BioLite Is Reinventing Outdoor Tech—From Backyard to Basecamp

Between their consistent innovation and their dedication to positive social impact, BioLite is an easy company to love, with a pedigree that makes press releases actually worth getting excited about. Over the years their products, while still great for outdoor enthusiasts, have become more approachable and universal. I’ve used everything the company has ever made, and these are my favorites. 

BioLite’s FirePit is their best and their most mass market product, ready to burn charcoal or wood and be used at your next campsite, tailgate, on your patio, or even on your balcony. 

The FirePit comes in at $200 and 20 pounds, so no, it’s not ultralight. Like BioLite’s other stoves, the FirePit uses a rechargeable battery pack to power a fan that increases combustion and decreases smoke. That battery will go for 24 hours on low and can be recharged using an optional solar cover that’s cheaper when bundled, or through whatever traditional means you have at your disposal. 

With adjustable grill heights, adjustable fire intensity, and space for four standard firewood logs, the FirePit lets you burn it your way. Best of all, both sides of the Pit are mesh, giving you an unobstructed view of your flames whether you’re cooking or just looking. As someone with a balcony, a grill and/or fire pit’s viability as a balcony-based tool is always top-of-mind for me when testing something new. I’ve tested numerous open-flame solutions for cooking and general enjoyment, and the FirePit generated the least smoke by far, and offered the most flame control.

Until a couple years ago, if you owned a headlamp you could expect it to include a proprietary charger and a (heavy) proprietary battery pack, or just as bad, to take disposable batteries…basically, you were better off just bumping into things in the dark.

The BioLite HeadLamp 330 is USB-rechargeable and has a 40-hour battery life on the lowest setting. The HeadLamp has spot and flood panels that can be used one at a time or together, includes red night vision and strobe modes, and can be ramped up to 330 Lm on the brightest setting. The light even tilts downward in spite of how low profile the whole thing is. 

Most importantly though, the BioLite HeadLamp is comfortable. The light sits flush with your forehead, the whole thing weighs in at 69 grams, and the fabric is even moisture-wicking. 

Whether you’re a backpacker, an auto mechanic, or just someone who regularly needs to fix three of the eight drawers that have broken in their IKEA dresser, you’ll find myriad uses for BioLite’s HeadLamp—and if it weren’t for the light, you’d forget you were wearing it. 

BioLite’s SunLight can fully recharge itself via solar in the course of a day, effectively giving you a reliable, battery-free source of light every night you’re out camping, or whenever and wherever you might need a light or flashlight. The SunLight is diminutive enough to be pocketable, and ubiquitous enough to be sold in 4-packs at a discount, and like the HeadLamp, eminently gift-able.

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