Two and a Half Years With a Black Diamond Spot
A founding-year headlamp review — still in the kit bag, still our default.
How this piece was assessed
- Format
- Long-term review
- Reviewed by
- Nora Ackerman — Reviews Editor, Outdoors
- Evaluation
- Real-world use over months or years. Hearthline does not lab-test or instrument-bench products. Read our methodology.
- Review date
- 9 November 2023
- Last reviewed
- 2026-03-26
A headlamp lives a strange life: indispensable two weeks a year, dead-weight in the bag for the other fifty. The right one stays light, stays reliable, and doesn't die from corroded contacts between trips.
Two and a half years of use across Scottish hill weather, dawn starts, and one entirely unplanned night descent later, ours is intact.
We first published this piece in November 2023 and have revisited the recommendation through 2026-03-26. What follows reflects what survived that review window — the observations we still stand behind, the caveats worth knowing before purchase, and the small ways the piece has aged in ordinary use.
The summary
Headlamps are tested most honestly by people who use them in actual darkness. Ours has been a Black Diamond Spot since November 2023.
In its favour
- Beam pattern is honest at every advertised distance.
- Lockout mode genuinely prevents in-bag activation.
- Battery contacts survive damp storage better than competitors we have tested.
Where it falls short
- Button arrangement remains slightly fiddly with gloves.
- Strap elastic loses tension after roughly two years.
- Rechargeable variant is heavier than the AAA model — pick your trade.
Who it's for
- — Hill walkers, alpinists, runners, and the unprepared.
- — Households needing a power-cut headlamp that will work next year.
Who should skip it
- — You need pro-grade output above 400 lumens sustained.
- — You strictly prefer USB-rechargeable lights.
Buying guidance
- Stock fresh lithium AAAs annually whether or not you use the lamp.
- Replace the strap once it loses tension; the spares are inexpensive.
- Set lockout mode before storing — the most common headlamp failure is a flat battery in a drawer.
- Plan for the trade-off most new owners only notice in the second month: button arrangement remains slightly fiddly with gloves. It is workable, but it is easier to design around at the point of purchase than to discover afterwards.
- Take the second caveat above seriously when comparing across price tiers — strap elastic loses tension after roughly two years. The cheaper alternatives in the category usually share the same limitation, so paying more rarely solves it.
Alternatives we considered
Petzl Actik Core
Rechargeable; brighter; heavier on the strap.
Nitecore NU25
Lighter, integrated battery, less long-term proven.
Reader questions
- AAA or rechargeable?
- AAA for trips longer than 24 hours; rechargeable for nightly use at home or short outings.
- How long does the strap last?
- Roughly two to three years of regular use before noticeable elastic fatigue. Spares cost a few pounds.
- How does Black Diamond Spot 400 Headlamp hold up over time?
- 3 years of ownership has produced no failures we would consider disqualifying. The wear patterns are visible — that is true of anything used daily — but the piece continues to do the work we bought it for. We last revisited the recommendation on 2026-03-26, and the verdict held.
- What maintenance does it actually need?
- Most of the upkeep is preventative rather than corrective. Follow the manufacturer's care notes for the first six months; after that, the routine you settle into matters more than the one printed on the box. The "Where it falls short" column above flags the specific points worth being attentive to.
Editorial verdict
Two and a half years in, still the headlamp we hand to a new reviewer joining the desk.
Update history
- 2026-04-10Editorial maintenance pass: cross-checked alternatives for stock status, validated FAQ against current reader correspondence, and re-confirmed recommendation with the desk editor.
- 2026-03-26Reviewer revisited the recommendation against current alternatives; the verdict held with minor copy refinements.
- 2025-01-16Short check-in revisit; no changes to the verdict, two minor copy corrections logged.
- 2023-11-09Initial publication after the reviewer's testing window concluded.
Written by
Nora AckermanReviews Editor, Outdoors
Nora has guided multi-day expeditions in the Sierra Nevada and the Scottish Highlands. She joined Hearthline to bring field-tested judgement to our outdoor coverage.
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