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review
One23 Super Bright 0.5 rear light £12.99
VERDICT:
Seriously bright rear light for a seriously small amount of money
Weight:
75g
Contact:
www.todayscyclist.co.uk
At road.cc every product is thoroughly tested for as long as it takes to get a proper insight into how well it works. Our reviewers are experienced cyclists that we trust to be objective. While we strive to ensure that opinions expressed are backed up by facts, reviews are by their nature an informed opinion, not a definitive verdict. We don't intentionally try to break anything (except locks) but we do try to look for weak points in any design. The overall score is not just an average of the other scores: it reflects both a product's function and value – with value determined by how a product compares with items of similar spec, quality, and price.
What the road.cc scores meanGood scores are more common than bad, because fortunately good products are more common than bad.
- Exceptional
- Excellent
- Very Good
- Good
- Quite good
- Average
- Not so good
- Poor
- Bad
- Appalling
The One23 Super Bright 0.5 rear light is just that. By my reckoning (not to mention singed retinas of those behind me), its good to eight hundred and fifty metres in flashing - and the lens profile ensures 180 degree visibility.
The price is the real shocker. Only a few years back this sort of performance would set you back thirty odd quid. Here you'll get change from a tenner at many online retailers - batteries included!
Measuring 6x4x3cm, it's nice and minimalist and coupled with a super stretchy rubberised bracket can be helmet mounted. A fairly compliant clothing clip clings to jersey pockets, bag loops and shoulder straps.
Accessing the AAA cells means separating the casing via a coin slot with a 2p or 5p. Transparent battery tray aside, there's little to see, or touch for that matter, which explains why it has survived a five minute hosepipe test and immersion in twenty-five centimetres of seawater.
There are three LEDs, with three settings - steady, flash and hybrid where the main stays constant while the others dance their socks off. A recessed, top mounted switch is pretty discreet and requires a two second press to engage, so unwanted start-ups should be highly unlikely.
Out in the sticks and helmet mounted this light is visible from a good 750 metres and the side visibility has saved my bacon when emerging from secluded driveways. Through town, strobing is at just the right tempo not to get drowned out but once again, it is most effective at eye level.
Verdict
A seriously bright rear light for a seriously small amount of money
road.cc test report
Make and model: One23 Super Bright 0.5 rear light
Size tested: Black
Tell us what the light is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?
"SUPER BRIGHT 0.5W
0.5 Watt Powerfull White or red LED
2 Bright Additional LED's
Up To 100 Hours Run Time
Visible Up To 1000m
3 Modes Steady And 2 Flashing
Tool Free Fitting
Belt Clip For Back Pack Or Pannier
2 AAA Batteries Included".
Generally agree, although 850m tops in perfect conditions.
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the light?
1/2 watt LED
2 additional high performance LED's
High Clarity Optical Lens
Rate the light for quality of construction:
7/10
Extremely well sealed from the elements, although plastic proved a little softer than premium brands around the battery slot.
Rate the light for design and ease of use. How simple was the light to use?
8/10
Rate the light for the design and usability of the clamping system/s
7/10
Very simple and ladder type strap will even stretch to accomodate helmets.
Rate the light for waterproofing. How did it stand up to the elements?
8/10
Passed hosepipe torture testing and North sea immersion with flying colours.
Rate the light for battery life. How long did it last? How long did it take to recharge?
8/10
Managed 92 hours in flashing, 49 constant, which is pretty frugal coming from two AAA cells.
Rate the light for performance:
8/10
Rate the light for durability:
7/10
Surprisingly robust.
Rate the light for weight, if applicable:
7/10
Rate the light for comfort, if applicable:
7/10
Switch could prove tricky to operate wearing really thick winter gloves.
Rate the light for value:
8/10
Tell us how the light performed overall when used for its designed purpose
One23 super bright 0.5 watt rear LED is phenomenally bright and will give some household names a seriously good run for your money. Maximum visibility is nearer 850 rather than 1000 metres in flashing modes,450 constant/peripherally.
Mounting hardware entertains the full zodiac of seatpost diameters and is very accomodating of modern helmets/luggage too. However, trailers/tag alongs will need two on account of modest surface area.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the light
Pretty much everything.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the light
The battery slot's relatively soft plastics.
Did you enjoy using the light? Yes.
Would you consider buying the light? Definitely.
Would you recommend the light to a friend? In most contexts, yes.
About the tester
Age: 38 Height: 1m 81 Weight: 70 kilos
I usually ride: Rough Stuff Tourer Based around 4130 Univega mtb Frameset My best bike is: 1955 Holdsworth Road Path and several others including cross & traditional road
I've been riding for: Over 20 years I ride: Most days I would class myself as: Experienced
I regularly do the following types of riding: cyclo cross, commuting, touring, fixed/singlespeed, mtb,
Shaun Audane is a freelance writer/product tester with over twenty-eight years riding experience, the last twelve (120,000 miles) spent putting bikes and kit through their paces for a variety of publications. Previous generations of his family worked at manufacturing's sharp end, thus Shaun can weld, has a sound understanding of frame building practice and a preference for steel or titanium framesets.
Citing Richard Ballantine and an Au pair as his earliest cycling influences, he is presently writing a cycling book with particular focus upon women, families and disabled audiences (Having been a registered care manager and coached children at Herne Hill Velodrome in earlier careers)
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Add new comment
9 comments
Smart Lunar r1 (1watt) is £8 these days with a bit of googling.
"The Phaart range all look very familiar" -
yes - I should have mentioned, the ones I went for have brackets compatible with Smart lights, but I'm pretty sure the others look quite like Cateye-type fittings.
or the "Phaart" range, incidentally? (Could Road.cc do some reviews of these cheapie Planet-X lights? £2.50 for a 0.5W blinker is a steal!).
I'm finding them to be pretty good.
They look like the circuitry and spec is the same as Smart, just in less polished exteriors / not made of the finest rubberized translucent sports plastics
Plus, their brackets are compatible with real Smart lights - so if you're feeling snobbish, you can swap the real thing around your bikes, with enough cheap brackets.
The Phaart range all look very familiar...
Ta for the heads-up. Have just bought half a dozen of the skull blinkies.
How is this any different to all the other 0.5W rear lights on the market? Eg the Smart range?
Just ordered the pair. Will let you know what they're like when they arrive...
Looks exactly the same as the BBB one i just got.. except the BBB one doesn't have a flashing mode
bloody bright though!
Ah I see you do say AAA in the report lower down, it's just in the article it says AA.
Thanks guys, looks like my kind of light, complete with rubber fixing - good for the Brompton seat post. Any news of the similar One23 front light? Also you say it runs on AA batteries but the todayscyclist website says it uses AAA. http://www.todayscyclist.co.uk/product.aspx?X=ONLA052 Can you confirm please.