Group test: cycle light sets

If you cycle between sunset and sunrise, a white front and red rear light on your cycle are a legal requirement in the UK. There are more intricacies, so it’s a good idea to read our guide to lighting regulations if you want more information.

If you ride during winter, it’s a good idea to have lights with you even if you think you’ll only be riding during daylight hours. Even a short unexpected delay could mean you’re chasing the sun, and not in a good way. This is especially true if you cycle to work, where an emergency could keep you longer than anticipated.

If you’re looking to replace your lights, there’s a huge range to choose from. We’ve put three sets through their paces to help you make that choice. Lights come in two basic varieties: ‘see’ or ‘be seen’. All three tested here are of the latter type. If you cycle off road or on unlit roads you’ll also need more of a headlamp-style light so you can see where you’re going.

1. Knog Blinder Bike Light Twinpack

Price: £74.99
Max/min runtime: 60hrs (Eco-Flash mode)/2.5hrs (High Steady mode)
Charge time: 4hrs
Max output: 200 lumens (front), 100 lumens (rear)
Weight: 34g
Available from: Knog

These compact square lights from Knog come with three sets of different-sized rubber rings to fit to your bike. They’re very easy to fix in place and felt secure. I’m not the gentlest of riders and I didn’t have any concerns that these might fall off.

There are eight modes, the flashing versions of which have either a square or ‘x’ pattern, which you select at purchase. I went for the square, while the solid centre and flashing outside square was my favourite mode.

You turn the light on by long pressing a small button set into the back of the light; pressing this button again cycles through the modes. It’s easy to use – I was concerned I wouldn’t be able to operate it while wearing gloves but my fears were unfounded.

The USB charger is integral to the unit. This means there’s no need for cables. However, it’s not covered so I’m not sure how well it’ll fare in the wet. Although Knog assures me the lights are fully waterproof. The charging time given by Knog is accurate at four hours.

This tiny light packs a real punch. I didn’t have concerns that it wasn’t noticeable. It even stopped pedestrians stepping out into the road in front of me! My chosen mode last five hours and when I tested the solid mode it did last the quoted 2.5.

The low battery indicator is useful. I was worried that it might not be noticeable but it was fine. There were about 30 minutes of battery life left on my chosen mode.

Verdict: lightweight, compact and powerful.

2. Lezyne Fusion Drive 500+ (front) and KTV Drive Pro+ (rear) Led Light Set

Price: £75
Max/min runtime: 35hrs (Femto mode, front)/1hr 45mins (Blast mode, front), 20hrs (Femto mode, rear)/2hrs (Blast mode, rear)
Charge time: not given
Max output: 500 lumens (front), 150 lumens (rear)o
Weight: 128g (front), 50g (rear)
Available from: Upgrade Bikes

These were much chunkier than the Blinders, which is reflected in the heavier weight. They come with a rubber band with several holes in it so you can adjust it to fit your bike.

I struggled with the front light. The hook is under the body of the light, making it difficult to access when it’s placed against your handlebar. I wouldn’t be able to fix this while wearing gloves. The rear light was easier. Once in place, both lights felt very secure and didn’t move at all, even on London’s potholed roads.

There are six modes. My favourite for both units was Day Flash, which was incredibly bright, even during the day. I rode in the dark and during low light levels on overcast mornings and I had no concerns about the light not being visible.

The on/off button on the front light is quite stiff, but I could still scroll through the different modes while cycling wearing gloves. Blast mode is very bright. I wouldn’t recommend it for totally light-free situations, but it lit up the less well-lit roads that make up some of my work commute.

Front and rear lights are USB chargeable. The KTV Drive Pro+ has a thick rubber jacket that pulls off to reveal a USB connector that plugs directly into the socket. The front unit has a USB 3 port under the light. It’s rubber covered and looks nicely waterproof. However, you’ll need your own cable.

The rear light lasted about 11 hours, half an hour over the stated 10.5-hour runtime. The Fusion Drive 500+ lasted about 25 hours – five hours fewer than that claimed. The red warning light came on around 45 minutes before the light died. Lezyne doesn’t give recharge times, but it took about 2.5 hours to charge both.

Verdict: Satisfyingly chunky, bright lights with very long burn times and lots of options.

3. CatEye AMPP400S (front) and Viz100 (rear) Kit

Price: £42.28
Max/min runtime: 60hrs (Flashing mode, front)/2hrs (High mode, front), 70hrs (Flashing mode, rear)/5hrs (Constant mode, rear)
Charge time: 4hrs (front), 3hrs (rear)
Max output: 400 lumens (front), 100 lumens (rear)
Weight: 106g (front), 22g (rear)
Available from: Halfords

This set is very similar in style to Lezyne, though they’re slightly lighter and sleeker looking. The rear light fixes to your bike using a thick, adjustable rubber strap. It’s quite long so will fit to a lot of different-sized tubes. It’s also easy to get on and off.

The front light comes with a mount that attaches to the handlebar with a plastic strap. You then slide the unit into place. There’s a small lever under the light to release it to slide back out again. When putting it in, make sure it clicks in place – I didn’t, and it fell out just before I set off.

I struggled to find the lever on my first attempt, but once I’d located it, the front light was easy to remove and just leave the mount in place. The rear was a case of unhooking the rubber strap.

Both lights are exceptionally bright with excellent daytime visibility. I especially appreciated the side visibility on the AMPP400S, which comes with five modes. I went for the HyperConstant which flashes and has a constant light. The back light has four modes; I chose Group Ride.

The front light charges using a USB3 connection; the Viz100 using USB1. Cables aren’t included. The AMPP400S lasted just over the given time of six hours on HyperConstant. A red warning light came on about 40 minutes before the light died. Recharging took around three hours – an hour less than that given.

The Viz100 lasted at least an hour longer than the supplied time of 11 hours. It automatically swapped to Flashing, the most economical mode, giving it at least another couple of hours’ burn time; a nice touch that I really liked. However, this isn’t very bright and I wouldn’t want to rely on it. It took 2.5 hours to charge. The runtimes given for the highest solid settings were spot on.

Verdict: Bright, easy to use and with good running times and some nice touches.

Overall verdict

I would happily recommend all these lights. They’re all very bright and generally easy to operate and get off and on the bike. Daytime visibility was good on all three. Which one you go for really comes down to looks and how you’re going to be using them.

Knog’s Blinders are very small and light and very easy to fix to the bike. If you leave your bike in a public place and need to take everything off it, these would be ideal as they’ll easily fit into a bag or pocket. However, they don’t last as long as the other two options here.

CatEye and Lezyne are very similar. Both have long runtimes in my chosen modes, while even the brightest solid settings should give plenty of time for most rides, especially work commutes or shopping trips.

They’re heavier and bulkier than the Blinders and not as quick to whip off the bike. But they last significantly longer with similar charging times.

I really liked the CatEye AMPP400S’s side visibility and a 40-minute low-battery warning felt like a good amount of time – enough to get you home from work. Automatically switching to the most economical mode was a nice touch in the Viz100.

Lezyne Fusion Drive 500+ lasted for ages and the KTV Drive Pro+ had an impressive burn time too. But this set wasn’t quite as user friendly as CatEye’s.

CatEye’s set is just over £30 cheaper, and that’s without the 7% Cycling UK member discount if you buy from Halfords.