Nitecore® NU25 is a triple output USB rechargeable headlamp. The main LED has four brightness levels up to 360 lumens and a runtime of up to 160 hours on low plus two rescue modes. A red LED preserves night vision and an auxiliary high CRI white LED is great for reading. With our exclusive UL headband it’s light as a feather at just 1.17 oz (33.0 g). And recharge by simply plugging into a power bank. A thru hiker favorite.
NU25 has a micro-textured reflector providing 100˚ wide-angle flood illumination for outstanding night vision. The light tilts down up to 60˚ for reading or close-up work. The wide elastic headband is comfortable and highly adjustable to fit your head, hat, or helmet. Our optional UL headband reduces weight with full adjustability and functionality.
In addition to the main light, NU25 also has two auxiliary lights – red and white. The red LED helps preserve night vision and won’t blind your friends. Use low during star gazing or night photography, high for gear organizing or doing camp chores, or caution for a repeated short red flash.
The auxiliary white light uses a neutral white LED with high CRI ≥ 90 for more vivid, natural color and reduced eye strain. It’s great for short-range illumination, like reading a map. CRI (Color Rendering Index) is a measurement of how colors look under a light source as compared with sunlight. The index is measured from 0-100, with a perfect 100 indicating colors under the light source appear the same as they would under natural sunlight.
The headlamp has two buttons – Power and Red (R). For low light, press Power once. Within 3 sec, repeatedly press Power to cycle from low>medium>high>off. Hold down Red to immediately turn off or after 3 sec, press either button to turn off. Alternatively, for medium, press Power twice, and for high press Power three times. Hold down Red to turn off. To enter turbo mode, with the light turned on in any mode, hold down Power for 1 sec, and hold down Red to turn off.
You can also access two rescue modes, SOS and location beacon. SOS repeatedly flashes SOS in Morse code (. . . ––– . . .) The location beacon repeatedly flashes a single short flash. Hold down Power for 3 sec to enter SOS mode. Pressing Power within 3 sec again will change to beacon mode. After 3 sec, press either button to turn off.
For auxiliary white, hold down Power to turn on and hold down Red to turn off. For auxiliary red, press Red once for low, then within 3 sec, repeatedly press Red to cycle from low>high>caution>off. Hold down Red to turn off.
Press both buttons at the same time to lockout NU25 and prevent the light from turning on while in your pocket or pack. A red indicator blinks once to indicate lockout. Press both buttons again to reactivate the headlamp and enter low mode.
LED | Mode | Output (lumens) | Turn On | Turn Off |
Main | Low | 1 | Press POWER Once | Hold down RED |
Medium | 38 | Press POWER Twice | Hold down RED | |
High | 190 | Press POWER Three Times | Hold down RED | |
Turbo | 360 | Light On, Hold down POWER 1 sec | Hold down RED | |
SOS | 360 | Hold down POWER 3 sec | After 3 sec, Press Either | |
Beacon | 360 | Hold down POWER 3 sec, Press Once | After 3 sec, Press Either | |
Auxiliary White | - | 20 | From Off, Hold down POWER 1 sec | Hold down RED |
Auxiliary Red | Low | 0.9 | From Off, Press RED once | Hold down RED |
High | 13 | From Low, Press RED once | Hold down RED | |
Caution | 13 | From High, Press RED once | Hold down RED |
NU25 has a built-in, long-lasting 610 mAh Li-ion rechargeable battery that holds power equal to three AAA batteries yet is much more sustainable. An intelligent protective charging circuit and a Micro USB connection make it easy to recharge. Since you probably already carry a spare battery to charge your phone, there’s no need to worry about running out of power or replacing batteries, just plug into a power bank, wall charger, computer, or car (USB cable provided). The light maintains full functionality while charging.
To see how much battery power is left, with the light turned off, hold down the Red switch for 1 sec and release. The button will flash 3 times if you have more than 50% power, 2 times if you’re below 50%, and 1 time if you’re below 10%. Plug it in and an indicator light lets you know when the charge is complete. It takes approximately 2 hours to fully charge the battery. A rubber cover protects the USB port from dirt and moisture.
Charging State | Indicator Light |
Charging | Steady Red |
Charging Complete | Steady Green |
Specifications
LED | Mode | Output (lumens) | Runtime (hours) | Beam Distance ft (m) | Beam Intensity (cd) |
Main | Low | 1 | 160 | 12.5 (3.8) | 3.7 |
Medium | 38 | 8 | 89 (27) | 190 | |
High | 190 | 5 | 200 (61) | 950 | |
Turbo | 360 | 0.5 | 266 (81) | 1650 | |
SOS | 360 | - | - | - | |
Beacon | 360 | - | - | - | |
Auxiliary White | - | 20 | 6.25 | 18 (5.5) | 7.5 |
Auxiliary Red | Low | 0.9 | 68 | - | - |
High | 13 | 7.75 | 13.1 (4) | 4 | |
Caution | 13 | 13 | - | - |
Main LED: CREE XP-G2 S3 LED
LED Color Temperature
Main LED: 6300K, Cool White
Auxiliary White LED: 4500K, Neutral White
Color Rendering Index (CRI)
Main LED: CRI ≥ 70
Auxiliary White LED: High CRI ≥ 90
Battery: Built-in rechargeable Li-ion, 610 mAh
Lighting Modes
Main LED: Low/Medium/High/Turbo/SOS/Beacon
White Auxiliary: Medium
Red Auxiliary: Low/High/Caution
Beam Pattern: 100˚ wide-angle flood
Body: Polycarbonate, impact resistant
Tilt: 60˚
Switch: Top Power and Red buttons, rubber
Charging Connection: Micro USB, rubber cover (USB cable provided)
Charging Time: 2 hours
Dimensions, Light (LxWxH): 2.19 x 1.36 x 0.91 in. (55.5 x 34.6 x 23.2 mm)
USB Cable Length: 3.3 ft (1 m)
Weight
UL Headlamp Total: 1.17 oz (33.0 g) with built-in battery
Wide Headlamp Total: 1.85 oz (52.5 g) with built-in battery
Light with Mounting Bracket: 1.00 oz (28.3 g) with built-in battery
UL Headband: 0.17 oz (4.8 g)
Wide Headband: 0.85 oz (24.2 g)
USB Cable: 0.79 oz (22.5 g)
Impact Resistance: 4.9 ft (1.5 m)
Ingress Protection Rating: IP66, complete dust protection and high-pressure water jet resistant
Included
1x Light with integrated USB rechargeable Li-ion battery
1x Wide Headband, Black/White
1x Micro USB to USB charging cable
Optional: 1x UL Headband, choice of colors*
*Nitecore packaging will be opened to install UL headband on mounting bracket prior to shipment. To use both UL and wide headbands, purchase an extra mounting bracket.
User Manual
In no event shall Litesmith, LLC be liable for any direct, indirect, punitive, incidental, or special consequential damages, to property or life, whatsoever arising out of or connected with the use or misuse of its products.
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Posted by Diane on 23rd Apr 2022
This light is super bright and the elastic cord headband is better than the clunky one it comes with. Just don't accidentally put your light in the washing machine. It still worked afterward but it would sometimes malfunction and start going into the beacon mode even when it was turned off. I bought a replacement for it.
Posted by Zo on 5th Feb 2022
I’m very impressed with this little headlamp and the lightweight band replacement is a perfect fit. Feels comfortable and doesn’t slip.
Posted by John H. on 30th Jan 2022
My friends have bought the shock cord band and mount for the NU25 and it works great. I have one and I bought one for my runner daughter.
Lightweight, stays put, the plastic band adapter fits the NU25 perfectly, etc.
Can't go wrong with these.
Posted by Dylan on 10th Oct 2021
This headlamp delivers excellent performance and ease of use in a featherweight package.
Posted by n on 10th Oct 2021
I got this as a replacement for my black diamond spot. Originally i wanted rechargeable for sustainable use, but man this thing is lightweight and has better performance. I got the shock cord upgrade so i can everyday carry it. Love it.
Posted by Sunspot on 28th Sep 2021
Used this on the PCT. This headlamp has a great variety of settings including red, and it's about as lightweight as you'll get from a headlamp. I made sure to charge it occasionally at night and it never ran out of power on me (although I did not do extensive night hiking, so I can't speak to its performance there - although I did use it once until about 2AM and it was still running well.) To me, the price of this was worth the labor that lightsmith does to change out the headband to the ultralight one, although if you wanted to save money you could totally do this on your own. The only issue I had was that the backing of the headlamp cracked, but honestly this was after several months of heavy use and I believe it happened because of where I stored it in my pack. Was able to replace just the backing & headband for like $10 and was more careful storing it after that and it's been great.
Posted by Steve on 24th Sep 2021
Absolutely must buy. I bought for my NU25 headlamp and it makes it feel like nothing's there. I've used it for early morning runs and hiking. Well constructed and I highly recommend!
Posted by KTOD on 23rd Sep 2021
This is the 3rd time I have purchased this headlamp (no problems with the first two, I just lost them). I have had so many different headlamps (some considerably more expensive than this one), and this is, by far, my favorite. It is compact, rechargeable, can be as bright as you could reasonably want, courteously dim, or red, and lasts a long time on a charge — what more could you want?
Posted by Unknown on 20th Aug 2021
This is a great light for backpacking. It is small, light, and bright. Works great and I like the lock feature to keep it from coming on when bumped around in the pack.
Posted by reuben on 17th Aug 2021
very light, small, good light for its size. i like the shock cord, fits well. the separate buttons for white and red light is handy as well, easy to choose without cycling thru all the settings