Well, I got out into the woods and had a chance to play around a little with my Princeton Tec Matrix headlamp.<br><br>The 3 LED bulb assembly was fine for around camp activities. My buddy and I were able to setup a tarp shelter in the rain during the night. The LED assembly creates a ring of light probably about 10' in diameter. I could adjust the angle of the lamp to point about 3' in front of me which worked well for tieing up guy lines and making tent stakes from sticks. It worked well inside our A shaped tarp shelter to arrange my gear and get settled. <br><br>The next night I took it out in the woods to see how the LED would work at lighting up specific areas more than 10'. In a word, poorly. The LED technology is fine for areas you can reach out and touch. Plenty of light to do tasks and find objects in the dark within arm's reach. More than 5' away and it was just fadded away.<br><br>I switched to the conventional incandescent bulb and was very pleased with its ability to shine a bean of light at a distance. I use headlamps during wilderness searches to help me spot clues left behind by lost subjects. I normally end up scanning 15'-25' to either side of me for objects as small as cigarette butts and the like. The incandescent put out a strong focused beam that would easily illuminate trees at 50'.<br><br>I closed my eyes at night when trying to switch between the two different bulb assemblies to see how difficult it would be. Since the bulb assemblies and the lamp body are keyed, it was a simple matter to get the assemblies in the body correctly. <br><br>I liked the lighter weight of the Princeton Tec Matrix as compared to my Petzl Zoom. The Petzl has a battery pack on the back of the head band and the lamp body in the front to balance the weight while the Princeton Matrix has all the components together in the front. Even so, the Matrix was more comfortable due to an overall lower weight. The reflector is only about an 1" across while the Petzl is close to 2.5" across. <br><br>The Petzl does have the ability to adjust from a wide spread beam to a narrow focus beam. I find that I tend to use the focus beam most of the time. The Princeton does not have the ability to adjust the beam but I found the narrow focus to work well. <br><br>It does take two hands to turn on the Princteon Matrix. This is because the lens cover screws overtop of a rubber gasket. The gasket provides enough friction that you need to hold the lamp body with one hand the turn the lens cover with another. The rubber gasket provides the waterproof seal. I don't see this as a big problem since the beam does not change focus so once you have it turned on, you will not need to adjust it.<br><br>For around camp chores like setting up camp, building a fire, cooking, moving around, the LED works well and gives long battery life. For more intense light and long distance use, the incandescent wins hands down at the cost of battery life. The Matrix gives me both options with one product.<br><br>I am still trying to decide which to carry as my primary headlamp on searches. The Petzl can provide 17 hr burn time on a single special size battery and standard bulb. With halogen bulb, it drops to a shorter 7hr burn time. When I use it, I typically keep it on constantly for 4-6 hours. The Matrix could provide long burn time with the LED but without the focus beam I need. The Petzl is heavier but can provide the incandescent light for longer periods of time before battery replacement. The small size of the Matrix may win it a backup position in my pack.<br><br>I did try out two Petzl Tikkas and one Pelican headlamps as well that weekend. Another friend just recieved her Petzl Zipka which I did not try but is basically just a Tikka without out the elastic band. <br><br>