REASONS TO BUY
Super easy to use
Inexpensive
Solid performance
Compact
And reliable
REASONS TO AVOID
Good but not great spot beam for trail finding
Slightly below average flood beam optics
Petzl Tikkina Review
For $20, the Tikkina offers impressive performance at a great price, that will meet most people's needs
Credit: Abriah Wofford
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Our Verdict
The Tikkina is clearly the best value in small headlamps we have seen, and offers performance that will meet or exceed most people's needs. For around $20 you get a a very capable headlamp with an impressive spot beam and incredibly long close-proximity mode battery life. It is super easy to use, with a single button and only three modes to click through (Low, Medium, and High). While many headlamps fell short of battery life claims, this one outperformed what Petzl said it could do for close proximity use (high mode is another story, see below). This headlamp outscored every other headlamp $20 or less, and offered performance that rivals lights costing 50% more. Yes, there are cheaper headlamps out there, like the Energizer Vision HD, but with these less expensive models could not match the Tikkina in quality.
Petzl offers a nifty USB rechargeable battery for the Tikkina, that is worth mentioning. At $30, the Petzl Core Battery provides more power than regular alkaline batteries, yet with the convenience of USB recharging. If you use your headlamp regularly, or if you travel to areas where buying replacement batteries is an issue, consider the Core as a slick solution to get a USB rechargeable light at a good price. To see how it stacks up versus the competition, check out our review of headlamps.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
Petzl Tikkina | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  Best Headlamp for General Purpose Use | ||||
| Price | $24.95 at REI Compare at 3 sellers | $29 List | $30 List | $19.95 at REI Compare at 3 sellers | $19.00 List $12.97 at Amazon |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Bottom Line | The $20 Tikkina is a great light around the campsite, for general use, in your thingy drawer, or car glove box | A good value that offers basic functionality, slightly better than average performance, at a good price | The Zipka is a good option for backpacking where small weight and size are crucial | Our favorite budget light if your needs are limited to close proximity work | A good light, but not great, sold at an attractive price, but the Tikkina is a better value |
| Rating Categories | Petzl Tikkina | Yalumi LED 140-Lumen | Petzl Zipka | Black Diamond Astro | Energizer Vision HD |
| Trail Finding (35%) | |||||
| Close Proximity (20%) | |||||
| Battery Life (15%) | |||||
| Weight (15%) | |||||
| Ease of Use (15%) | |||||
| Specs | Petzl Tikkina | Yalumi LED 140-Lumen | Petzl Zipka | Black Diamond Astro | Energizer Vision HD |
| Measured Beam Distance | 62 m | 94 m | 62 m | 38 m | 45 m |
| Claimed Distance | 55 m | 90 m | 60 m | 35 m | 40 m |
| Measured High Mode Run-time (ANSI) | 3.5 hrs | 4.3 hrs | 5 hrs | 4.8 hrs | 8.7 hrs |
| Claimed High Mode Run-time | 60 hrs | Not specified | 60 hrs | 20 hrs | 8 hrs |
| Measured Low Mode Run-time | 223 hrs | 47 hrs | 141 hrs | 95 hrs | 74 hrs |
| Claimed Low Mode Run-time | 220 hrs | 100 hrs | 240 hrs | 80 hrs | 8 hrs |
| Measured Weight | 2.9 oz, 83 g | 2.7 oz, 77 g | 2.3 oz, 64 g | 3 oz, 86 g | 3.1 oz, 89 g |
| Battery Type | 3 AAA | 3 AAA | 3 AAA | 3 AAA | 3 AAA |
| Water Resistance | IPX4 splash proof | IPX4 splash proof | IPX4 splash proof | IPX4 splash proof | water resistant |
| Manuf Claimed Lumens | 150 lumens | 140 lumens | 200 lumens | 150 lumens | 180 lumens |
| Beam Type | flood | flood/spot | flood/spot | flood, dimmable | flood/spot |
| Red Light | no | yes | yes | no | no |
| On Switch Lock | no | no | no | yes | no |
Show full specification details ▼Hide full specification details ▲
Our Analysis and Test Results
In the past, we considered the Petzl Tikkina to be merely a “budget headlamp” that was a good option to have in the kitchen thingy drawer, for occasional use around the house or camping. But, improvements to LED technology have dramatically increased the lighting firepower offered by the Tikkina, which now delivers double the lighting performance of past models. And, all that while keeping the price the same wallet-friendly $20 list that it used to be.
Today's Tikkina is an impressively capable headlamp — one that we consider it a great choice for general use — that will meet or exceed most people's needs.
The main competition for the Tikkina is the Black Diamond Astro that also sells for $20 list and offers similar, but slightly lower, overall performance. The Tikkina scored higher than the Astro for trail finding, battery life, and ease-of-use. The Astro scored better for close proximity use. Their scores are so close you may want to compare their beam photos, ratings and specs using our handy beam comparison pages and see which is best for your needs.
Performance Comparison
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Trail Finding
A score of 5 is not exceptional when compared to top headlamps, but it is exceptional when compared to most other $20 headlamps such as the Astro that received a 3.
The brighter and better trail finding spot beam on the Tikkina is a key motivator to buy it over the Astro: more brightness as demonstrated by the side-by-side photos below. While neither is as impressive as a top scorer like the BD Spot. However, the Tikkina is pretty darn good, whereas the Astro is underwhelming.
Beam Distance Photos
Petzl Tikkina
Black Diamond Astro
Selling for twice the list price of the $20 Tikkina, the $40 BD Spot offers a significant step up in trail finding firepower as can be seen below.
Beam Distance Photos
Petzl Tikkina
Black Diamond Spot
Close Proximity
This score is below average at 4 of 10 because the Tikkina does not offer as evenly lit a flood beam is competitors. The flood beam is bright, but it tapers off to the sides. This is where the Astro is much better, earning a 7 of 10. Check out the chart below to see where the Tikkina lands in this metric as compared to the other headlamps in the review.
Battery Life
The battery life of the Tikkina is impressive in low-mode at 223 hours run-time. The high mode run-time is more average, at 3.5 hours, which is not bad when compared to other lights offering similarly performing spot beams.
Petzl markets the high mode run-time of the Tikkina at 60 hours, a figure which we found preposterously exaggerated based on our hands-on testing (we used the industry standard ANSI FL1 lighting spec to guide our run-time measurements, while Petzl ignores that industry standard, despite having helped develop it, and uses their own approach).
The claimed low mode run-time is an impressive 220 hours, which is the kind of claim that we usually roll our eyes at. But in the case of the Tikkina we were amazed to find that our measured low mode run-time was nearly identical at 223 hours! Battery run-time claims are an area where we often find manufacturers stating wildly exaggerated estimates, but in close-proximity mode, we found the Tikkina to do just what they said it would. Impressive.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Weight
This is a compact but not ultralight headlamp. The Top Pick for Ultralight headlamp, the Petzl e+LITE, is half the weight. That said, at 2.9 ounces or 83 grams, the Tikkina is lighter than most competing lamps, and most people, except for maybe ultralight backpackers, will be happy with the weight.
Ease of Use
This is one of the easiest headlamps in the entire review to use; earning a perfect 10 of 10 score. It has a single button interface that we found simple to operate, even with gloves on. But, unlike the other lights, it has only three modes to cycle through, which makes it quick and easy to find the one you want.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Best Applications
At $20, this is the type of headlamp you could justify buying more than one of. Stash one in the glove compartment and one in the kitchen drawer so you will always have access to light if the power goes out or you need to get into the attic. It is also capable when hiking at night or backpacking.
Value
The Tikkina is a terrific value, selling for $20 list, and often found online for $16-18, it delivers a lot of performance for a very attractive price, and earned our Best Buy award.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Conclusion
The Tikkina is not just an attractively priced light, but an impressive performer that will meet or exceed most people's needs. It is one of the easiest lights to use, and at a price you can afford to put one in your pack, one in the kitchen drawer, and one in your car's glove box.
While you may want to step up to more lighting power, such as the $40 BD Spot or $50 BD Storm, the $20 Tikkina is likely to offer all the power most people really need in practice, and that is why it is the headlamp we consider to be the best choice for general purpose use.—
RJ Spurrier
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