Black Diamond
Black Diamond Distance LT 1100 (600 lumens sustained, 1100-lumen boost)
- Brightness: 7/10 How much light it gives at full power, for finding your way in the dark.
- Runtime: 10/10 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.
Night hikes, hill days and winter walking where 300 lumens for 14 hours, or 600 lumens for over 4 hours, is wanted without a heavy battery on the back
- Brightness
- 600 lumens (maker's figure)
- Runtime
- 14 h at 300 lumens
- Weight
- 108 g
- Power
- Rechargeable
- Water rating
- IPX7
Where to buy
Alpinetrek £86.96 In stock. Free delivery. Price includes duties and taxes; shop's list price £99.95. Free delivery from £85. Delivery time 5 to 7 working days.
View at shop: AlpinetrekUltralight Outdoor Gear £89.99 In stock. Free delivery. Shop's list price £99.99.
View at shop: Ultralight Outdoor GearBlack Diamond (UK store) £100 In stock. Delivery £10. Black Diamond's own UK store and UK list price. Black-Alloy in stock. Free delivery over £150; no import duty; about 5 working days. 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 7/10How much light it gives at full power, for finding your way in the dark. 7: Better than most.
Black Diamond's 1100 lumens is the PowerTap boost, which drops back after 10 seconds, so it doesn't count. The sustained High mode is 600 lumens with no test standard stated on its product pages: the 500–799 band, the most a maker's figure can score (maker's figure).
Runtime
From maker's figures 10/10How long one charge or set of batteries lasts at a level you can walk and cook by. 10: The best you can buy for this.
Black Diamond's instruction sheet (linked from its product page) gives 14 hours on Medium (300 lumens), the longest it gives for a mode of 80 lumens or more: the 10 h+ band. High (600 lumens) lasts 4.25 hours, which is also what its product pages say, and the 7-lumen Low mode 120 hours. T3, Ultralight Outdoor Gear and UKHillwalking repeat the 14 hours; CleverHiker measured 12 to 14 hours.
Weight
From maker's figures 5/10How much it adds to your pack and your head. 5: Does the job. Average for wild-camping gear.
Black Diamond lists 108 g on its product pages and instruction sheet, the 90–109 g band. It doesn't say whether that includes the battery pack, which is part of the lamp as sold; Ultralight Outdoor Gear, Needle Sports and T3 all give 107 to 108 g including the battery.
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.
9 reviews on comfort, e.g. "the curved back panel reducing the amount of contact the plastic has with my forehead – very comfortable".
Ease of use*
Reviewers' average 6/10How easy the buttons, modes and lock are, with gloves too.
9 reviews on ease of use, e.g. "I was overwhelmed at the permutations of clicks for different settings.".
Reviewers disagree on this.
In short
Good for
- Night hikes, hill days and winter walking where 300 lumens for 14 hours, or 600 lumens for over 4 hours, is wanted without a heavy battery on the back
- Climbers and mountaineers who want an IP67 lamp with a lock for the pack
- Anyone who wants a spare removable battery pack for a long night
Strengths
- 600 lumens on High for 4.25 hours and 300 lumens for 14 hours, plus a 1100-lumen PowerTap boost for a long look ahead (maker's figures)
- IP67: waterproof to 1 m for 30 minutes and dustproof
- Removable 2200 mAh battery pack that can be swapped on the move, USB-C charging
- Pivoting lens keeps the battery against the head; T3, UKHillwalking and LFTO found little bounce
- Red, green and blue light, a digital lock and a three-LED battery gauge
- 3-year Black Diamond warranty
Weaknesses
- The 1100-lumen boost lasts 10 seconds and then drops back, so the real top output is 600 lumens
- Front-heavy, with all the weight on the front of the headband; CleverHiker found some bounce and LFTO found the headband brackets flimsy
- The USB-C port has no cover and the battery can only be charged while it is in the lamp (T3, LFTO)
- Small buttons that are hard to use with thick gloves (UKHillwalking)
Sources
We haven't tested this ourselves. Every score comes from these specs, tests and reviews.
ShowHide sources (12)
- Black Diamond: Distance LT 1100 Headlamp product page (specifications; US and EU sites)
- T3: Black Diamond Distance LT 1100 review (Pat Kinsella)
- UKHillwalking: Black Diamond Distance LT1100 Headtorch review (Rob Greenwood)
- Live for the Outdoors (Trail magazine): Black Diamond Distance LT1100 headtorch, tested and reviewed (Matt Jones)
- CleverHiker: Black Diamond Distance LT1100 Headlamp Review (Ben Dawson, several months of testing)
- Black Diamond: Distance LT 1100 instruction sheet (PDF linked from the product page: modes, burn times, weight)
- The Great Outdoors: Black Diamond Distance LT 1100 review (James Roddie; first printed in the January 2026 issue, online 12 February 2026)
- FeedTheHabit: Black Diamond Distance LT 1100 Headlamp Review (Nate Fearer; the site says he receives samples for review; Mt. Slesse climb and other trips)
- The Long Ranger: Black Diamond Distance LT 1100 Headlamp review (Justin Simoni, fastpacking and Colorado Trail use)
- GearJunkie: The Best Headlamps of 2026, Black Diamond Distance LT 1100 entry (tested on evening runs and night bouldering; guide bylined Nicole Qualtieri and Sean McCoy)
- See Chad Run (YouTube): Black Diamond Distance LT 1100 Headlamp Review (7 min; unit sent by Black Diamond)
- Black Diamond (maker's own US store) customer reviews: Distance LT 1100 (about 84 verified-buyer reviews, 4.45 out of 5)