With seven lighting modes — including boost and pulse — this light set is handy in all kinds of riding scenarios. The taillight has at least five modes, including multiple tempos of flash. We made evening grocery runs, early morning commutes, and spent plenty of time in the saddle riding the gravel roads and country lanes of the Owens Valley in low light conditions while paying close attention to the usability and brightness of each light. It depends on what kind of riding you’re doing. For urban usage, you’re looking for something around 200 lumens or higher. The more well-lit the riding area is, the fewer lumens you need.

Bike Lights | Bike Accessories | Evans Cycles

In any case, if you’re planning to leave your bike parked up in public for any length of time, make sure your lamps can be easily removed and take them with you when you stop. A rear light for gravel riding should also be powerful. Riding on dark roads will mean your rear light will have to do more to keep you safe and seen. Other features Its CNC-machined aluminium build quality is excellent too, and its IXP7 waterproof rating is very welcome. The tough, rubber-band style mounting system makes adding/removing the lights a cinch, though they’re arguably a little less secure than ratcheted or bolt-mounted options. Still, away from all the peripherals, fundamentally the Exposure Strada remains a really, really good light. Like the Magicshine, I was happy barrelling along through the dark at full tilt, with the road ahead of me reassuringly brightly lit.

Each has an ambient light sensor to adjust brightness and you can hook them up via ANT+ with a Garmin cycle computer for auto on when you start to ride and to swap between modes. The Streak’s 450-lumen headlight can last for up to 100 hours on a single charge (on a low setting), while the 50-lumen tail light lasts up to 200 hours. Both are rechargeable via an included mini-USB cable. A low-battery indicator will notify you when it’s time to charge. It is a good idea to keep the included cord on your person during rides, as it can be difficult to come by a replacement (mini USB is less common than micro USB). Easy to fit, with lots of mounting options (including a seat rail mount, which is very good at this price), the Comet X-Pro also impresses with its intense output at full power. Beyond daytime city riding, this light set can do the job as the sun begins to set out in the darkened country lanes relying on a series of modes and settings while the battery life is also pretty solid. Bright enough to use as a daytime running light, this latest version of Lezyne’s Strip Drive features a new wide-angle lens to provide around 270° of visibility.

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We take two approaches to our hands-on testing of bike lights. First, we take a look at the manufacturer’s specs and see if they hold up to real-life use, running down the batteries at different power levels and recharging them (when applicable). Then, we mount each light to our bikes and pedal off into the dark, looking at beam distance and how difficult (or easy) it is to change lighting modes and settings. Needless to say, the brightest light isn’t necessarily the best. Even if you plan on using a light to see, it will still perform the double duty of helping you to be seen by other road users. You can choose to use the 'Race' mode, which lets you switch between 1300 lumens and 130 lumens, or the standard mode, where you can cycle through all seven options. The Race mode is handy as it effectively lets you 'dip' the beam. For urban commuting, 200 lumens should be sufficient. We would suggest a front light with a minimum of 400 lumens for riding on unlit roads.Runtimes are good for such compact units and we got just under 1.5 hours for the front and 4.5 hours for the rear. The lights switch automatically to a lower output to preserve battery and give you an additional 30 minutes or so runtime. Lights are important for safety and visibility on and offroad; (photo/Miya Tsudome) How We Test Bike Lights The power of a bike light is usually expressed in lumens. Lumens are the unit by which the total amount of light emitted from a source is measured.