Luke Judge

This week we were sent the Petzl Zipka Plus 2 Head Torch and asked to review it for Techyzone readers. Upon opening the box, which contained a cheerful looking torch in misty grey, we decided to test this little glow box to see what it could do.

The first thing that we noticed was the strength of the beam as the torch projected a high intensity white light that reached out to a good distance in front of us. This impressive beam makes the Petzl Zipka Plus 2 one of our recommended items on a night trail hike or overnight camping trip. The Zipka lamp from Petzl may also be suitable for spelunkers and anyone else who could use a bright light while trekking or working underground.

Small and Lightweight

The last thing a traveller, camper or hiker would need is a heavy head lamp and since Petzl is a company known for its innovations in head torches, it has taken the necessary steps to ensure that this little light is just that – Little and Light.

The Zipka Head Torch has been designed to be compact and light weight and uses a retractable cord for the user’s convenience. It weighs 71 grams and is smaller than the palm of your hand and can easily be fixed on to your head by stretching the cord to fit around your head. Its light and compact body ensures that you will not feel that heavy pull of weight on your forehead which is a common complaint of campers who use other kinds of head torches.

The head torch is also small enough, to look good on your face without being bulky and giving the appearance of large gadget.

Doubles up as Bicycle Light

The Zipka Plus 2 Head Torch has a retractable cord that allows it to be fixed on to small poles, bicycle handle bars or anything that you can get it to fit on. This means that your Zipka torch can double as your bicycle lamp or ordinary lamp when you are not using it for camping. It is that convenient.

Those looking to buy this wonderful head torch which is well suited for camping and hiking at night will be able to purchase it for £32.45 which we think is a reasonable sum to pay for a reliable and durable torch such as this.

The Bright Beam In Your Night

The Zipka Head Torch gives out 140 hours of burn time and has a strong light output of 50 lumens.

The Zipka Plus 2 Head Torch uses white LED lights to provide maximum light and clarity and projects a beam up to 35 metres ahead of the user. The torch uses five lighting modes out of which three are available in white light and two in red. Should you wish to conserve battery power or decrease the light intensity, Petzl’s little torch also allows for this, having outfitted the Zipka Plus 2 Head Torch with a strobe, high and economical light setting. The red light can be turned on by pressing on the small white button on the front of the lamp and can be used in high and strobe settings.

Special Features of the Petzl Zipka Plus 2 Head-Torch

If you want to know what makes the Zipka Plus 2 Head Torch different from all other offerings on the market, the following list of its benefits and special features will make it clear to you.

• Type of Beam: Wide beam
• Beam Distance: Up to 35 meters
• Light Beam: 50 lumens of light
• Lighting Modes: Five light modes, of which two are red
• Red Light Modes: Continuous or blinking
• White Lighting Modes: High, economic and strobe
• LED: Yes
• Burn time: 140 hours
• Cord/ Headband: Cord which is retractable and adjustable
• Batteries: alkaline AAA/LR03 batteries or lithium batteries
• Number of batteries needed: Three
• Battery life: 300 hours (white) or 750 hours (red)
• Weight: 71 grams
• Waterproof: No

The Zipka Plus 2 Head Torch is also available in a range of colours that include pistachio green, tropical blue and misty grey.

To read more about the Petzl Zipka Plus 2 Head Torch and other gadgets like it including other Petzl torches, you can visit Simply Hike.

1. Review of the Petzl eLITE Plus
2. Review of SpokeLit Bicycle Light
3. Winkku Review – Bicycle Mirror, Indicator and Lights!
4. Review of Casio Exilim EX-H10
5. Vax Kone

hiking Torches & Lamps bicycle light, gadget, heavy head, innovations, trail hike

Beanotown Racing (PC)
Kart Racing | PC | Simian Industries | En | 314 MB

Beanotown Racing takes ten famous characters from the Beano and Dandy comics and sets them upon ten loony vehicles for you to tear around the equally loony tracks in. If the appearance of specific characters makes any difference, you have: Desperate Dan, Dennis the Menace, Gnasher, Roger the Dodger, Korky the Cat, Bananaman (eeugh, spell that in a hurry), Minnie the Minx, Brain Duane, Bea and last but not least, Plug from the Bash St. Kids.

Unfortunately, as with many other similar titles such as South Park Rally, the main feature of the game is simply the licensed inclusion of these famous characters. The benefit of having an entirely fictional inspiration is that the developers strive to provide some meat; something different or at least some innovations that make it stand out from the other swarms of racing games out there. Beanotown Racing happily relaxes under the weight of its license and lets the popular subject matter work the magic. This translates into rather a dull game.

Let’s clear this up; Beanotown Racing is not too bad. Well not entirely anyway. But equally it is such a staid and formulaic take on such an overcrowded and hackneyed genre that it just numbs the mind to play. The first few races almost peak into what you might call fun, as you discover all your favourite comic characters wobbling about the roads in their zany perambulators and dustbins and the like. You even get to visit genuine locations from the comics, Bash St. School and Cactusville being two of the most widely recognised. After a couple of races, however, you’ll realise how basic the game really is and you’ll start winning races with your eyes closed. Tracks are short and badly designed, featuring too many cramped indoor environments for enjoyment. Since there are only six tracks for the entire game this is a major problem and knocks the replay value down to virtually nil. I completed the entire game and unlocked every extra in less than two hours. Add in the frustrating AI and things start to tumble downhill quicker than the contents of Desperate Dan’s plate at dinnertime.

The AI is a strange bag. In the lower two difficulty levels your opponents are pretty rubbish and will slow down when you are behind and speed up when you catch up. The hardest difficulty level is a whole different kettle of cow pies however and allows you to win some races without being overtaken once, yet took me eight attempts to come higher than fourth on another. All the time your opponents get in your way and any contact with them will slow you down to a turtle’s crawl. All the while they are shooting you with one of the many ‘novelty’ weapons including tomatoes, cow pies and smelly nappies, all suited to each character but adding very little to the game.

One thing that pleasantly impressed me was the simple cartoony graphics. They are in no way of high quality but do a reasonable job of conveying the quaint charm that makes the comics so famous. As you race through the cartoon locations toy planes will zoom about in the sky, trains will cross bridges and a representative section of the scenery goes about everyday comic bustle, creating quite a nice racing atmosphere. The audio is what you would expect; a few cheesy music tracks, adequate sound effects, plus individual taunts and engine sounds for each character.

A lot of importance has to be placed on vehicle handling in a racing game, quite simply because that is the only element of gameplay. I’m sad to say that the handling of this title is slow, cumbersome and frustrating. Even when you know every nuance of every track and could drive them all blindfolded you’ll still find yourself paying your respects to the fence frequently because the handling is so shoddy. I could hardly restrain the frustration seizures, as what could be described as ‘fun’ handling turned out to be a joke indeed.

To hammer the last nail into Beanotown Racing’s coffin it has no multiplayer whatsoever. This only possible redeeming feature makes a predictable non-appearance and seals the game’s fate as a lightweight also-ran, hobbling over the finish line in a sorry state. Beano and Dandy fans might find some short-term amusement here, as might young children, but any racing devotee with the slightest modicum of self-respect will avoid this game. It is a lazy attempt and one that deserves criticism for milking yet another license with such a severely lacklustre effort.

System requirements: Pentium 3 RAM: 128 MB Video: 32 MB

Screenshot

warlord Comics bash st school, bea, comic characters, innovations, replay