Overall I am very impressed with the Tikka XP, having noted no significant issues and finding its light more than satisfactory for my needs. It is really outperforming my older three-LED headlamp, albeit of early technological design. I am particularly impressed with its light diffusion for reading. I wear glasses and find reading at night quite a strain for me and have tended to avoid it with my older LED headlamp. With the Tikka XP, I find I can read quite comfortably in camp with the lamp on its lowest setting.

Ease of use of the buttons:  I don't wear gloves so my comments here are based on ungloved use. In respect of accessing the buttons while wearing the headlamp I have had no problems. I have, however found the order of the switches to be the opposite of what I consider functional; that is my instinct is to switch the headlamp on and change the light intensity via the outer switch which is in fact the boost switch. Really not a big issue if I become use to it, but currently at times mildly frustrating. The other annoying aspect with the switching is that I seem to find that I am rotating through the various settings to get the headlamp to turn-off. The headlamp will switch off from any mode if the switch is held down long enough and then let go. I seem to find that I don't hold the button down long enough. Finally the switches have an audible click when rotating through the modes, which indicates the headlamp has changed mode. I find I can't actually hear the click when wearing the headlamp thus negating any benefit of this feature.

Functionality of the button protection lip: The button protection lip is there to protect the headlamp from being accidentally turned on. To date I have had no issue with the with headlamp coming on in my pack or accidentally at any other time. That said, I do store my headlamp, when in my pack, inside two cut-down two litre plastic milk bottles, which when pushed together provide a light, but quite rigid container. This container tends to protect its contents from crushing quite. I generally store my headlamp, stove, eating utensils, toothbrush and toothpaste, matches and knife inside the one container.

Ease of use of the wide-angle lens: As my primary use during this test phase has been around camp, my tendency has been to use the headlamp in its wide-angle configuration. This has proved to be an effective configuration with the headlamp reflecting the light effectively for camp activities, reading and so on. When necessary (e.g., spotting possums in trees) it has been very easy to quickly change the lens configuration by sliding back the lens cover. I have had no trouble at all with this feature.

Functionality of the lip below the LED light: This is a hard one to comment on. I really do not notice the functioning or otherwise of the lip. I do know I have not noted any backwash of light into my glasses so assume that the lip is working effectively to prevent this from occurring.

Functionality of the battery charge light: Overall I like this feature and also use it check the battery status before packing the headlamp in my pack before a trip. However, in saying this, it should be noted that I have not used the headlamp enough yet to drain the battery so do not know how well the various warning work. I still only get the flashing green light when the headlamp is first turned on, which indicates less than 30% usage. My only gripe is the five second delay before the indicator comes on seems unnecessary and when one is specifically checking the battery condition a frustrating delay.

Comfort and adjustability of the headband: I easily adjusted the headlamp's headband for size and comfort when first received. I have not had to adjust the headband since. As to comfort, I find the headlamp sits well on my head and I am not at all conscious of it being worn. So a big tick for comfort.

Durability of batteries: So far so good. Assuming the accuracy of the battery condition indicator my battery discharge so far is less than 30% of capacity.  I will look to test the battery life further during the long-term testing phase of this test.

Function of the light in the field: As I indicated in the opening of this report, "overall I am very impressed with the Tikka XP, having had no significant issues and finding its light more than satisfactory for my needs. It is really outperforming my older three LED headlamp, albeit of early technological design. I was particularly impressed with its light diffusion for reading. I wear glasses and find reading at night quite a strain for me and have tended to avoid it with my older LED headlamp. With the Tikka XP, I find I can read quite comfortably in camp with the lamp on its lowest setting." The headlamp has worked well for me in the field so far. It has met my lighting needs without drama.

Durability of the light through normal use: Given my usage to date I am not noted any durability issues. The headband is not showing signs of wear, the switches are functioning okay, the tilt feature is working fine and the lens cover slides back and forth without difficulty. All up the Tikka XP has survived my usage so far without a hiccup.