Not every diver needs an umbilical dive light with a cable running from a battery canister to the light head, such as our popular and reliable canister dive light, the OrcaTorch D630. We totally understand that! You can very well enjoy your diving and brighten up your dives with quality dive torches for under £150.
Because of this, we have plenty of reliable hand-held dive lights in our online Dive Torch Collection with many of them available in-store to see and test during our store opening hours from Friday through Tuesday.
We also have a no-fuss Return Policy for any stock item you order online at DirDirect.com, provided it’s returned to us within 28 days after delivery in unused condition with the original packaging.
To make your choice easier, we’ve grouped our choice of the top dive lights for winter diving in price brackets ranging from those under £100 and between £100 and £150.
Over here, we’ll list them in price brackets with summaries and links to the lights. All of the hand-held dive torches listed below qualify for free UK mainland delivery and are dispatched via DPD.
Top Dive Lights For Under £150
OrcaTorch D520 – 1000-Lumen
In the under £100 group of dive lights, the OrcaTorch D520 underwater torch is our best seller and has proven to be a reliable and robust hand-held torch for all types of diving. Whether used as a backup light for technical diving or a primary torch for recreational dives, it has proven its worth even in the most demanding of conditions. This palm-size LED dive light pushes out 1000 lumens of 5000K (near daylight) beam between 12º and 72º and boasts 2 hours of runtime on a single battery. The torch comes with an internal rechargeable 18650 battery and USB cable.
What we like about this torch isn’t just its compact size and triple o-rings against water ingress but that it does not rely on a magnetic switch. A mechanical rotary motion (turning the head clockwise or counterclockwise) powers the torch on and off, making it very reliable underwater. Its anodised aluminium water-resistant construction gives it a maximum 150 metres depth rating. If you’re looking for a twist-head torch with a lot more power and a similar low profile, it’s well worth checking out the 1700 Lumens OrcaTorch D700 in the Top Dive Lights £100 to £150 group. Check out the OrcaTorch D520
Shark Vega – 1200-Lumen
The Shark Vega dive light is suitable as a primary hand-held torch for entry-level divers as well as a powerful backup for advanced diving. The 1200-lumen Vega has 2 power modes; full and power save. It’s been measured to 900 true lumens at full power and 460 lumens at power-saving mode. The Shark Vega torch has a tight 10º spot beam and is powered by a high-quality 18650 battery giving up to 2 hours of burn time on high power and 5 hours of burn time on power-saving setting. It comes with a charger and USB cable. This dive torch is operated by a magnetic switch which gives a visual warning when the battery level drops below 30%. Check out the Shark Vega
Tovatec Fusion 1050 – 1050-Lumen
As implied by its name, the Tovatec Fusion 1050 is a 1050-lumen dive light which is, compared to the D520 and Shark Vega, a midsized underwater torch for recreational diving. It is a smaller version of the Tovatec Fusion 1500 that sits in the £100 to £150 price bracket (see below). Both the 1050 and 1500 Fusion torches are made of aircraft-grade aluminium. This gives them a slip-proof, comfortable, rubbery feeling. What distinguishes these from other hand-held underwater lights is that they have adjustable beams. The Fusion 1050 also has 4 power settings: 100%, 50%, 30% and strobe mode with lower power settings naturally leading to longer burn times.
Indeed, the Fusion 1050 is a great all-around dive light with its adjustable 12˚ » 100˚ beam angle, small enough to fit in your BCD pocket as a backup or powerful enough to be used as a primary light – but also versatile enough to be used as a video light. It also has an over-pressure relief valve against battery leaks and comes with rechargeable batteries (and chargers) and a battery cradle that allows you to use off-the-shelf alkaline batteries. Check out the Tovatec Fusion 1050
Top Dive Lights £100 to £150
OrcaTorch D530 – 1300-Lumen
What differentiates the OrcaTorch D530 dive light from the D520 is its 1300-Lumen output of an 8º super focus beam and a titanium alloy side switch (instead of a mechanical head twist), offering two power modes. Its burn time on high power is just under 1.5 hours, while at its lowest setting of 380 lumens, the burn time increases to just under 4.5 hours. With its water pressure-resistant aircraft-grade aluminium body, this dive light also has a depth rating of 150m. The switch also acts as a battery indicator and can be locked against being pressed when not in use. If you like the idea of being able to extend your burn time with a lower power setting and operate the dive light with a switch, needing more power than what the D520 offers, this is a torch to go for. The D700 and D710 listed below offer even stronger power options. Check out the OrcaTorch D530.
OrcaTorch Power Light: D700 – 1700-Lumen
With a powerful maximum brightness level of 1700 lumens, the OrcaTorch D700 dive light has a 6º tight and bright beam with a surface distance of 150m, easy operation (similar to the D520 with a mechanical twist head instead of a magnetic switch), and long runtime of just over 100 minutes on its single power setting. It comes with one OrcaTorch 21700 5000mAh rechargeable battery with a USB Type-C charging port. OrcaTorch describes the colour temperature of this dive torch as 6500 Kelvin and a CRI of around 70.
Like all of the D series, this light is made out of aircraft-grade hard-anodised aluminium material with a seawater-corrosion resistance finish. It is similar in size to the D520, D530 and the more powerful D710 which is just £5 over the price point. Check out the OrcaTorch D700.
Tovatec Fusion 1500
The one thing the Tovatec Fusion 1500 underwater torch isn’t: It’s not a backup light. It’s not exactly compact either as are the lights listed above. This is a variable beam primary light made with recreational divers in mind. It is possibly one of the most robust hand-held dive torches on the market if you don’t mind the size. The Fusion 1500 boasts 4 light modes (100%, 50%, 30% and strobe) and has a colour temperature of 5600 to 6800 Kelvin, a runtime of up 2.5 hours on AA alkaline batteries and comes with its own rechargeable Lion battery.
Like the Fusion 1050, it has an adjustable beam (controlled by moving the light head cover up and down), ranging from 12º narrow to 100º wide beam with no hot spot. Similar to its lower-power sibling it comes with a semi-hard case and a battery cradle for alkaline batteries. The Fusion 1500 torch is made of aircraft-grade aluminium, which gives it a slip-proof, comfortable, rubbery feeling when held in hand. Check out the Tovatec Fusion 1500.
Stretching the budget… just a bit
OrcaTorch D710 – 3000-Lumen!
If you don’t mind stretching your budget just a little bit, we also want to mention the more compact but very powerful OrcaTorch D710 dive light before ending this comparison. The D710 is the same size as the D700 but with a whopping 3000-Lumen output on high power making it one of the strongest dive torches in its class. It is ideal both as a primary dive light and an overpowered backup torch.
This light runs on a supplied rechargeable 21700 mAh battery and has a 6º spot beam with a burn time of 1.4 to 7.4 hours depending on the power setting. It can easily be operated with a side alloy push button switch that also has a safety lock preventing accidentally switching it on. A battery indicator shows you what state your battery is and an intelligent over-heating protection system as well as reverse polarity protection.
If you’re looking for two power modes, top of its class hand-held compact power and daylight conditions underwater, check out the OrcaTorch D710 which is just over the £150 mark.
If you have any questions about the dive lights listed above, which we have in stock and ship worldwide, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Send us an email or give us a call and we’ll assist in any way we can.
Want to know more about the OrcaTorch D710? Read the review from Katy Jane Dives and see how it scores!