The Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed is this generation’s version of the Paul C Buff White Lightnings; but they’re a million times better.
I admittedly took my time with testing the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed because of just so much stuff that we’ve had to test since Photokina and with not being motivated when it came to portraiture. But in my experiences with it, the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed has proven to me that if you’re in the market for an introductory TTL/Manual/HSS monolight when your flashes just aren’t cutting it, this is the only option that really exists. While Godox, Adorama Flashpoint and B&H Impact make usable products I think that the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed does a whole lot for the dollar. With TTL capabilities and a pretty solid build quality, the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed also boasts a pretty simple to use interface and reliability in a number of situations. And if all you really need is the power, then this is one of the best options on the market.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- It’s like $350 bucks
- TTL
- HSS
- Manual mode
- Radio capable
- 250 watt seconds of power
- Powerful modelling lamp
- Bowens mount
- Umbrella holder built in and it isn’t proprietary
- Fantastic battery life
- Built surprisingly well
Cons
- It’s bigger than I’d like it to be.
Gear Used
We tested the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed with the Sony a7r III, Westcott six foot umbrellas, interfit umbrellas, and the Sony a7.
Tech Specs
Taken from our initial news post
Built-In Battery Power: Equipped with a 2900mAh battery offering cable-free portability, 430 full-power flashes, and a 90-minute recharge time from flat to full.
Compact Form Factor: The Badger Unleashed weighs in at under 4 lbs, measures 5” wide (6” including the outer ring), and 8” deep from the back panel to the edge of the protective cap.
Extended Power Range: 9-stop power range, the same as the S1, and two more stops than the original Honey Badger. Power can be adjusted from 250Ws down to 1Ws in 1/10th of a stop increments for precise exposure.
Fast Recycle Time: Best-in-class full-power recycle time, at an impressive 1.5 seconds.
HSS and TTL: HSS enables shutter speeds up to 1/8000th of a second, while TTL metering automatically adjusts flash power to create an accurate exposure. TTL mode also provides +/- 3 stops of exposure compensation.
LED Modeling Lamp: The 15W LED modeling lamp produces 1250 Lumens, and can be used as a continuous light source for both photo and video applications. The Daylight-Balanced LED can be adjusted proportionate to the flash power, or set straight to full power.
Built-in Radio Receiver: Features a built-in radio receiver that is compatible with all Interfit TTL and manual remotes. This allows full control over the light’s power range, flash mode, modeling lamp, and beep function.
Versatile Modifier Mount: Uses the popular Bowens® S-Type modifier mount, making it compatible with all your favorite Interfit modifiers. Made popular by the original Honey Badger, the Badger Unleashed also features a built-in pop-up softbox ring.
Glass Dome Diffuser: Includes a frosted glass dome diffuser that protects the flash tube and helps to spread light evenly throughout larger modifiers.
Ergonomics
The Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed is centrally and ideally controlled via this thing: the radio transmitter remote that mounts into your camera’s hot shoe. It’s standard and in some ways looks like the Profoto Air TTL remote. But believe it or not, it’s simpler to operate. Or at least it’s more traditional.
Here’s the main body of the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed. There is a black dome on the front to protect the frosted dome. Once you get passed the ugly yellow coloring, you’ll notice that there is a switch for power on the bottom of the unit. Those latches on top are for the battery.
Once the black dome is off, we see this frosted glass dome. It’s standard and in line with those offered by many other units out there.
Though it looks fairly seamless, the battery is actually in there and part of the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed. Here we can also see the control screen.
Here’s the battery. It’s pretty thin and slides right into the top. Make sure that it stays locked!
The screen is also pretty standard. There are dedicated buttons for controls and you don’t need to scroll from one section to another.
To be very fair, I think that if you’re using the remote, you’ll never really need to touch the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed’s screen.
Build Quality
During my testing with the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed, I would put it into a larger area of my backpacks. It held the unit in place with barely any movement. When that happened, the bag would get dinged and hit by fellow commuters. Plus, add into that all of my own abuses. At no time did the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed falter or feel like it was going to break. I’m thoroughly amazed at the build quality–it’s better than what Phottix has offered in the past.
Something that I’m a bit concerned about is the connection to a studio stand. There is a knob to adjust the angle of the head and another to secure it to the stand. Both are a bit too loose for my liking but in practical usage, they never gave me any problems.
Ease of Use
In all honesty, the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed interface is something that all other systems should be modelled after, including Profoto. Though I admittedly bought the B10 and Air controllers, the Interfit system is simpler. When you’re in manual mode, it tells you how powerful the light will be in terms of 10ths of a percentage. You also get full TTL control. HSS is simple to switch to. It just works. The dedicated buttons are really nice and sometimes better than trying to have a sleeker interface.
Photographers who are just getting into using lighting will find the Interfit system to be very refreshing. Want the light to be brighter? It’s got you!
Image Quality
We used the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed on a number of shoots including a sponsored post for Duggal.
Conclusions
Likes
- Power output
- Reliability
- Ease of use
- Price point
Dislikes
- A bit too big
I think that the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed is not only a fantastic monolight, but it’s a great option for any photographer that needs to work on a location due to the fact that the entire thing is self contained. You get reliability, durability, ease of use, and quite a bit of power. What’s really nice is that this is enough power to work on a location and blend the output with more natural/ambient light. Combine this with the HSS capabilities and you’ll be really happy with the unit. For $350, you’re getting something that will make the output of your old camera and lens sing. You don’t need a new camera or a lens. You just need light.
I need to strongly recommend the Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed for anyone that considers themselves a beginner or intermediate when it comes to lighting.
The Interfit Honey Badger Unleashed receive four out of five stars. Go pick some up off of Amazon.