2016 Tacoma Headlight upgrade

Yes, I know there is a TON of information here about this, but I was hoping someone had filtered through it all and had the perfect answer to the question: What's the best way to upgrade the headlights to brighter, (more white) light within a reasonable budget? I don't want to spend $1000 on headlights, but the stock lights are terrible. And I'm looking for plug and play or very little modifications to get them to work. I'm used to xenon so I know I'm spoiled a bit...
Flame away about searching, but there's just too much to weed through.

 

A couple things on the cheap side:

-- Be sure that they are aimed properly. This made some difference for me for both the headlights and even more so on the fogs.
-- Try the H9 upgrade. The stock low beams are H11. It is about 2min of careful Dremeling of the large tab on the bulb and it will pop into the housing. You can experiment with your H9 high beam bulbs.

From there, everything gets more costly.

 

What the hell, I'll be nice today.

I'm assuming "headlight" means low beams. Your stock high beam bulbs/reflectors are near the top end of performance as is.

Low beam output upgrade - GE Megalight H11 +130 bulbs are the top H11 performers to date; I've personally had them. Entirely P&P, as it's a straight bulb swap. Alternatively, modifying Philips H9 bulbs is another good option, and will be superior overall to the GE's. If you want to know how, read the source below.

Both options at or sub $35.

Fair warning - higher output halogens means less longevity, around 150-400 hours of use compared to around 1,000 hours of stock - YMMV. Most OEMs use low output halogen bulbs to extend the longevity, which avoids consumers bitching about having to replace bulbs every year or two. The trade off is lower output.

Also, there is currently no LED bulb that is a drop in replacement, as halogen projectors and reflectors are designed specifically for omni-directional light (i.e. halogens), which LEDs cannot replicate, at least not yet. Those who say otherwise generally cite anecdotal things and won't have data to back up distance projection of LEDs compared to stock, as the data reveals how poor LEDs are with stock projectors that are designed for halogens. That said, LEDs certainly can look cool, and that's really what matters.

HIDs are the superior output choice overall, but generally require a retrofit for the best output and reliability. You may be able to get away with putting HIDs in the stock projectors (as they do have a glare shield) but, again, the projectors are not designed for HID light sources.

Source: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/3rd-gen-hid-vs-led-vs-halogen-h11-projector-headlights.589465/

 

V4 LED bulbs all day. I love mine.

 

Yes, I did mean low beams. As a transplanted country boy to the big city, I haven't used my high beams in years...but in the back roads of South Dakota where I grew up? They were on all the time.

This is exactly what I was looking for. Plow through the BS and get to a solution. I'll be looking at the GE Megalight H11 +130 for sure.
Thanks!