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Petzl Tikka®
Lightweight LED, 3 lamp backpacking headlamp. Fixed beam, 1 brightness level. 3 AAA batteries. WEIGHT: 2.7 oz. PRICE: $28.95
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The Tikka's LED lamps are ultra-low power providing 17 to 24 hours of burn time on a single set of 3 AAA batteries.
In real life experience I typically got 15-30 camp nights out of a set of batteries, although there was a significant drop in beam intensity after the first 10 odd hours of use.
In addition, to long life, the Tikka is extremely light, weighing in at 2.7 ounces. This great in your pack and even better on your head.
How It Stacks Up
The Tikka is noticeably brighter and commensurately more power hungry when compared to its nearest competitor, the Princeton Tec Aurora™.
Credibly water resistant, the Tikka is also mechanically simpler than the Aurora which includes tilt adjustment and several levels of brightness.
I carried alternately, a Tikka and Aurora in the course of 2200 mile Appalachian Trail hike in the 2002 and was generally pleased with the performance of both.
The Tikka was the first LED I had ever used, and I was immediately impressed by its light weight and camp task friendly diffuse light.
While LED's are never going to perform like a halogen lamp, the Tikka's beam was also adequate to hike an irregularly marked trail on a moonless night (particularly during it first 10 hours of battery time)
On the downside, the Tikka's lack of angle and beam adjustment makes it impossible not occasionally blind fellow campers in a group site.
The Final Word
LED lamps are essential elements of any ultralighter's toolkit and the Tikka is a solid performer at the right price. A richer feature set on similarly priced Aurora makes it a better in camp performer, but the Tikka's beam is a winner on the move.
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