Simond
Simond HL500 USB V3 Rechargeable Head Torch (300 lumens)
- 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: 6/10 How much it adds to your pack and your head.
A very cheap rechargeable head torch for camp chores and easy night walks
- Brightness
- 300 lumens (maker's figure)
- Runtime
- 8 h at 80 lumens
- Weight
- 90 g
- Power
- Rechargeable
- Water rating
- IPX5
Where to buy
Decathlon UK £24.99 In stock. Delivery from £2.99; free for members on orders of £80+.
View at shop: Decathlon UKPrices 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 at full power with no test standard stated: the 300–499 band (maker's figure).
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.
The 80-lumen medium mode runs 8 hours on the built-in 1800 mAh battery (maker's figure), in the 6–9.9 h band. Full power lasts 2.5 hours.
Weight
From maker's figures 6/10How much it adds to your pack and your head. 6: A bit better than average.
Decathlon lists 90 g with the battery, in the 90–109 g band (The Guardian gives 89 g).
In short
Good for
- A very cheap rechargeable head torch for camp chores and easy night walks
- Wild campers who want a red light and a lock for the pack
- A spare or backup lamp, or a first one for a family
Strengths
- USB-C charging, and a reserve that gives 25 lumens for 1 hour when the battery runs out
- Red mode, flash mode and a lock to stop it switching on in a bag
- IPX5: handles water jets, better than the IPX4 Petzl lamps
- 2-year Decathlon warranty; The Guardian picked it as best budget head torch (2025)
Weaknesses
- Wide flood beam only with a 65 m reach: not enough for fast night running or technical ground
- The battery is built in, so you can't swap in AAA or a spare cell mid-trip
- The lumen figure is the maker's own, with no test standard behind it
- Only 2.5 hours at full power; The Guardian found the supplied charging cable flimsy
Sources
We haven't tested this ourselves. Every score comes from these specs, tests and reviews.
ShowHide sources (4)
- Decathlon UK: Simond Rechargeable headlamp HL500 USB V3 (maker's specifications)
- The Guardian: The best head torches, six tried-and-tested favourites (Forclaz HL500 USB V3, best budget)
- Jomy Thomas (YouTube): Forclaz HL500 headlamp review, the new USB-C version
- Decathlon UK customer reviews: HL500 USB V3 (2,446 reviews, 4.68 out of 5)