I think headlamps should be more of a thing

For most of the electric age, incandescent bulb flashlights were the only game in town.¹ It's understandable that head-mounted lanterns were mostly associated with professions where this tool was especially useful, such as mining and spelunking, because using an incandescent light in this manner requires a compromise. Either (a) you have to carry around a bunch of heavy batteries on your head, (b) you don't get a very bright light, or (c) you don't get a lot of battery life. For professions involving hard physical labor where visibility means survival, compromise (a) made sense, but for everyone else, we've been mostly content with hand-held flashlights and lanterns for as long as the electric light has existed.

However, now that ultra-efficient LEDs and durable lithium ion cells are cheap and plentiful, I think we're missing a trick by sticking with the old style of flashlight we've become accustomed to. Now that we can have bright, long-lasting lights we can wear on our heads with no discomfort, why don't we do that? The benefits are obvious: it keeps both of your hands free, and the light automatically points in the direction you're looking. Sure, there are situations where you want more granular control over the beam, such as when you're looking inside a container or behind furniture, but head-mounted lanterns can be held in the hand and used this way as well. I think it'd be quite beneficial if we rethink our assumptions about what the standard utility flashlight should be; I'm a little surprised it hasn't happened yet.

Maybe people would miss the reassuring weight of a bunch of C- or D-cell batteries. I can understand why: if you're using a flashlight, that means it's dark, and if it's dark, that means you have to be on your guard for ne'er-do-wells: prowlers and lycanthropes and such. Having a solid metal tube at hand to give them a good thwacking is an important part of the psychological comfort a good flashlight provides.

That's why I think the best flashlight would be a three-piece kit: a standalone module containing the LEDs and batteries, a flexible headband you can attach it to (with a tripod-style mounting screw for maximum stability), and an inert metal tube you can slot the LED module into for handheld use. That way you get all the flexibility of a bright, featherweight, head-mounted lantern without giving up the self-defense benefits of a traditional flashlight. In fact, it would be a better self-defense tool than the traditional flashlight, because you can use both: wear the lantern on your head, but also carry around the tube. That way, if you're out for a late-night walk and some wolfman or dracula tries to shake you down, you can give 'em the old one-two: blind them with the flashlight while you thwack 'em with the tube.

I think the flashlight of the future will be based on these principles:

• Up to 20 hours of light on a single charge!
• Adjustable output up to 1500 lumens!
• Head-mounted or handheld operation!
• Give 'em the old one-two!