Black Diamond
Black Diamond Astro 300 (300 lumens, dual fuel)
- Brightness: 5/10 How much light it gives at full power, for finding your way in the dark.
- Runtime: 8/10 How long one charge or set of batteries lasts at a level you can walk and cook by.
- Weight: 5/10 How much it adds to your pack and your head.
A cheap, simple back-up lamp for the lid of the pack
- Brightness
- 300 lumens (maker's figure)
- Runtime
- 8 h at 150 lumens
- Weight
- 100 g
- Power
- Both
- Water rating
- IPX4
Where to buy
Alpinetrek £17.36 In stock. Delivery £4.49. Price includes duties and taxes. Azul and Octane in stock, Graphite out of stock. Free delivery from £85, £4.49 under that. Delivery time 5 to 7 working days.
View at shop: AlpinetrekUltralight Outdoor Gear £17.99 In stock. Free delivery. Shop's list price £19.99 (Alpinetrek shows £19.95). Three AAA supplied.
View at shop: Ultralight Outdoor GearBlack Diamond (UK store) £20 In stock. Delivery £10. Black Diamond's own UK store and UK list price. Graphite, Azul and Octane in stock, Creek Blue out. Free delivery over £150; no import duty. The page also says 'Out of Stock', but 'Add to bag' is shown.
View at shop: Black Diamond (UK store)Prices checked 8 Nov 2026 on each shop's own page; shops can change them. We earn no commission on these links; shops are listed by price. More
Our ratings (out of 10)
1 to 10, compared with the whole market. Each says what it's based on. How we score
Brightness
From maker's figures 5/10How much light it gives at full power, for finding your way in the dark. 5: Does the job. Average for wild-camping gear.
Maker's figure, 300 lumens on High with no test standard stated on Black Diamond's product pages: the 300–499 band (maker's figure). Black Diamond gives 4 hours on High with the three AAA supplied and 6 hours with the BD 1500 pack.
Runtime
From maker's figures 8/10How long one charge or set of batteries lasts at a level you can walk and cook by. 8: Clearly better than most.
Black Diamond's US page and instruction sheet give 8 hours on the 150-lumen Medium mode with the three AAA supplied, the 6–9.9 h band. With the BD 1500 pack (sold separately) it gives 12 hours, which would be the 10 h+ band, but the pack isn't in the box. The EU page shows only the 140 hours of the 6-lumen Low mode, and Ultralight Outdoor Gear's table gives 6 hours on High with AAA where Black Diamond says 4.
Weight
Estimate from maker's specs: the maker's weight 5/10How much it adds to your pack and your head. 5: Does the job. Average for wild-camping gear.
Estimate from maker's specs
What reviewers say (out of 10)
Ratings marked * are from reviews and are not part of the trip score. They are reviewers' scores, not our own measurements. How we score
Comfort*
Reviewers' average 8/10How comfy and steady it sits on your head.
6 reviews on comfort, e.g. "remains comfortable on your head for hours and does not bounce when you’re moving quickly".
Ease of use*
Reviewers' average 7/10How easy the buttons, modes and lock are, with gloves too.
4 reviews on ease of use, e.g. "some people will definitely prefer the simplicity of the Astro lights over models with more modes and functions".
In short
Good for
- A cheap, simple back-up lamp for the lid of the pack
- Camp and trail use on three AAA cells, with the option of the BD 1500 rechargeable pack later
Strengths
- Dual fuel: three AAA, or the BD 1500 rechargeable battery (sold separately)
- 300 lumens (maker's figure) and a 55 m beam
- Brightness memory and a digital lock
- 3-year Black Diamond warranty
Weaknesses
- Only one independent review covers this dual-fuel version, so comfort and beam are estimates, not reviewed scores
- No red light and one lens only, with no spot beam
- IPX4: it takes rain, not heavy wet use or immersion
- 300 lumens lasts only 4 hours on the AAA supplied (Black Diamond)
- Weight figures conflict: 100 g on Black Diamond's pages, 75 g with three AAA on its instruction sheet
Sources
We haven't tested this ourselves. Every score comes from these specs, tests and reviews.
ShowHide sources (8)
- Black Diamond: Astro 300 Headlamp product page (specifications; US and EU sites)
- Black Diamond: Astro 300 instruction sheet (PDF linked from the product page: modes, burn times, weight)
- The Big Outside: Review of the Black Diamond Astro 300 and Astro 300-R headlamps (Michael Lanza)
- Switchback Travel: Best Headlamps of 2026 (the Astro 300 is its Best Budget Headlamp)
- Shaw Speaks (YouTube): Black Diamond Astro 300 Headlamp Review | Hands-Free Lighting Test & Night Demo (his own purchase, tested around a fire pit)
- Crazy Squirrel Survival (YouTube): The Black Diamond Astro 300 - The World's OK'est Headlamp! (his own purchase; synthetic narration voice)
- HM01Cutmaster (YouTube): Black Diamond Astro 300 Lumen Headlamp Dark Tan, WATCH BEFORE YOU BUY + Test w/ Rechargable AAAs (unboxed on camera and worn in the garage; he does not say whether he bought it or was sent it)
- Black Diamond customer reviews: Astro 300 Headlamp (100 reviews, 4.2 out of 5, 82 verified buyers, none incentivised; the maker's own US store)