitter: | Cree XP-G3 (CW) |
| Price in USD at publication time: | $29.99 |
| Cell: | 1×16340 |
| Turbo Runtime Graph | High Runtime Graph |
| LVP? | Switch and emitter warning |
| Switch Type: | E-Switch |
| Quiescent Current (mA): | |
| On-Board Charging? | Yes |
| Charge Port Type: | micro-USB |
| Charge Graph | |
| Power off Charge Port | One mode (with or without cell) |
| Claimed Lumens (lm) | 687 |
| Measured Lumens (at 30s) | 601 (87.5% of claim)* |
| Candela per Lumen | 4 |
| Claimed Throw (m) | 91 |
| Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s) | 288lux @ 3.081m = 2734cd |
| Throw (Calculated) (m) | 104.6 (114.9% of claim)* |
| All my Thrunite reviews! | |
- Measurement disclaimer: I am an amateur flashlight reviewer. I don’t have $10,000 or even $1,000 worth of testing equipment. I test output and such in PVC tubes!! Please consider claims within 10% of what I measure to be perfectly reasonable (accurate, even).
What’s Included
- Thrunite Joe Robinet H01 Headlamp
- Thrunite 650mAh 16340
- Charge cable (USB to micro-USB)
- Spare o-rings (2)
- Spare charge port cover (2)
- Headband
- Manual and papers
Package and Manual
Build Quality and Disassembly
First of all, this light is orange, so massive positive there. Yes, I like orange, and yeah because it’s orange I’ll overlook a lot of things….
It’s nearly the “right orange” and it’s close enough… There are a few things you might notice less here, but more later – this light isn’t the smallest 16340 headlamp on the market. That’s a bit of a negative.
Another thing is that the optic doesn’t have a large opening. This won’t matter as long as the beam profile suits you (photos of that later). Also note that the bezel around this optic is pressed in, so changing the emitter from this Cree XP-G3 is going to be difficult.
There are some cooling fins on the back of the head.
Here begins the “top down” views of the light.
Only the head comes off of the H01. This reveals anodized threads, which are square cut. The threads are nice and smooth.
Inside you can see a spring, which looks to be removable – probably allowing removal of the tailcap magnet.
And the head has only a brass button, and no spring.
Look at ‘er standing there all regal like.
Size and Comps
Officially: 66mm x 21.5mm x 21mm, and 78.5g.
If a light will headstand, I’ll show it here (usually the third photo). If a light will tailstand, I’ll show that here, too (usually the fourth photo).
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 format.
Here’s the main competition for the Thrunite Joe Robinet H01 headlamp – the Olight Perun Mini. In Orange. I reviewed it here. There are things I like from each of these lights, and things I don’t about both.
Retention and Carry
This is primarily a headlamp. As such, there’s a headband included.
This is only an around-the-head-band, and doesn’t include an over-the-head strap. For a 16340 light, I consider that a good thing.
I’d also call the headband comfortable, as the material is soft and not excessively grippy. But also, it’s not excessively grippy, so you might have to cinch it tight for heavily active things like running.
Those two grooves you thought were for the pocket clip? No, they’re for the headband. The light will fit either way (“right” or “left”) and since the switch is on the end, the user experience will not change much.
There’s also the magnet in the tailcap, which is strong enough to hold the light horizontally, as seen below.
Now, let’s talk about those pocket clip headband grooves again. There is no pocket clip included! So this is really only a headlight.
And in that case, why bother including a magnet? Just take out that length, make the light that much shorter, and make it a completely dedicated headlamp. Then you at least compete with the Perun Mini on size.
Power and Runtime
The Thrunite Joe Robinet H01 headlamp is powered by a single lithium ion cell. In this case, it’s a 16340, which is also included with the package from Thrunite.
This is a standard 16340 cell in every way. It’s also a button top.
The cell fits into the body in the usual way: positive terminal toward the head.
When installed, the cell sticks out of the cell tube just a little.
Below you can see a few runtimes. Output is respectable, and near what is claimed, at around 600 lumens. But notably, Thrunite isn’t just gaming the FL1 here – the light holds 600 lumens for a full minute before stepping down to high.
At the end of each of those three tests you can see some weirdness in the line. That’s actually the main emitter blinking to alert of low voltage. The switch blinks at the same time as the main emitter, too, in red, so you’ll certainly note that the cell is low. However on bench power, I did not observe the light shutting off due to low voltage.
Charging
The Thrunite Joe Robinet H01 headlamp has built-in charging. There’s a micro-USB port in the head, which charges the 16340.
Again, this isn’t a customized 16340, so any cell that works in the light will also charge in the light.
Thrunite includes a charging cable: USB to micro-USB.
Charging looks very good and stable at around 0.6A, and requires under 2 hours to complete.
During charge, the indicating switch blinks red. When charging is complete, the switch turns blue.
Modes and Currents
Playing around with this table…. Let me know how it looks for you, particularly on mobile!
| Mode | Mode Claimed Output (lm) | Claimed Runtime | Measured Lumens | Tailcap Amps | Pulse Width Modulation | Beamshot Ceiling | Beamshot vs BLF-348 | Runtime |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turbo | 687/205 | 75s/85m | 601 | 1.96 |  |
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| High | 195 | 100m | 195 | 0.62 |  |
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| Medium | 50 | 7h | 0.14 |  |
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| Low | 6 | 60h | 0.01 |  |
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| Firefly | 0.5 | 15d | 0.00 |  |
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Pulse Width Modulation
Each of the three middle modes have PWM. It’s fast enough that I don’t notice it, though.
For reference, here’s a baseline shot, with all the room lights off and almost nothing hitting the sensor. And here’s the worst PWM light I have ever owned. Also one of the very first lights I ordered directly from China!
User Interface and Operation
The H01 has a single switch. It’s an indicating e-switch on the head, and just slightly proud (domed). The cover is fairly soft.
The action is low.
And despite looking solid black, it’s actually translucent. There are indicators under the cover – red and blue (blue seen below.)
Here’s a UI table!
| State | Action | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Off | Click | On (Mode Memory except Firefly, Turbo, Strobe) |
| Off | Hold 1s | Firefly |
| On | Click | Off |
| On | Hold | Mode advance (LMH only) |
| Any | Double Click | Turbo |
| Any | Triple Click | SOS |
LED and Beam
The emitter chosen for this H01 is a Cree XP-G3.
That XP-G3 is behind a dimpled TIR, which gives a beam with a hotspot rolling off into fairly even spill.
These beamshots are always with the following settings: f8, ISO100, 0.3s shutter, and manual 5000K exposure.
Tint vs BLF-348 (KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b version) (affiliate link)
Test light is on the left!
I compare everything to the KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b BLF-348, because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!
Conclusion
What I like
- Nice build quality
- Simple and good user interface
- It’s orange!
- Doesn’t have an over-the-headband
- Charging is very consistent
What I don’t like
- PWM on middle modes
- No pocket clip
- Cool white
- Doesn’t offer electronic lockout
- Does not have low voltage protection
Notes
- This light is on loan by a “friend from Ala-freaking-Bama” for review. I was not paid to write this review.
- This content originally appeared at zeroair.org. Please visit there for the best experience!
- For flashlight related patches, stickers, and gear, head over to PhotonPhreaks, another site where I write!
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