Cyansky HS5R Headlamp Review

The Cyansky HS5R headlamp is an 18650-cell headlamp that offers both white output as well as a secondary red, and USB-C charging! Read on!

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Official Specs and Features

Here’s a link to the Cyansky HS5R headlamp product page.

Versions

There’s only one version of the Cyansky HS5R headlamp.

Price

Cyansky lists the MSRP of the HS5R headlamp at $79.95. The Cyansky HS5R headlamp is available at their store.

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Short Review

As a headlamp, the Cyansky HS5R is great! I do not love the headband but we’ll cover that more later. I appreciate the secondary output (red) and that it really doesn’t affect anything else about the light (that is to say: it’s not in the way, and the light is no bigger because of it.) Charging is great, including the C to C aspect.

Long Review

The Big Table

Cyansky HS5R headlamp
Emitter:	Luminus SFT40 “Cold White”
Price in USD at publication time:	$79.95
Cell:	1×18650 (included)
Turbo Runtime Graph	High Runtime Graph
LVP?	Yes
Switch Type:	E-Switch
Quiescent Current (mA):	0.02
On-Board Charging?	Yes
Charge Port Type:	USB-C
Charge Graph
Power off Charge Port	With cell: Lowest mode only
Claimed Lumens (lm)	1300
Measured Lumens (at 30s)	1209 (93% of claim)^
Candela per Lumen	6.6
Claimed Throw (m)	200
Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s)	337lux @ 4.781m = 7703cd
Throw (Calculated) (m)	175.5 (87.8% of claim)^
Claimed CCT	–
Measured CCT Range (K)	6100-7000 Kelvin
Item provided for review by:	Cyansky
All my Cyansky 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

• Cyansky HS5R headlamp
• Cyansky 2600mAh 18650
• Headband
• Soft mount with sticky back
• Pocket clip
• Charging cable (USB to USB-C)
• Manuals etc
• Spare o-rings (2)

Package and Manual

Build Quality and Disassembly

Build quality is good. There’s nothing too much worth mentioning, and definitely nothing bad to mention (here, but later…)

I like this tailcap quite a bit. There’s plenty of grip here for tailcap removal.

There’s a magnet in there, too.

Both head (below) and tail (above) have springs.

Size and Comps

Size: 92x 23 x 28 mm (LxHxW)
Weight: 45g / 94g / 136g (HS5R/+Battery/+Bracket & Strap)

If the flashlight will headstand, I’ll show it here (usually the third photo). If the flashlight 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.

Also seen above is 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.

Retention and Carry

Mainly the Cyansky HS5R is a headlamp. So of course the first thing to mention is this headband.

The band itself is super comfortable. Even this metal bracket has a back that gels with a forehead very nicely. The edges are rounded out and it’s overall just good.

But have a look at the bracket that holds the HS5R. It’s exactly as unforgivingly for removing the light as you’d guess. It’s difficult to remove the light, and probably nigh-on impossible to remove the HS5R without any damage.

I wasn’t able to do that, in fact – Using needle-nose pliers to aid in bracket release, I scratched my HS5R way more than I like to scratch my lights.

You may never want to remove the headlamp, though. It does ship installed into the headband. However, if you wish to use the pocket clip, you’ll need to remove the light…

The pocket clip is pretty nice. It connects only on the tail end but is a two-way clip, and allows fairly good deep carry.

As mentioned, the tailcap has a magnet, and this magnet is perfectly sufficient for holding the light stable.

Power and Runtime

The Cyansky HS5R headlamp is powered by a single lithium-ion cell. Cyansky includes an appropriate cell – a 2600mAh 18650. That’s the same cell as is used in the Cyansky HS6R, too.

As far as usage goes, this is a standard button top 18650. It fits into the Cyansky HS5R headlamp in the usual way – positive terminal toward the head.

Below are the runtime tests. Performance looks pretty solid.

THe Cyansky HS5R headlamp does shut off with low voltage protection. That seems to happen around 3V or so, and the switch indicates in red when voltage is low.

Charging

Unlike other Cyansky lights I’ve tested, the Cyansky HS5R headlamp actually has the charge port built into the flashlight. It’s a USB-C port, and it’s on the side of the head. I don’t usually opine about charge port covers, but I happen to really like this one.

Cyansky includes a USB to USB-C charging cable.

I tested with both USB to USB-C (as that’s what cable is provided) and with C to C. Both worked fine, and have similar profiles and charge time.

Modes and Currents

Mode	Mode Claimed Output (lm)	Claimed Runtime	Measured Lumens	Tailcap Amps
Turbo	1300	2h	1209	4.85
High	450	2.5h	551	0.95
Med	150	12h	185	0.26
Low	30	18h	30	0.05
Eco	3	220h	3.7	9.9mA

Pulse Width Modulation

None of the 6 modes are really displaying PWM. This is more or less “mode order” – four white (low to highest) then red, then Eco white.

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

If you’ve had the Cyansky HS6R, you’ll be familiar with this switch. That light had two, but this has just one e-switch on the head. It’s an indicating e-switch, too.

Here’s a user interface table!

State	Action	Result
Off	Click	Battery check ^
Off	Hold Switch	On (Mode Memory (Turbo memorizes as high))
On	Click Switch	Mode advance (LMHT)
On	Hold Switch	Off
Any	Hold Switch >1.2s	Iterate between main white emitter and secondary group (which also includes Eco white)
On Secondary	Click Switch	Mode advance (Red, Eco White, Red Blink)
Off	Double click	Lockout
Lockout	Double click	Unlock
Lockout	Click	White blinks 2x, plus battery check^

^ Battery check indicates as follows:

Green: >80%
Green Blinking: 50-80%
Red: 20-50%
Red Blinking: <20%

There are no strobes. There’s red blinking, but it’s slow, maybe 1Hz.

LED and Beam

The emitter used in this headlamp is a Luminus SFT-40 in “cold white” (according to Cyansky.)

This emitter has a TIR.

Despite being hidden behind the TIR and not visible, there’s also a red emitter – maybe two (it’s hard to tell). The red is quite bright.

LED Color Report (CRI and CCT)

I’ve used the same mode order as above. Four main white modes, then red, then Eco White. Cyansky really nails it when saying this is a cold white emitter. CRI is also not spectacular. But output is great!

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 keep the test flashlight on the left and the BLF-348 reference flashlight on the right.

I compare everything to the KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b BLF-348 because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!

Conclusion

What I like

• USB-C charging works great
• Red emitter is a nice bonus
• Nice tight throwy beam
• Simple user interface
• Output is really great
• Doesn’t seem that Cyansky is trying to game output numbers – Turbo stepdown isn’t too quick (but is dramatic).
• Complete package – Cyansky includes the cell at the purchase price.

What I don’t like

• Red has only one level – I could really use a lower (much lower) level
• Eco is hidden in the red group
• Double click (from off) to lock is a bit annoying.
• Double click (from on) not doing anything is a bit annoying.
• Difficulty removing the light from the headband is annoying.

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Notes

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