Nitecore NU27 Headlamp Review
The Nitecore NU27 headlamp has neutral, warm, and cool white emitters in one lightweight package. There’s USB-C charging and a simple user interface. Read on!
Official Specs and Features
Here’s a referral link to the Nitecore NU27 headlamp product page.
Versions
There are two versions of the Nitecore NU27 headlamp. One is Nitecore’s standard black and yellow. The other is white and gray. They are the same price.
Price
The Nitecore NU27 headlamp sells for $44.95 and is available now!
What’s Included
- Nitecore NU27 headlamp
- Charging cable
- Carry baggie
- Manual
- Second mount
Package and Manual
Build Quality and Disassembly
The Nitecore NU27 headlamp is built in the manner of other recent Nitecore headlamps, such as the HU2000. The body is fully plastic.
It’s easy to remove the Nitecore NU27 headlamp from the headband. I like that feature, but there’s no practical purpose for the light off the headband (see note below).
One side of the Nitecore NU27 headlamp is just bare.
The other side houses the charging port.
Size and Comps
Dimensions L-2.58″ x W-1.33″ x H-1.00″
Weight 1.98 oz
Here’s the Nitecore NU27 headlamp in hand.
Here’s the test light with the venerable Convoy S2+. The version below is a custom laser-engraved Convoy S2+ host by GadgetConnections.com. I did a full post on an engraved orange host right here! Or go straight to GadgetConnections.com to buy your Convoy S2+ now!
In the photo above, you may note that the SRM (standard reference material) flashlight for comparison has changed! I used a TorchLAB BOSS 35 for ages. Now what you can see as the 18350 SRM is the Hanko Machine Works Trident. While I have not reviewed or tested the Gunner Grip version seen here, I have tested a Hanko Machine Works Trident Total Tesseract in brass. I love the Trident, and it’s a striking contrast next to the inexpensive Convoy S2+, which also makes a great standard reference material.
Retention and Carry
The Nitecore NU27 headlamp is, of course, a headlamp. The headband doesn’t have an over-the-top band, but it’s light enough that there’s no bounce.
The headband is stretchy cloth and there’s a grippy silicone strip along there.
As stated above, the Nitecore NU27 headlamp body can be removed easily (but probably not accidentally) from the headband.
The baggie is suitable for carrying all parts of the Nitecore NU27 headlamp.
I didn’t picture it elsewhere, but this little plastic bit below can be used to clip the light to a MOLLE or the bill of a cap, for example.
It’s a nice little attachment, for sure!
Power and Runtime
Built into the Nitecore NU27 headlamp is an 850mAh (probably) LiPO. We’ll cover the emitters later, but for no,w you can see that the three options perform very similarly.
The chart above draws attention to the detail that the second highest mode has the same profile as the highest mode but lacks the little blip of highest output and gains minutes of runtime.
Based on the sharp cutoff, it’s probably safe to presume there’s low voltage protection.
Charging
The Nitecore NU27 headlamp charges via a USB-C port on the side.
Charging is a bit unusual, but still fine. It completes in around 1.25 hours.
Off to the charging-port side of the emitter array, there’s a little 4-LED charging (and power) indicator. It works exactly as is logical – blinking a number of blue LEDs as the charging state increases.
Modes and Currents
| Mode | Mode Claimed Output (lm) | Claimed Runtime | Measured Lumens |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turbo – NW | 600 | – | 538 (0s) 520 (30s) |
| High – NW | 400 | 3h | 356 (0s) 352 (30s) |
| Mid – NW | 200 | 6h30m | 177 |
| Low – NW | 70 | 13h | 61 |
| Ultralow – NW | 6 | 57h | 5.73 |
| Turbo – WW | 600 | – | 521 (0s) 508 (30s) |
| High – WW | 400 | 3h | 350 |
| Mid – WW | 200 | 6h30m | 181 |
| Low – WW | 70 | 13h | 61 |
| Ultralow – WW | 6 | 57h | 5.6 |
| Turbo – CW | 600 | – | 526 (0s) 509 (30s) |
| High – CW | 400 | 3h | 356 |
| Mid – CW | 200 | 6h30m | 178 |
| Low – CW | 70 | 13h | 63 |
| Ultralow – CW | 6 | 57h | 5.78 |
Pulse Width Modulation
Not any of the steady modes use PWM. The order here is the same as the serial photos below.
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
There are two switches on the Nitecore NU27 headlamp. Below, the left (smaller) switch is the Mode switch, and the bigger, more textured switch is the power switch. They’re both e-switches. They are on the top (when the light is worn properly).
Here’s a user interface table! For all the many options, I’ll say that the user interface is fairly understandable.
| State | Action | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Off | Hold Power button | Neutral White on (memory) |
| Off | Double click Power button | Ultralow Neutral White |
| On | Hold power button | Off |
| On | Click mode button | Emitter color advance (NW>WW>CW)^ |
| On | Click mode button | Mode advance (Low > Mid > High) of whatever CCT is active |
| On | Double click power button | Turbo of whatever CCT is active |
| Turbo | Click power button | Previous mode |
| Off | Hold Mode button | Steady Red |
| Red | Press Power button | Iterate between Red high and low |
| Any | Double click mode | SOS |
| Any special mode | Click power button | Special mode advance (SOS > Beacon > Slow flashing) |
| Any special mode | Double click mode | Previous mode |
| Off | Hold both | Lockout |
| Lockout | Hold both | Unlock to NW Ultralow |
^ After 1 minute with no clicks in CW or WW, the next click will be NW.
LED and Beam
Nitecore says (right there on the plastic lens cover) that these are “UHE LEDs.” There are four openings, and apparently two emitters in each – one CW and one WW – with NW being achieved by mixing the two.
LED Color Report (CRI and CCT)
The claim is 3000K, 4500K, and 6500K, and that’s fairly close to the mark for all, other than the cool white not coming in quite as cool as claimed (that’s good). CRI is low.
CCT (Correlated Color Temperature) refers to the measurement of the color appearance of light, expressed in Kelvins (K), which indicates whether the light is warm (yellowish) or cool (bluish). A lower CCT (below 3000K) is considered warm light, while a higher CCT (above 5000K) gives cooler, bluish light.
CRI (Color Rendering Index) is a measure of how accurately a light source renders colors in comparison to natural sunlight. Scored on a scale from 0 to 100, higher CRI values indicate that colors appear more true to life and vibrant, similar to how they would look under the sun.
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. These photos are taken around 18 inches from the door.
I compare everything to the KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b BLF-348 because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!
Summary and Conclusion
The Nitecore NU27 headlamp is a good little headlamp. It’s a fairly reasonable price, too, for all the emitter options it offers. The user interface is simple enough, and once you’ve used it enough, it is guessable. I like not having to memorize user interfaces, and this headlamp provides that opportunity. I would love for the output to be higher CRI, though. Charging works well!
The Big Table
| Nitecore NU27 headlamp | |
|---|---|
| Emitter: | UHE LEDs (NW) |
| Price in USD at publication time: | $44.95 |
| Cell: | Internal |
| Runtime Graphs | |
| LVP? | Yes |
| Switch Type: | E-Switch |
| Quiescent Current (mA): | ? |
| On-Board Charging? | Yes |
| Charge Port Type: | USB-C |
| Charge Graph | |
| Power off Charge Port | all modes |
| Claimed Lumens (lm) | 600 |
| Measured Lumens (at 30s) | NW: 520 (86.7% of claim)^ WW: 508 (84.7% of claim)^ CW: 509 (84.8% of claim)^ |
| Candela per Lumen | NW: 6.75 WW: 9.36 CW: 8.44 |
| Claimed Throw (m) | 123 |
| Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s) | NW: 178lux @ 4.918m = 4305cd WW: 130lux @ 5.18m = 3488cd CW: 213lux @ 4.781m = 4869cd |
| Throw (Calculated) (m) | NW: 131.2 (106.7% of claim)^ WW: 118.1 (96% of claim)^ CW: 139.6 (113.5% of claim)^ |
| Claimed CCT | NW: 4500 WW: 3000 CW: 6500 |
| Measured CCT Range (K) | NW: 4200-4400 Kelvin WW: 3200-3300 Kelvin CW: 5600-5900 Kelvin |
| Item provided for review by: | Nitecore |
| All my Nitecore 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 I like
- Light weight
- Versatile connection options
- Charging works well
- Reasonable user interface
- Offers NW, WW, and CW all in one package!
What I don’t like
- Low CRI
- Runtime drifts downward for duration
Notes
- 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.com!
- Please use my amazon.com referral link to help support zeroair.org!
- Please support me on Patreon! I deeply appreciate your support!
