XENON, LED, HID whats what? best? difference?

[pilgrim2]

So as far as i can see there are in fact three different types of light you can get

HID which is halogen as afar as i can tell

LED self explanitary lower drain on batteries and no bulb replavement needed.

XENON just found out about this as in the case of the SL4 Xenon whats this any good for UK? whats the facts?

 

[gcbryan]

So as far as i can see there are in fact three different types of light you can get

HID which is halogen as afar as i can tell

LED self explanitary lower drain on batteries and no bulb replavement needed.

XENON just found out about this as in the case of the SL4 Xenon whats this any good for UK? whats the facts?

HID (high intensity discharge) is not halogen. Most/many cannister dive lights (especially the higher powered ones) are HID. It cuts through the water well with limited viz (as found in the UK and the PNW).

The bulbs are expensive ($100 or more) but last a long time. It's pretty efficient as far as battery consumption and produces a white/bluish water light.

LED's are as you say efficient and you don't need to replace the led and they have become quite powerful. Some cannister lights and most handheld lights these days use leds. Typically more powerful lights using leds have several power settings which also improves runtime and allows adapting to changing conditions.

Halogen is old school. It is not efficient in its power consumption and has a yellowish tint to the beam.

Xenon is a type of HID I believe but I don't really know much about it. It's used in a few handheld lights I believe.

There's not a real answer to what's best in dive lights or anything else really. It depends on where you are diving, your budget and your personal preferences.

If your budget is less than several hundred dollars the most likely choice will be led.

 

[a22shady]

The best is differnt for everyone. Whats best for me may not be best for you. each light has it's own qualities and benefits. Also depends on your budget, Is best for you worth 1300+ for a light. It also depends on where you dive and type of diving your doing. If your in clear water and need/want something bright then either LED/HID would work 10watt+ and should be fine again depending on what your doing. Caves same principal above, If your getting into water thats not so clear there is a lot of debate about this but personally I like the HID over the LED because for me it seems to have a better punch through the water then the LED's do and the HID's are able to focus better. The Xenon lights are typically smaller lights hand held ones. the ones above are the bigger canister types.

If your looking into brand's I would recomend Halcyon/Light MOnkey both are excellent quality lights and there customer service is excellent.

Canister lights come in HID/LED

Back-up or primary types with Xenon/LED bulbs

LED canister

 

[MrNaz]

If your budget is less than several hundred dollars the most likely choice will be led.

Don't get the impression that LED means cheap though, there are some super bright LED based lights out there that are extremely bright. LED also has the advantage that it is unbreakable. If you have a well-designed LED based light, it will not break, no matter how many times it falls off the gear rack or has a tank fall on it.

HIDs on the other hand are fragile. One knock and you're up for a $100 replacement bulb.

Xenon and halogen I wouldn't consider, both are old technology, not as bright as modern HID, or multi-LED lights and horrifically hungry for power.

 

[D_B]

Halogen is a type , it refers to the type of gas used inside the bulb .. Xenon is a specific halogen gas, just like krypton gas is
HID is an arc light, using high voltage to produce an arc of electricity between two electrodes, just like you see in the search lights outside at a movie premier
LED is an electronic device, Light Emitting Diode .. very efficient at converting electricity into light , and are now (or verging on) becoming the equal to the lower wattage HID lights in terms of brightness (and now are getting as tight a beam as one, mine is 5.7*)