here's my question. With the availability of infinitely better backup lights on the market right now, why on earth would you consider buying one of those?
Light monkey doesn't make the heads btw, they basically take a stock head and machine the back end to accept the bigger batteries. Both are very good lights, but not worth $150-$200, especially considering the Halcyon still isn't LED stock and you have to purchase an upgrade module.... Come on. If you really want a comparison video, go to Dive Right in Scuba and request a video. They sell both and will be able to compare them side by side for you. The Halcyon specs are crap because they use Lux so it only indicates how hot the hot spot is, not how much light it actually throws.
$200 for me for backup lights?
Cave Adventurers - Explorer back-up lights - Marianna, Florida USA - Never Undersold!
A pair of those will give you an hour of burn time each at over twice the brightness of the Light Monkey lights, and several hours at comparable burn time. The LED push button gives you 3 different brightness options instead of single on/off function for the other two, gives you a rough indication of battery life with the different colors on the LED ring, lets you use rechargeable 18650's instead of churning through expensive C cell batteries, and is about half the size/weight.
If anyone tries to sell you on the simplicity of on/off for LED's vs. multiple brightness settings, please call them out on their BS. The LED's require circuitry regardless of whether they have 15 brightness settings or one, so it is not an additional failure point, and frankly the twist on twist off design is very annoying because it requires both hands to operate.
There are cheaper backup lights than the CA ones mentioned above, but those are very nice and mine live on my helmet for gopro use and cave diving
1-R105T Handheld Light – ANO Online Shop
I'm currently using these for backups or primary if I don't need a canister. Same sort of deal but instead of cycling High/Med/Low/Off, they go High/Off/Low/Off, don't have the LED indicator, and the button is on the back instead of the head. Bunch of other options out there, but given the cost vs. features of the two lights that you mentioned, I would look elsewhere before you spend that kind of money.
If you need a twist on/off to satisfy some strange instructor requirement, but still want the use of 18650's
DGX 600 Handheld Light | Dive Gear Express®
If said instructor lives in the dark ages, doesn't understand new technology, requires Alkaline batteries for some idiotic reason, and you want a 21st century option that is the same concept as the two you asked about, but infinitely better
https://www.amazon.com/SecurityIng-...F8&qid=1477138957&sr=8-7&keywords=securitying
$50, 3x C Cell, Cree XML-U2 so you'll get more light output than a 10w HID, and easily 2x the brightness of either the Scout with LED conversion or the Light Monkey, and still a twist on/off. Some of my DIR buddies have switched over to these and couldn't be happier to sell their LM 3w's and Halcyon Scouts since they sold them for more than these things cost new
