|
2008 LED Bike Lights Comprehensive Review - Large Array Lights
By James Sharp
Review Navigation
Large Array Navigation
Lupine Betty
(click here to view the images and graphs specific to this light)
 Let's cut to the chase. Since you are reading this review, you're at least curious about this light. This has to be one of the more anticipated lights this year. At a claimed 1400 lumens it is in the realm of car headlights. It uses 7 (seven!) LEDs. At full brightness, it consumes 22watts of power. It's a monster. It is also the most expensive light I have ever used, period. As I was collecting the lights for the review, Gretna Bikes only had a Betty light head available, not the battery, charger, etc. So, this review is done using the battery from the Wilma 4. The Betty doesn't ship with a battery this small, but it's nice to know that Lupine's lights are all interchangeable. The price listed in the table at the beginning of this review is the Betty 6 -- the smallest battery the Betty ships with.
In reality, the Betty is very much like the Wilma, but with 3 more LEDs. The electronics housed in the remote switch are the same and it customizable by the user. I like having three brightness levels, so mine is set that way. Stock it has two brightness levels and the flashing mode is an SOS pattern. I reconfigured mine to have the aforementioned three settings and I changed the flash mode to a strobe. If you want traffic to stop and take notice, turn THAT on. But it might cause seizures, so be careful.
Lupine relies on their industrial sized O-ring to affix the Betty to the handlebars. It works, and works well, but doesn't really allow any horizontal adjustment. This, it turns out, isn't that uncommon. The Betty 6 includes both wall and car chargers, a helmet mount and an extension cord. Just about everything you'd need, which is good, because for this price, it should pedal for you.
It really is a bright light and it does punch a great big hole in the night. 1400 lumens is a ton of light. Lupine's optics do a nice job of integrating all those individual LEDs into one nice even swath of light.
Frankly, the biggest problem with the Betty, other than price, is that it renders smaller helmet lights as barely adequate. Sure, you can use a 200 lumen light with this, but it's not terribly helpful until you look away from the Betty's beam.
One area that I was amazed was the run time. As I noted above, I am not using the standard Betty battery, but, rather, the smallest Wilma battery. The Betty's run time exceeded my expectations on high.
I noted in my first review of the Wilma that I did experience some fogging inside the front window, and this happened with the Betty as well. It didn't fog enough to really affect the output -- the fogging was limited to the center of the window, just in front of the central LED -- but it was frustrating nonetheless.
DiNotte 600L
(click here to view the images and graphs specific to this light)
 Very little has changed on the outside between the 500L and the 600L. The mounts are the same, the left button is still dedicated to the high beam and the shape and size is the same. The inside is all updated, though. Gone are the older, less efficient LEDs, and in their place are brighter, more efficient emitters. Not only has this increased the output to 600 lumens, but has, at the same time, increased the run time from about 2.6 hours to just shy of 3.5 hours.
DiNotte ships the 600L -- like their other lights -- with two batteries. The 600L comes with two 4 cell batteries as standard, rather than one 4 cell and one 2 cell. that ship with the 200L This means that out of the box, there are 7 hours of light, on high. Not bad for a light that is this bright!
The two button layout becomes intuitive very quickly. I'd find myself using the medium beam setting on climbs and one push kicks me into high beam, without needing to cycle through low. Pushing the right button again kicked me back to medium, since that was where I was last. This also worked when the light was in flashing mode -- riding in fog, turn on the flashing mode before work. On the ride home in the dark, push the left button and the light is in high beam. Pushing the right button again puts the light back into flashing mode. Very nice.
The beam is not like 500L's was. It is narrower, but has better throw. There is a wide beam option -- we've got pictures of it as well -- but the throw isn't very good at all with that lens. DiNotte -- and we here at GearReview.com agree -- recommends the narrower, standard beam, unless you already have a 600L and are looking to complement it with a second one.
Lupine Wilma 4 - Upgraded
(click here to view the images and graphs specific to this light)
 We've looked at the Wilma before, twice. The Wilma included in this review is the same one we upgraded to 750 lumens. While it's not as bright as they currently come, I doubt that the difference is noticeable without equipment.
Last time we looked at the light I said this "One thing that set Lupine's lights apart from any others is the effort they put into making the light user customizable. Out of the box, the light has two light settings and an SOS flash. However, the user can change this -- and I did -- to three light settings and a rapid flash. If you so desired, you could also set up the light to have infinite adjustability between 12% and 100% light output. This is one smart light! My favorite setting, though, was the three light levels, low (12%), medium (60%) and high (100%). I would mostly use the light on the 60% setting for maximum battery life, switching the light to high for high-speed downhilling." and that still holds true, for both the Wilma and the Betty.
The biggest difference between then and now -- other than the serious increase in light output -- is that there are more choices with nearly this many lumens. The Wilma is far from being out of date, though, but the competition is heating up.
NiteRider TriNewt
(click here to view the images and graphs specific to this light)
 NiteRider claims that this is the brightest light they have ever made. Not the brightest LED light. The brightest light, period. While they claim 486 lumes, they have actually measured theirs with an integrating sphere, so while the number might seem low, the light output is not. It's really a uinique beam pattern, shaped like an upside down club -- like on cards, that clover-like shape -- and illuminates the foreground while projecting a beam far down the road or trail. As with the MiNewt.X2 and SolMate, the TriNewt uses a reflector and Borofloat glass for the lens. This harnesses as much light as it can, and projects it into that three-lobed beam.
The battery is similar to the MiNewt.X2 but longer. The button is still located on the battery -- which glows blue when on but switches to red when the battery is getting low. There are also two "light pipes" on the light head that light up to indicate that the light is on, and switch to red when the battery is low.
The light head itself is similar to the MiNewt's but larger. It still uses an elastic band to affix it to the handlebars, but rather than a simple O-ring, this looks more like a belt, with different notches to hook into. I found, though, that in order to keep the light head from slipping downward during aggressive riding, I had to really, really get that band TIGHT. I thought, more than once, that I might be over-tightening it, but the band never broke, cracked, or gave any indication that I was abusing it at all. So, go ahead and crank down on it, the band can handle it.
The light is mounted to a gimbal-type mount, allowing it to rotate for a very little side to side adjustment. If you really want to adjust the light horizontally, you have to remove the light, loosen the bolt, move the mount, re-tighten the bolt and then remount the light and try it out. If it's not where you want it, repeat the process. I found this to be too complicated. By relocating the gymbol, they could have had the horizontal adjustment tool free. Oh well.
The TriNewt also comes with a helmet mount. This is mounted in place of the gymbol mount, using a thumb screw. While it does a decent job as a helmet light, it's on the heavy side. I'd look elsewhere for a dedicated helmet light, but it's nice that the TriNewt comes with the mount so you have that option.
The beam is very good, clearly NiteRider did their homework. Really, the shame about the TriNewt is the mount. It should have been better designed. It should have tool free horizontal adjust. It should be easier to mount tight enough so that it doesn't end up pointing down after dropping a curb.
Exposure Lights Enduro MaXx
(click here to view the images and graphs specific to this light)
 Last round of reviews, the Enduro was a two LED light with a bigger battery and slightly different lens configuration than the Race. That's changed now, with the addition of the third LED. Now the Enduro MaXx is in a whole new category and the only self contained light with this many emitters. Not only that, but it comes in at a paltry 265 grams, and has a nearly three hour run time. Pretty impressive, if you ask me.
The handlebar mount is identical to the Race MaXx, so there is little to say here. I like it as well with the Enduro MaXx as I did with the Race. It's well made and works well.
The switch and charger are the same as the Race MaXx and Joystick MaXx as well, so if you buy two or more, you don't need to worry about grabbing the right charger, any one of them will do. The charge times listed in the table doesn't tell the whole story. Yes, it takes 12 hours for a full charge, but 90% of that happens in 9 hours. The remaining 10% takes two hours longer. That's not terribly fast, but it gets the job done. My only complaint is that the charging light turns from red to green at the 90% mark, not when the light is fully charged -- I found this to be a little misleading. This is the case with all of the Exposure MaXx lights, by the way, not just the Enduro.
The switch, like on the Race MaXx, is centrally located on the rear of the light, and it is easy to find and use, even with gloved hands. The button is a little stiff -- needing an intentional push -- but otherwise works well. As with the Joystick MaXx and Race MaXx the button doubles as a beam indicator -- high, med. and low -- and a battery indicator. When you press the button it will show the light level for 2 seconds -- green for high, orange for medium and red for low -- then it will switch to show the battery charge. For example, if I have a fresh charge and switch the light to medium brightness, the switch will show orange for 2 seconds, and then will be steady green. It's a pretty good system and is easy to understand quickly.
Again, as with the rest of the MaXx lineup, there is a piggyback battery available extend the run times.
The light is nearly as bright as our updated Wilma, but the beam isn't as broad. It's nicer than the Race MaXx, though. That Exposure Lights was able to cram this much light into a package this small, and still retain the run time is very impressive. That they did it for the price they are asking is even more amazing.
Light On! Expedition 1000
(click here to view the images and graphs specific to this light)
 New comer Light On! has two levels of their Expedition light, the 800 and the 1000. They sell the lights as kits, with both a helmet mounted light and a handlebar mounted light. The Expedition 800 consists, then, of two 400 lumen light heads, and the Expedition 1000 (reviewed) has two 500 lumen light heads. These light heads cannot be hooked in series. The helmet mount is helmet only, while the bar mounted light is bar only.
The Expedition lightsets have the most unique switch of this review -- other than the Ay Up's lack of a switch -- it's a rotary switch. While on the large side, it is very easy to use with gloved hands. There really isn't anything fancy about it, rotate the knob one notch and you're on low, rotate it again -- in the same direction -- and you're on high beam. To turn it off you rotate the switch in the other direction.
Everything about the light is built to be very robust. The connectors are rated for use in wet environments and are o-ring sealed. They are also gold plated for corrosion resistance. Considering the fact that the lights are designed and made here in the Pacific Northwest, I'm not surprised that dealing with large amounts of water was taken into account. Because these lights are built so tough, they make a good choice for the commuter who has to slog it out every day no matter the weather. To this end, Light On! also sells the light heads individually as the Commuter series. The 500 lumen version, essentially the bar mounted light from the Expedition kit, retails for $409.
Another area where Light On! felt the need to be as durable as possible was with the battery. They chose NiMH batteries in order to eliminate the risk of exploding batteries. While I applaud their looking out for the end user, I have not had any problems with lithium ion and lithium polymer batteries when used for bicycle lights. I've even crashed while using them without any adverse effects. What Light On! ends up with is a battery that is much heavier than the others in this test -- it's heavier than some complete light sets! -- that doesn't have the run time of its competition. While the number of charge cycles is generally very good for NiMH, I have found that they are much less tolerant of sloppy charging habits. Don't think that you can charge them up in May and expect to have everything working well in September.
Light On! chose to use wide beam lenses for all four -- eight, if you count both light heads, since they are the same -- LEDs. This gives a nice even pattern, but does not project the light as far as a narrow beam would. Using both lights together does a nice job of lighting up the trail, and having matched lights means your eyes aren't having to adjust every time you switch from using the bar light to using the helmet, like when looking around a switchback.
The light heads themselves are pretty light weight. This is good for the helmet mount, since it is designed to be placed at the front of the helmet. I did not experience any excess movement from my helmet when I did have the Light On! lights mounted.
I keep seeing the button-on-battery design. NiteRider has it, Light On! has it, Ay-Up will be introducing a battery with switches later this year. I am not a fan. The Light On! switch is very good, don't get me wrong, but it's not very convenient for a helmet mounted light. Light On! suggests running the battery for the helmet light strapped to a hydration pack shoulder strap, but -- and it might just be me -- I prefer to put the battery inside my hydration pack, particularly a battery as heavy as this one. It also adds to the replacement cost of the battery, since the battery houses the electronics as well.
All in all, the Light On! Expedition 1000 is a good light that needs to be updated to modern battery technology. This will reduce the weight and increase the run time. Using a Li-Ion battery will also mean that you won't have to charge the light before every ride, since it doesn't self discharge anywhere near as fast as the NiMH batteries do.
DiNotte Dual 600L
(click here to view the images and graphs specific to this light)
 The last light set we are looking at is DiNotte's 600L Dual. The Dual 600L is part of DiNotte's Extreme Lighting System kits, and retails for $750. This is two complete 600L kits and a Y adapter -- that's two helmet mounts, two chargers, four batteries, and two extension cables. In many ways, it is a bigger, brighter version of the 200L Dual. Both kits are use independent light heads and can be separated and used either helmet or bar mounted.
Our test lights had one flood beam and one standard (narrower) beam. The normal kit has two standard beams; there is a slight surcharge to change the lenses in one or both of the light heads. I really liked the flood/narrow combo. The flood doesn't project as far -- there seems to be more losses in the lenses of the flood beams -- but it fills right in front of the bike very nicely. With the single 600L, I recommended the narrow beam, but with two 600L's, I think that the flood/narrow is a good choice, whether you plan on running both bar mounted or one on the bars and one on the helmet.
Though the lights come with a splitter, I'd run them off of two batteries. Running both lights on high off using the Y adapter makes for short run times -- barely over an hour and a half. If your ride isn't a long one, then this is OK, but for a longer ride, you'll have to pack a second battery anyway, so you might as well just start off using it.
Running two light heads handlebar mounted isn't nearly as convenient as running a single monster like the Betty. You have twice the brackets, take up twice the handlebar space, have twice the number of buttons to push, etc. The real benefit to this system is using similarly to the Light On! Expedition lights, one on the bars and one on the helmet. And for that set up, the price is a steal.
Large Cluster Summary
These are all very, very good lights. I'd run any one of them and be happy. The Betty is an absolute beast in terms of shear lumens, features and cost, but the others aren't slouches either.
For the price, I think that Light On! is fighting an uphill battle. They bring a robust design to the table that is as good as any -- and better than some. They are hampered a bit by their use of older LEDs and older, heavier, battery technology. Two lights for the price isn't bad, but it's beaten by DiNotte -- with the Dual 600L -- and the DiNotte lights are brighter, lighter weight -- battery and light head weighed together. The Dual 600L also has two chargers and four batteries, all for $49 less than the Light On! kit.
NiteRider's TriNewt has a very good beam pattern, decent run time and a so-so mount. Really, it's the mount that hurts the TriNewt the most. If they reposition the gimbal, the light will be less likely to slip forward and it will have horizontal adjustment like the MiNewt. I do have to applaud NiteRider for actually measuring their output instead of just quote the LED manufacturers specs. Well done, here's to hoping that more light companies follow suit.
The 600L is a great light at a good price. It is the best value here due to the extra battery. The Wilma is another excellent light, but it's costly. For that price you get the ability to customize the light -- high/low, or high/med/low, or infinite between high and low? -- and good run time in a lightweight package. But is it all worth the premium?
The Enduro MaXx is the first all-in-one light to be in the Large Cluster category. It's very lightweight and the output is very good. The handlebar mount is brilliant, but it takes a long time to charge. This is not a light that you can throw on the charger a few hours before a ride. You have to plan ahead. However, Exposure did a fantastic job of packing so much into a package so small and not charging an arm and a leg for it.
So who wins this category? For strict bang for your buck -- and that buck is worth less and less these days -- value I have to go with the DiNottes. If you need dual light heads, you cannot beat the Dual 600L on a dollar basis. For the single light head, it's as inexpensive as any in this category, but is brighter than some some of the others and has two batteries. If you must have the brightest, at all costs, then the Betty is that light. Otherwise, I have to recommend the DiNottes.
James Sharp is a contributing editor for GearReview.com; more of his ramblings and a look at upcoming reviews can be found at his blog -- Lactic Acid Threshold.
|
