Philips Racing Vision GT200 H7 Headlight Bulb +200%, Double
Philips Racing Vision GT200 H7 Headlight Bulb +200%, Double Set,
From the brand
The best-performing beam
| Weight: | 20 g |
| Dimensions: | 1.1 x 0.6 x 1.3 cm; 20 Grams |
| Brand: | Philips |
| Model: | 577928 |
| Batteries Included: | 1 Unknown batteries required. |
| Manufacture: | Lumileds |
| Dimensions: | 1.1 x 0.6 x 1.3 cm; 20 Grams |
I was a bit disappointed with these bulbs, yes they are a direct replacement but the light output is nowhere near as impressive as the advertisement would have you believe. I fitted led main beam and the difference between dip and main is quite literally night and day.
Perfect drop in replacement for my BMW, I can’t say I notice a huge difference from the previous ones but I don’t know what they were but these are working great so far.
I purchased some non branded cheaper bulbs that had to be returned due to faults.
These Philips bulbs are in a different league to the cheaper ones.
Easy to fit (as were the others) on our vehicle, and worked perfectly. No fault codes as they’re effectively a direct replacement.
The light is more of a white than the standard cream light that we had fitted, I’m not entirely sure of the additional distance that the claim, but they do seem to be brighter.
I’ve had people flash thinking I’ve had the main beam on, so they are certainly brighter (and legal).
I’ve had these previously and it’s the reason for the repeat purchase, I don’t like flicking my main beam on/off all the time, with these it’s rare I ever use my main beam, whereas the Bosch above I was doing it constantly!
The main negative with these is the lifespan, as other have reviewed but those probably don’t understand the rates life is 250 hours. So if you have auto-lights then it’s likely they will die sooner rather than later.
I’m all for saving money, but I also value my life and want to see and be seen.
And finally, the packaging is a challenge. To open them up and to take the bulbs out. For me I just break a plastic clip! And for the bulb, simply rotate them and gently pull upwards.
Upgrade was not really that. Hardly any difference to my Passat B8 stock Xenon bulbs, however I left them in and now one has blown 10 months later. Amazon is accepting the return under warranty and refunding me in full.
3.50 H7 bulbs from Tesco more or less the same so I’ll stick with those!
Easy to fit, clear white, power brightness bulbs. But limited lifespan so 4 stars.
Why not 5 stars? The packaging is possibly the worst design and after checking online I’m not the only person to experience this.
Like any other bulb you shouldn’t touch the glass post of the bulb, however the packaging is built so tough that you must almost bend the metal housing to force the delicate bulbs out of it.
Philips please review this, buyers be prepared.
However, I do feel all these bulbs are mis-sold – they are not 3x brighter than standard bulbs! – which is what something that gives out 200% more light would have to be!!
But more about the bulbs…
The outer packaging is all plastic and stupidly fixed with barbed fixing that mean you have to break the packing and hope the bulbs don’t fall out…
Actually there’s no chance of that because they are wedged in solid – they do come out (use a tissue or gloves to grip the glass so you don’t touch it with your fingers), but they are in there way tighter than they need to be.
But once in, they are much brighter and whiter than standard bulbs and that’s why we bought them after all.
How long they last is anyone’s guess – I’ve been very disappointed in the life of previous +rated bulbs so these only got 3 stars as a starting mark for lifetime.
But for the moment I’m a satisfied customer…
I tried them in my car (H7 high and low beam) and in wife’s CLK 200 (completely different lense/reflector, better actually). I’ve tried Phillips upgrade in the past and found them uninspiring but these new GT200s look like the best of the new batch. I also tested the Osram +200% Nightbreakers in my sons Sprinter van and found them so similar to the stock bulbs they were replacing, I had to check the back of the bulb base. So, In my experience of these types of bulb, currently, the Phillips GT200s look the best. They seem to put out more light on the road and surrounds, have a tight enough beam pattern on full beam at least and spot on for the dip. The difference/improvement after swapping them from my Ring +200% bulbs was very noticeable. I should note that I currently live in a rural area but my night time driving was nearly always on unlit main roads, country roads and motorways. Those who do mostly urban driving will likely not find value in these and if really good headlights are not on your list of priorities, and I encounter cars with such woefully inadequate lighting that I wonder how they can proceed above 30mph at all, then getting these will not be money well spent. However, for those of us who need and like to see as much as possible beyond street lighting, I think these are worth installing.
Fitting is subjective, mine was on a Ford Kuga, easy enough to do. Bulbs only fit one way and were a straight drop in replacement.
Packaging is sturdy but hard to get the bulbs out. Performance is fine, maybe a slightly “whiter” tint than the stock ones I replaced which were not great, so we have upgraded from “not great” to “ok”
Claiming up to 200% brighter is umm, optimistic at best. In terms of being headlight bulbs they’re fine. 23 for the pair was cheaper than Halfords own brand and you’d expect Philips to be better but time will tell.
to summarise, bulbs work, delivery quick, satisfied as I’m at least no worse off than prior to purchase, marginal improvements are better than a step backwards.