Bicycle headlights can be divided into two groups: ones that are bright to allow a cyclist to see what they are rolling over and, well, ones that aren't (OlyBikes sells both categories of lights, though we feature higher-end systems on our website). When converting brightness (usually wattage) to dollars, you'll tend to see the higher-end systems priced at $85 or more, and entry-level lights priced below that.

 

Entry-Level Lights

Low-priced, and not-particularly-bright, these "defensive" lights simply will not light up the road, yet still have their usefulness. They improve cyclist safety by making them more visible to other road users. Such lights are affordable, portable, light-weight, and make great backup lights for brighter systems, or even loaner-lights for a friend who has stayed past dusk. Few of these lights are rechargeable, but you can always opt to use rechargeable batteries in them. Indeed, doing so will in short order pay for both the batteries and the charger — especially with incandescent halogen bulbs! Last, but not least, "defensive" lights meet the nearly nationwide requirement that during evening hours, bikes be equipped with a white, steady beam (not flashing!), visible for 500 feet. Fines for breaking this law as high as $90 are not unheard of. That's more than enough for even a basic "high-end light" — speaking of which...

 

High-End Lights

You'll need a pretty bright light to see what you are rolling over. Think about it — as the beam projects out from your headlight, the great majority of it bounces off the road or trail and keeps travelling away from you a la the phrase — "angle of incidence = angle of reflection". To really SEE what you are rolling over, enough light must reflect back from the road/trail to your eyes. That's tough considering how shallow the angle of the headlight beam is. Factor in limited reaction time at speed, potential ambient darkness (especially in more rural riding), and it's simply a challenge that not every light is up to.

OlyBikes has the following recommendations about lights:

1. Head-mounted lights, assuming that their beams are more perpendicular to the ground, may allow more light to reflect back to your eyes (increasing ground-visibility). However, low-mounted lights provide more shadow detail — a handy perceptual cue in uneven terrain (some riders like fork-mounted lights for that reason). Head-mounted lights have other advantages too: simply look at a driver on a side-street or pulling out of a parking lot and they get your light's full brightness directed at them; hands-free illumination for dealing with mechanical trouble at night; unparalleled compatibility with multiple bikes (no extra light mounts needed!); PLUS, when you get off the bike, your light system is already WITH you, so it wont be stollen or become yet another thing you have to carry at your destination. The downside to helmet-mounted lights is that the batteries are usually carried in a jersey or jacket pocket and some folks don't like the weight or necessity of wearing a garment with a pocket. A few cyclists use helmet-mounted lights with bike-mounted batteries. If you try that, remember to disconnect the wire before walking away from your bike (ouch + crash = doh)!
   
   
2. In terms of brightness, you need at least 8-10 watts of incandescent light to begin to see what you are rolling over, with 15+watts systems being significantly better. Converting that into cost, expect to pay at least $85 for a 12 watt system like the Cygolite Night Rover, and about $180-190 for a 15 watt-equivalent system like the DiNotte Pro 200L Cygolite Rover II LED Xtra. The latter systems tend to have longer "burn times", fast and smart chargers and lighter batteries that provide more brightness throughout their discharge. In short, you're getting way more than "just a few more watts" for the extra money of a NiMH 12-15 equivalent watt LED light over that basic 12-watt lead-acid system.
   
   
3. Not all LED headlights are equal. In fact, for years, LEDs generally offered a poor bang-for-the-buck in terms of brightness that they are usually relegated to the low-end light category above. Sure, LEDs are more durable, and much more efficient (an order or magnitude) than the 2.4watt incandescent lights they have replaced, but they put out light in a narrow plane making visibility to the side generally less effective than other technologies. Even the much-touted 1-watt LEDs lack the output to let a rider see where they are going, and those lights routinely cost around $50! We are starting to see "high-end" lights with multiple 1-watt LEDs or even single multi-watt LEDs.
   
   Only very recently has the cost-benefit ratio of multi-watt LED units surpassed the 15watt halogen incandescents that were the mainstay of commuters for years. In fact, when this article was first written, LEDs just didn't "pencil out" against bright halogen lights. Now they do, and also offer greater durability, smaller batteries and longer burn times.
   
   
4. High Intensity Discharge (HID or "metal-halide") lights are generally the brightest technology going for bikes (equivalent to 45-55 watts of light!), with run-times up to twice as long as the highest-end incandescent lights. Their $310-$600 cost is pretty reasonable, especially if you consider the cost and inconvenience of either crashing solo from unseen debris/poor surface, or worse, from being hit by a motorist. It would be a rare medical bill that costs less than even the nicest HID light made! Investing in your safety is the smartest thing you can do — get a derailer decent enough to do the job, but get the brightest light you can afford. We like the Light & Motion HID lights.
   
   
5. Keeping it simple is a good thing. Avoid lights with excessive bells and whistles. Remote switches are more likely to fail (besides being another thing to secure to, and remove from, your bike). Features like fuel gauges seem nifty, but in reality, any competent person can keep track of how long their light has been burning, plus with fast and smart chargers becoming more common, batteries can be easily "topped-off" before being fully discharged (and by the way, "battery memory" is largely a myth).
   
   
6. Exceptions to the "Keep it Simple" rule are "fast" and "smart" chargers, and lights with multiple brightness settings. A 10-11 hour recharge time may work well for some, but for busy folks with a tight schedule, a fast charger, with 2-5 hour turnaround is more convenient. Smart chargers help protect batteries by shutting off when their job is done. This is an important feature because overcharging batteries easily damages them, resulting in dramatically reduced burn time and/or battery life (often thought to be "battery memory", which it is not). Protect your investment by getting a system with a smart charger (they're usually fast ones too). Perhaps of lesser import, multiple light levels can be handy for increasing burn time (at the expense of brightness, of course).

GENERATOR LIGHTS

Comparing watts isn't the ultimate expression of a light's effectiveness, though, and battery-powered lights aren't the only option. Generator or dynamo light systems (either frame-mounted-tire-driven or contained in the hub of a front wheel) can be as bright as a 10W battery-based system with just a 3-watt incandescent bulb. Quality dynamo-lights, are designed to make the most of the limited power-generating capabilities of a human, and have good reflectors and lenses that put the light down exactly where it is needed. In contrast, most battery-powered headlights are adapted from the world of indoor halogen lighting. They follow the usual American model — sheer "horsepower" (applied inefficiently) to get enough light.

Generator lights get a big thumbs-up regarding their dependability. Own one, and you'll never wonder, "Did I bring my light? Is it charged?" If you can pedal, you have light! Plus, the spare bulbs are less than battery-powered halogen bulbs and much less than HIDs (about $4, $15 and $30, respectively). Newer offerings from Shimano (and others) are attracting several folks to generator lights at lower costs than in previous years. Furthermore, one of the longstanding downsides of generators — no light when the bike stops at a traffic light or stop sign — has been overcome by using a "standlight", a capacitor (like a short-term battery) that powers an auxialiry LED. Standlights usually provide a couple minutes of "defensive-visibility" (allowing other road users to see the cyclist). Generator systems and standlights can also power rear lights too. There is even more good news — generator lights, like battery-powered systems, are still evolving. The latest ones use ultra-long-lasting multi-watt LEDs for the main light source, making these lights even more user and earth-friendly.

 

THE FUTURE OF BIKE LIGHTS

The world of bike lights is changing rapidly. Some of today's technologies may soon fall by the wayside. The future for HID lights in uncertain right now, but for the time being, they are still the brightness champion. Most innovation is being done with LED technology. Expect that in the next couple years, halogens, that stalwart "middle brightness/price point" will largely be replaced with next-generation LEDs (the Cygolite Rover II Xtra and the DiNotte Pro 200L lights are their death knells in our opinion). With such dramatic gains in LED efficiency and burn time as well as reduction in size/weight, the future of bicycle lighting looks quite bright indeed!

Take a look at the light systems featured on our website.