The Spot 400 is Black Diamond's mid-priced 400-lumen headlamp that runs on AAA batteries or an optional rechargeable pack. Testers who carried it on long thru-hikes report it keeps working through rain and rough handling, with the gripes centering on weight, short high-mode runtime and battery-compartment care.
This entry is written from the 3 sources listed at the bottom of the page. The numbers are our editorial estimates drawn from that material, not measurements, and no statistical sample sits behind them.
On the evidence gathered here, yes. 80% of owners say they would buy it again, and satisfaction is still 7.7 out of 10 two years in. no failures reported across wet, cold and tropical trips.
By six months it has usually become the default lamp in the pack, valued for long low-mode runtime. Owners learn to pull batteries for storage and to dry the compartment after wet trips.
battery contacts can corrode if old batteries are left in. stiff battery door can be hard to open. water can reach the battery compartment and needs drying out.
no failures reported across wet, cold and tropical trips. Sentiment across the ownership period stays close to flat, which is rare: it reads 8.0 out of 10 in the first week and 7.7 two years later.
Worth it for: Three-season hikers and campers; Budget-minded backpackers; Cold-weather users preferring aaa batteries. Think twice if: Ultralight gram counters; Technical climbing needing more lumens; Long nights on high output.
Our reading of how sentiment moves across an ownership period, drawn from the sources below. It is an editorial estimate, not tracked longitudinal data.
| At purchase | 7.8 / 10 |
|---|---|
| First week | 8.0 / 10 |
| One month | 8.0 / 10 |
| Six months | 7.9 / 10 |
| One year | 7.8 / 10 |
| Two years or more | 7.7 / 10 |
Owner reviews move this score. The researched figure stays visible next to it, so you can always see what the sources said before anyone voted.
Leave a review on the live pageEvery complaint and every piece of praise above traces back to these. The summaries are ours; nothing is quoted, and no link, quote or username anywhere on this site is invented.
Calls it a dependable, feature-rich lamp for three-season use while criticizing short high-mode runtime and the separately sold rechargeable pack.
Tested on long trails including an 800-mile thru-hike, it earned praise for runtime and value, with notes on weight and corroded battery contacts.
Rates it well for value and reliability in varied conditions, flagging its weight, sensitive tap feature and stiff battery door.