Exposure Verso Headtorch – Performance

Exposure has taken the advanced features developed for its excellent self-contained bike lights and applied them to a quirky, jewel-like headtorch. On its own, the light with headband weighs 68 grammes – less than a Petzl Tikka – but in this mode, where it’s powered by an internal CR123 cell, it has a burn time of just one hour on max.

All of which means it makes sense to add an optional 1700 amp hour ‘Support Cell’ which clips onto the back of the headband and plugs into the charging point to triple burn times, but also ups the weight to 121g.

New Programme!

The light’s programmable too. Using the press switch you can easily select one of four different programmes giving you a choice of two or three light levels and two brightness modes. In practice we found the brightest option made sense for us, but if you need low light and extended burn times, it’s nice to know the choice is there.

The downside of the Support Cell is that you then need to charge two batteries. We found the best way of dealing with the CR123 was to use a separate USB charger for it, while the cell worked either with Exposure’s custom mains charger or via a bespoke USB cable. Not the end of the world, but it adds an extra layer of minor hassle.

On The Move

The Verso’s maximum 25-lumen output can’t compete with the latest Petzl Nao or similar, but the broad, floody beam works well for general running use on anything except full-pelt technical descents. Mostly we found ‘just about right’ and with the Support Cell in place, you can leave it on full for up to three hours.

What it doesn’t have is a piercing long-distance spot for picking out distant gates or stiles or for spotting belays on a climb, something that Silva and Petzl get round by using a mix of spot and spread LEDs.

At lower levels it’s fine for flat terrain and walking use plus you can dial things right down for pottering about camp or map reading use. It’s comfortable enough too, thought the Velcro headband is a little basic and the two brackets aren’t padded at all and the big, waterproof button is easy to use even with gloves. The light-head stayed at the chosen angle of dangle too, which is always useful.

The light needs a quick double-press to switch on, which means it’s pretty resistant to accidental ignition in your pack or pocket. And the handy ‘fuel gauge’ tells you how much burn you have left, though obviously, being on your head, you can’t see it without taking the light off first.