With that in mind, where does the SWIFT RL fit in? The trick is to filter from the vast array of models now available a torch that best meets your own particular needs.
Tech specs aside the end use is much the same: you put a headtorch on your head in order to see things in the dark. You can go all out for lumens, or opt for a longer battery life you can make it simple and lightweight, or dazzle yourself with a plethora of modes and settings some torches have inbuilt USB-rechargeable batteries, while others even connect to your phone for programmable control. Since then there have been leaps and bounds of development, and we now have more choice of torches than ever before. Many years later when I came to buying my own head torch, the LED revolution was underway and the Petzl Tikka was the obvious choice (and the market leader). Whilst the Petzl Zoom was indeed a gloom-buster, something that a great many seem to get strangely reminiscent about, it did - lest we forget - rinse through batteries and blow out bulbs it weighed a ton, and was laughably clunky. Since then stoves, sleeping bags, waterproofs and even base layers have all undergone various evolutions and revolutions, but few of these compare to the developments that have taken place in the wonderful world of the head torch. All of their kit looked so space age, even though it wasn't, even by the standards of the day. When I was young I remember my parents packing their bags for the Karrimor Mountain Marathon. The SWIFT RL offers an amazingly heavyweight power output in a light and compact package, says Rob Greenwood, while its Reactive Lighting helps preserve battery life.