Fox Outfitters Firefly

Amazingly bright, low weight, long battery life—these are just some of the highlights of this light.

I received my Firefly headlamp today to test and review. Starting with the shipping, it was surprisingly fast. I had recently moved and even with the company shipping to the old address, I had product in hand in under a week.

The packaging was very well done and the unit made it here with no issues whatsoever. The product's packaging is appealing to the eye, clean box, specs and information can be seen and understood with a glance. None of the information overload that many companies like to use to make a product seem like it's more than it is just to draw a purchase.

The unit comes with a set of batteries, as most do, however it was nice to see the batteries were a name brand and not a "never heard of" cheap alternative. Granted you can put in other batteries, but sending us a well known battery vs a cheap alternative in my opinion is one more way that FOX Outfitters shows its pride in their product as well as appreciation to the consumer.

At first the unit seems like any other headlamp, adjustable head, elastic strap, etc.. However, the quality shows itself almost instantly. The strap is one of a much higher grade than that of its competitors. It is thicker than most and not counting the embroidered logo, the stitching shows much attention to detail. All edges are stitched in a way that fraying does not seem it will ever be an issue. The elastic is also a much higher grade than that of others, you feel it as soon as you handle the unit.

The buttons are not confusing in the slightest, as every feature is accessible through ONE button. This does not mean cycling through a ridiculous number of clicks to find the mode you seek, you can find every mode with a maximum of four clicks, whether you need white or red, solid, strobe, or even the emergency S.O.S. feature. The button itself even shows the unit's quality. Its center placement is very easy to find and access, not to mention the design allows for use with gloves or a bare hand with no issues at all.

The unit's lighting is more than adequate at low levels and amazing on the medium and higher settings. The red light modes also seem to provide more than enough light for most applications. I have not used the light to the point of draining the batteries, but if the listed battery life is accurate, the unit is very cost effective as well.

One feature that I fell in love with is the "Constant Glow" feature. No fumbling in the dark trying to change batteries. The inner glow allows for you to easily and correctly change the batteries with no issues. No more trying to see which side is positive or negative, just use it once and you will wonder why it has taken until now for someone to come up with such an amazing feature.

Honestly, I am not a good person to review the weight of the product. 68 grams with batteries is what the packaging boasts. Is that heavy? Light? I really do not know. I will say that I did not mind its weight on my head, nor do I feel it was any heavier than any of my other headlamps. It was fairly comfortable though, even after wearing for an extended period.

Most of my time outdoors is spent in a kayak, day trips, camping, etc, so the IPX6 rating is a blessing that I can not wait to take advantage of. Very few products are truly water PROOF, but having a IPX 6 rating says that beyond extended submersion the wet weather will not cause any problems for the products performance.

Lastly, the company offers a warranty that shows its faith in the materials, construction, and durability of its product. Most of us will buy a headlamp and never even consider a warranty. I personally have a drawer of units that have straps broken, or a switch that doesn't work, a bulb that blew, or any other multitude of problems. Until now, a headlamp has always been considered a disposable product upon failure by me. I actually expect most of them to fail in some way after being used. This product feels like one that will last me an extended period, regardless of conditions and use. Knowing the company has enough faith in their product to add a warranty allows me to breathe a little easier and worry about things other than will my light light when I need it.

The only thing I feel that would actually improve the product would be an option in its hardware to allow clipping to a hat visor. I don't mind wearing it under my hat's brim, it still sits very comfortably against my forehead, but there are some instances where clipped on the hat would be beneficial.

I highly recommend the purchase of this unit. I have trouble finding any reason that anyone can produce where this light will fail to function in a positive capacity nor do I foresee any shortcomings in the future. I would like to state that I do not work for or represent FOX Outfitters and I did receive this product free of charge for a testing and review session. Everything above is my own opinion and in no way that of the company's.

Background

I have used this and many like it on multiple kayak camping trips, weather, water, no issues at all.