Tag: bike lights

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Blaze Laserlight

Blaze Laserlight Review

Blaze Laserlight ReviewThe Blaze Laserlight is a solid reminder that crowd-funding, in this instance via kickstarter, continues to incubate a good number of products that are both innovative and beautifully executed. The Blaze Laserlight is, at heart, a powerful front cycle light that adds significantly to the safety factor by incorporating a laser projection up to 6metres ahead of the rider.

 

As a standard light the Blaze Laserlight, with its sleek machined aluminium casing, is capable of delivering a combination of 100lumen flashing, 100lumen solid or 300lumen solid – all of which can be used either with our without the laser projection (of a bicycle of course) in solid or flash mode.

 

Technical spec

 

The aluminium casing of the Blaze Laserlight, with its discreet silver nickel control panel, contains a full aluminium internal chassis designed to aid both cooling and overall robustness. Weighing in at 182g it’s recharged via supplied USB cable to provide anything from 2hours use (high beam and constant laser) to 29hours (low beam, flashing and no laser.) The whole unit is fully waterproof – rather than merely resistant – and attaches to handlebars from 24–32 mm in diameters via a quick-release clip.

 

Blaze Laserlight ReviewThe Blaze Laserlight on test

 

Attaching the bike mount section of the quick release clip to the handlebars is relatively easy using the supplied 4mm allen key and appropriate rubber insert for the tube size. Fine-tuning the laser to project at the desired ahead takes a few additional minutes (and really needs to be done in low-light conditions) and you’re good to go.

 

Operating either the standard lamp or independent laser takes the briefest of touches to the panel to cycle through the options and there’s no denying that 300lumen is a dazzlingly effective way of lighting up even the darkest of country lanes. Better yet, if you’re an enormous attention seeker, it’s impossible to ride anywhere with the Blaze Laserlight and not encounter people willing to coo over it and tell you how cool the projection looks. (Okay, so that’s not going to appeal to every ego out there.)

 

A thing of beauty

 

The Blaze Laserlight has, without question, been designed to appeal to those who think contemporary aesthetics begin and end with all-things Apple. In fact the light is made in partnership with PCH International, a manufacturing company that also makes products for Apple – if you don’t like sleek, tactile and brushed metal, this isn’t the light for you. Actually everything from the typeface to the packaging and slender lines of the light itself have been beautifully thought through to balance form and function in one neat package.

 

Blaze Laserlight ReviewDownsides of the Blaze Laserlight

 

Yes, it looks gorgeous, yes, it’s crazy-bright and yes the laser projection in both very cool and integral to added safety; but…

 

As much as we love this light there are still flaws and drawbacks. Starting with the USB charger, which uses the kind of magnetic clip that Macbook users get all worked up about. Whilst the Mac version is robust, the Blaze Laserlight version has an utterly annoying tendency to be knocked off with the slightest of efforts. Several times Cyclo has gone to pick up what we were hoping would be a good-to-go, fully charged light, only to find it untethered and lifeless.

 

The quick release clip also proved frustrating longer-term, slowly unthreading itself (in days, not weeks) to leave the light swinging wildly from wide to side. Even when tightened to the max there’s far too much lateral movement. More disturbingly – arguably this is a fault in the unit we had on test – was the tendency for the light and laser to both go off unexpectedly when we hit a bump in the road…

 

Blaze Laserlight ReviewYou make your choices…

 

There is much to love about the Blaze Laserlight. Personally we really appreciate the aesthetics and attention to detail and there’s no denying that the projected bike image is going to add significantly to safety (apparently ‘79% of cycling incidents happen when drivers manoeuvre into the rider’s path.’) The main beam is bright and crisp – even if 2-3hours on full is nowhere near long enough – and there’s something of the Star Wars generation in us that loves the idea of attaching a laser to the bike.

 

The Blaze Laserlight is also, predictably, on the costly side at £125. Of course it’s unique selling point is the laser itself, but of you just want a really bright light then something like the Lezyne Macro Drive 600XL is going to offer up twice the lumens for half the price or the Exposure Sirius Mk4/TraceR Light Set gives you front and rear (500 and 110lumen respectively) for a comparable £129.95. Both the Lezyne and Exposure Sirius lights are available on wiggle.co.uk

 

Full details on online purchase of the Blaze Laserlight at Blaze.cc

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News

Do You Need Your Lights?

Blaze

BlazeWith the clocks about to change (October 25), but with nights already drawing in it can be difficult to judge when bike lights are needed. But thanks to the good people at Blaze there’s a simple solution at doineedmybikelight.com

 

The micro-site features a simple journey calculator, which allows visitors to input their morning and evening commute start times and journey duration to quickly gage when lights are required. It’s a neat solution and one that can stop you from getting caught out with the ever-shortening days.

 

Blaze produce the Laserlight, an innovative product that helps to improve cyclist’s visibility over and above any other bike light on the market, with studies showing that it increases cyclist visibility to 96% compared to just 74% for normal LED bike lights. By projecting an image of a bike ahead of the rider, the Laserlight tackles the biggest risk to urban cyclists –vehicles turning in front of their path when travelling straight ahead – which is the cause of 79% of cycling accidents. Further details at blaze.cc

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Featured Tech

Proviz Neutron Lights

Proviz Neutron Lights

Proviz Neutron LightsThere’s really nothing Cyclo likes more than simple efficiency and the Proviz Neutron Lights perform – quite literally – brilliantly. The Neutron is part of the Proviz own-brand range of bike lights and for those of you not in the know Proviz specialise in the retail of all things hi-viz from helmets to reflectives and cycling jackets.

 

Proviz Neutron Lights – one front, one back – are dinky water-resistant rubberised nodule-lights not unlike the Knog (Cyclo review here), which use a double LED to produce 36000MCD (millicandela) per light visible up to 650m. Of course that’s the distance at which the light is visible not the distance at which it provides visibility, but it does produce a decent crisp white light to front with a decent spread – there are also a choice of three modes: rapid flash, slow flash and solid.

 

The Neutrons attach quickly to pretty much any part of the bike by wrapping the silicone loop around and slipping it over the plastic clip – it’s a neat enough system although the plastic, the weakest point, is vulnerable in the case of a spill and is fairly unforgiving against the frame, so watch for scratches over time.

 

The Proviz Neutron Lights, whilst somehow not quite up to the sleek design aesthetics of the Knogs, are bright, light (just 22g each) and small enough to slip into a jersey pocket for those ‘just in case’ moments when the weather catches you out. At just £14.99 for the pair they are also cheaper than other similar manufacturers – compare the say the Lezyne Femto Drive LED Light Set at £21.99 or the Knog Frog Stobe Light pack at £19.99 (both available from Wiggle.co.uk)

 

Full details and online purchase of the Proviz Neutron Lights at provizsports.com Follow Proviz on facebook and Twitter.

 

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News

Useeme Set for Manufacture

Useeme

UseemeAfter three years of research and development the Useeme ‘wearable turn signal’ wristbands are a step closer to general availability with the launch of an IndieGoGo crowd funding campaign looking to raise €25,000 (£20,000).  Invented by Laszlo Nyiradi out of a desire to provide a cycling safety feature for his daughter the Useeme Bicycle Turn Signals are made with layers of flexible, form-hugging plastic, which make them easy to take on and off, with no clasps required. Set for manufacture in a small plant in Hernád, Hungary, they will be available in three different sizes and are designed to fit comfortably over clothing.

 

The first 2,000 pairs of the Useeme wristbands are only available to sponsors of the crowd funding campaign but for those who would like the bands ahead of general release, Useeme is also offering a tester series. There will be 200 test editions (which may differ slightly from the final design) available to those who pledge €33 with a 50% off coupon for the final product given to those who feed back test results to the manufacturers.

 

Further details of Useeme at useeme.eu and for the crowd funding campaign at indiegogo.com

 

Cyclo will be bringing you an early look review in the coming months.

 

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News

See Sense Intelligent Lights

See Sense

See SenseNo denying that the nights are drawing in and the lights need getting out. The newly launched See Sense, currently seeking funds through Kickstarter, looks to add a dash of intelligence to the common sense of using bountiful lights on the bike. It’s USB charged, waterproof, and motion gesture controlled (so no fiddly buttons), but the intelligence bit from its ability to ‘know’ when to make you most visible to other road users. By using sensor technology to monitor the cyclist and the environment – taking into account factors such as cadence, uphill or downhill orientation, acceleration or braking, cornering lean, and yaw – whilst also factoring in light levels, the See Sense can determine when to flash brightest and fastest, reserving greatest output only for situations where it’s really needed. See Sense uses a Fresnel lens, so rather than focus the light it spreads out, minimizing dazzle to other road users and providing, say the makers, more visibility, ‘…from the side than any other light in testing.’

 

Lead engineer Philip McAleese has worked with hundreds of cyclists over two years to refine the product and comments: ‘My dream was to create a light that could be bright when you need it. I saw more and more commuters fitting bright off-road lights to their bikes in the quest to be seen. I was tired of not being seen too, but I knew there had to be a better way.’

 

See Sense is seeking £12,000 via the Kickstarter crowd-funding platform with an end-date of November 8. A pledge of £60 will get you a set of basic lights, when and if the funding goal is met. Further details at seesense.cc and kickstarter.com

 


 

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Extras Featured Reviews

Nite Ize LED

Nite Ize

In poor visibility and, of course, the dark good cycle lights are essential (a legal requirement in fact) but there are plenty of other ways to maximise your visibility and stay as safe as possible on the bike. Cyclo took a look at just some of the LED solutions available from the Nite Ize range…

 

Nite Ize Helmet MarkerFirst up for test was the Nite Ize Helmet Marker Plus. Weighing an unobtrusive 19g the Helmet Marker Plus is a thin, durable polymer strip encased in weather-resistant nylon fabric, which can be attached to helmets via hook-and-loop strips or with the rubberised twist tie to pretty much any part of the bike – seat post, baskets, panniers, etc. The replaceable (and included) lithium battery powers either a continuous glow or strobe option with a maximum battery life of 75hours. Cyclo really liked the (literal) flexibility of this product, being easy to attach and remove it proved equally useful for mounting on the back of the helmet as it did attached to straps on a commuter day pack; the fact that the nylon cover also featured passive hi-viz reflective markings was a bonus, adding an extra dash of safety. RRP £11.95.

 

Nite Ize SpokeLitThe Nite Ize SpokeLit is a commendable way of adding illumination from the side of the bike – something so often neglected. Press the unit between the spokes and slide it towards to rim until a tight fit is achieved (we found it stayed perfectly put once in place), press once for a continuous glow or twice for flashing mode and the supplied and replaceable battery gives up to 20hours of added side-on safety. Weather and shock resistant the Nite Ize SpokeLit retails at £7.95 with a choice of colours – green, amber, red, blue – or a ‘Disc-O’ option that cycles through a spectrum of colours in solid mode. A neat alternative, or indeed addition, to the SpokeLit is the button sized Nite Ize See’Ems, which come in packs of two (blue, purple, pink £6.95) and clip directly to the spokes to provide a continuous glow. Like the SpokeLit the See Ems produce an interesting, and attention grabbing, solid circle of light once you start pedaling.

 

Nite Ize Sport VestFinally, Cyclo took a look at the Nite Ize LED Sports Vest a lightweight black mesh vest made with 3M Scotchlite reflective material, which features two illuminated flexible polymer strips (one to the front and one rear) that can be set to either a solid illumination or strobe effect mode. The universal fit uses an elastic side strap with adjustable hook & loop closure, but regrettably is likely to still prove too big for most children – a missed trick as this lightweight vest would be perfect for tucking into a schoolbag for use on those school afternoons where the light is drawing in. Still, an excellent option for commuters that combines well advised reflective strips with the added benefit of flashing LEDs. The Nite Ize LED Sports Vest retails at £24.95.

 

Full details and online purchase of these (and other Nite Ize LED products) at niteize.co.uk

 

Cyclo is supporting the Child Brain Injury Trust’s Child Safety and Awareness Campaign to get kids clearly visible on their bikes – find out more here.

 

 

 

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Featured Features

Lightrider – A Bright Future

LightriderCyclo always applauds attempts to make cyclists safer and more visible. Tudor Davies, a sound engineer, mainly working on TV programmes in and around London, would, it seems, agree. Having dreamed up various products over the years, he has now developed Lightrider, a unique approach to cycle lighting, which he feels has ‘big enough potential’ to devote the time and effort to bring to market. Currently seeking further backing via the crowd-funding network Kickstarter, Cyclo caught up with the inventor to talk about his latest ‘bright’ idea…

 

Cyclo: Tell us about the Lightrider? What makes it unique?

 

Tudor Davies: Lightrider is the only bike light in the world to illuminate the rider as well as the road ahead. Most cyclists these days are concerned with being seen at night, and yet all they can do about it is shine a light forward, that actually does a good job of making you, the cyclist, disappearing. A hi-vis jacket in the dark is black, it needs a source of light to reflect, so the best solution is to provide your own source.

 

Cyclo: The idea came from personal experience?

 

TD: Yes, I was driving home from work one night and waiting at a t-junction to pull out. I was just about to move when a bike flashed in front of me, I nearly hit it. As I carried on my way I was surprised to realise that this cyclist had both lights on, and a hi-vis jacket, but I didn’t see him… Why?

 

Cyclo: So, a true inventor’s ‘Eureka’ moment?

 

TD: Indeed, I realised they needed their own source of light, so at that critical moment when another road user is looking out for you they see the form of a cyclist, rather than another small light on the road. I went home that night and wrapped some tin foil round a torch, to create the all-important hood, which protects your night vision. I taped it on my bike facing back towards me and switched it on. My chest was illuminated, but I was completely unaware of the light myself because of the tin foil hood. Eureka!

 

Cyclo: What research did you do?

 

TD: I got a survey from the department of transport that confirmed that 80% of bike accidents are from the front or side of a bike. This proved to me that most of the time drivers didn’t see the cyclist coming towards them.

 

Cyclo: What stage of development are you currently at?

 

TD: It’s taken 2 years to make this design. It’s currently in the final stages of tooling in China and the packaging is being completed.

 

Cyclo: Why turn to Kickstarter rather than more traditional means of funding?

 

TD: Kickstarter is also a good way of getting your product noticed and launched, it’s a win/win for everyone, although we still need more fund to reach our goal!

 

Cyclo: Would you look to partner with an established manufacturer – either at this stage or further down the road?

TD: That’s actually what we have done. We realised we needed some experience in getting the light made, so we have employed Oxford Products to help bring Lightrider to market. Their experience and contacts have been invaluable.

 

Cyclo: When this goes into production are you looking to market and retail this yourself?

 

TD: Yes, we have a sales manager who will be dealing with sales and Lightrider will appear on a number of Internet sites. We will also start looking into finding various distributors in the UK and Europe.

 

Cyclo: What’s the next step for the Lightrider?

 

TD: We will be launching with two models, an AA battery and USB rechargeable version; both also available as a rear set. We then plan to extend the range with accompanying hi-vis Lightrider jackets and other accessories.

 

Cyclo: So other products are already in development?

 

TD: Oh yes! Our patent covers the whole concept of illuminating the front torso of a rider- so watch this space!

 

For further information on Lightrider see lightrider.co.uk and for funding opportunities and to get involved see kickstarter.com

 

 

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Aura Belts

Aura Belts

Aura BeltsThere is much to be said about adding as much visibility as possible on the bike – especially in poor visibility and low light. The Aura Belt is an interesting solution from a new Brit start-up, which looks to address the issue of 360degree visibility; whilst traditional lights (regardless of how many you add) broadly provide illumination front and back, the Aura Belt delivers all-round light and resolves the problem of side-on illumination and protection.

 

Constructed from high-wearing ‘ballistic’ nylon, the Aura features an integrated LED strip (powered by a replaceable CR2032 battery) beneath coloured, weather-proof, fabric which switches on via a button next to the clip fastener. Available in six colours – pink, yellow, orange, blue, red, green – the belt can deliver either a fixed ‘on’ glow or two speeds of pulsing flash. Construction is substantial and it feels built to last, it might not quite be a thing of beauty but in terms of functionality it’s spot on.

 

The Aura Belt currently comes as one-size-fits all, adjustable from ‘Women’s size UK 4 to men’s size 38inch’, a good starting point but smaller sizes – specifically for children – would be an excellent addition as would, perhaps, larger ones to accommodate rainy-weather commuters fully layered-up against the elements.

 

At £25 the Aura Belts are pretty much on the money. There are very few other products on the market that address the 360degree and side-on safety issue (the Nathan LightBender at £20 perhaps or the Fibre Flare Shorty at £27.99 – Cyclo review here) but Aura Belts do it with some style. Expect to see theses in shops soon, but for now they can be ordered at auracyclesystems.co.uk with the addition of £3.50 P&P which covers any number of belts ordered and world-wide delivery.

 

Cyclo highly recommends Aura Belts – light up and be seen…