Description:

The Princeton Tec Aurora is a lightweight headlamp suited for campside duties and general use which utilizes 3 LEDs to provide close to medium range lighting. It is adjustable for brightness and includes 2 blinking modes for signaling. The Aurora is available from Brightguy.com.

The body of the Aurora is a 2 piece clamshell. The front portion is translucent plastic, either red or blue, surrounding a cluster of 3 white 5mm LEDs. There is a rubber coated switch at the top left of the light (when facing you). The rear portion of the body is opaque black plastic which is attached via a hinge to the headstrap connection. This allows the body to pivot downward, directing the light where needed. The elastic headstrap that passes though the hinged portion of the body also serves as the forehead pad. The elastic strap appears to be very good quality, is quite comfortable, and is fully adjustable.

The bezel is simply a raised portion in the front of the unit covered by a clear plastic lens. The 3 LEDs are housed in a sliver reflector that helps to direct some of the sidespill light forward.

The body of the unit is sealed with a gasket all the way around, making it waterproof. To open the body, you insert a coin between two raised areas near the hinge of the light and twist to pop it open. The two halves of the light are connected together by a strap to prevent loss. Inside are three AAA batteries (included) to operate the electronics. Behind the batteries you will find the circuit board. The polarity of the batteries is stenciled on the board to help ensure that they are inserted correctly.

The switch is a rubber covered click switch that changes the modes in series. The modes and operation are almost identical as that found in the Princeton Tec Eclipse, indicating that the same electronics were used in both devices. The only exception is that the Eclipse has an auto-off timer and the Aurora does not. The mode changes are obvious for high/medium/low. For the slow blink mode the LED flashes twice quickly. This is presumably because the slow blink is so slow that an impatient person would probably hit the button again thinking that it didn't cycle. The slow blink is about 1 blink every 2 seconds (30/min). The rapid blink is about 1 blink every 1/2 second (120/min). Two seconds after selecting a mode, depressing the switch will turn the unit off.

The light produced by the unit is a pleasant directional flood of light for close to medium range tasks.

Included with the unit is the attached fully adjustable 2-point headband, alkaline Duracell batteries (installed). The sample tested was a promotional package which included a Princeton Tec Pulsar and split ring for keychain use.

Reviewer's Impressions:

The Princeton Tec Aurora is one slick little headlamp. It feels very solid in the hand, is comfortable on the head, and sports very long battery life. Although redundancy is always wise when going in the wilderness, I wouldn't be afraid of taking this headlamp along camping with no spare batteries due to its excellent battery conservation.

Fit and finish of the Aurora are very good. The two halves of the unit snap together firmly and seal tightly. There are no sharp edges or significant blemishes on the unit. The overall quality seems very good as well.

Output and beam quality are both very nice. The beam is a smooth flood of light which can be directed wherever the user wishes due to the hinge between the strap and the body of the light. The fact that the Aurora is adjustable for brightness (and therefore battery conservation) and has 2 signaling blinking modes makes this headlamp a multipurpose lighting tool. The dim modes of the 3 LEDs are created by rapidly blinking the LEDs. This creates the illusion in the eye that the light is dim but constant, and conserves the batteries. If you move rapidly you may see this stroboscopic effect while looking at objects.

Water resistance is very good, advertised as "waterproof" with no depth rating. This translates to "dunkable" in my ratings. Rain, bad weather, etc. should have no effect. A dunk test demonstrated that it really is watertight. If the Aurora is not closed properly water can get in. If the unit does get water inside, open it, shake it out, and leave it open to dry. If salt water gets in, open the unit, remove the batteries, rinse with fresh water, shake it out, and leave it open to dry. Using the Aurora with moisture inside can cause the electronics to malfunction.

Drops, kicks and tosses have no effect on the light whatsoever, except to mar the surface of the plastic. The clear plastic lens protecting the LEDs protrudes and may become scratched or cloudy from abrasion. For the perfectionists out there: I have found that carefully polishing clear plastic with a damp cloth and paste-type toothpaste will rub out most minor scratches.

Important things to note: The switch does take quite a bit of pressure to activate. Don't be surprised if it takes a good squeeze to activate the unit. On the plus side, it shouldn't be necessary to take the batteries out of the unit if you put it in your pack.

Improvements: Can't think of any... The Aurora is a great little "around the camp" or "around the house" headlamp. It's better than many of the headlamps I've reviewed. I prefer 3 point headbands, but the Aurora is very lightweight and the wide band holds it securely on the head.

4 Stars for feature circuitry, solid construction, light weight, water resistance, and usefulness.

+ + + Pluses: Waterproof, Tough/impact resistant, Long battery life, Bright, Lightweight, 5 operational modes including dimming

- - - Minuses: No regulation, Battery change requires a little coordination and care, Switch is quite firm

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