The NiteRider Lumina 1000 Boost Front Bike Light is robust and simple to use, with decent output for seeing with, but quite short run-times and slow charging. And though the mount it comes with is very solid, it only works with classic round handlebars not ones with deep aero-shaped tops – you'll need to buy a separate aero bar mount for those.
For more options, check out our guide to the best front bike lights.
Modes & run-times
The Lumina 1000 Boost has a super-bright day flash along with some pretty good constant modes for use in the dark.
For cycling, it has four solid modes – Low (200lm), Medium (300lm), High (750lm) and Boost (1,000lm), and two flashing, Fast Flash and Pulse, plus a 50-lumen Walk mode.
NiteRider claims a maximum of 21 hours of battery life, but this is for the Walk mode; the longest-lasting usable mode for cycling is Pulse, a mix of constant with brighter pulses, which lasts for a claimed 10hrs 30mins.
On the brightest 1,000-lumen mode the battery lasted for just over the claimed hour, and the other modes also match the run-times NiteRider claims.
During the day I mostly used the Fast flash. It's super bright, and visible from long distances. It lasts for 6 hours on a full charge.
For night riding on the road, I was mostly flicking between the 375 and 750-lumen modes, depending on the quality of the surfaces and whether there was any other lighting about. I do think a 500-lumen option would have been ideal for the majority of my road riding.
The beam has quite a rectangular pattern, which means there's not too much glare for oncoming traffic, but it's very concentrated in the middle with little spread, making it quite hard to pick things out, like potholes, and limiting for off-road use as you can't see the sides of the trails.
One big drawback of this light is that there is very little indication for how much juice there is left in the battery; the only indication you get is that the button on top turns red when the battery level is below 20%. Anything above that is blue, which means if you aren't sure when you last charged it, you have no way of knowing if you're at 25% or 100% charge. Not ideal.
Once the battery is flat, charging it is another frustration. While the whole world has adopted USB-C for its far superior qualities, NiteRider is still using micro-USB, and charging this light is really slow. NiteRider says using a charger that outputs more than 500mA will take 3 hours, and a lower charger will take 6 hours; ours took 3.5 hours.
You can't use the light while it's charging, either, which might rule it out for some bikepacking or ultra rides.
Build
On the plus side, the single button on the top of the light is big enough to be easy to use when you have gloves on, which is perfect for the winter months.
It's well made, too, with a fiberglass body and aluminium fins that act as a heatsink, to help keep the whole system cool.
It's rated to IP64 for dust and water resistance, and there is a heavy rubber seal over the charge port. I've used the light in some awful weather and not had any issues with water ingress.
Mount
The NiteRider has quite a small footprint, so won't take up much space on handlebars.
It mounts with a proprietary locking system, with rails on the bottom of the light that in turn slide into the mount.
I found this easy to fit, with a screw to tighten up the clamp, but it can only mount to a standard round bar (25.4mm to 35mm diameter). If you have an aero-shaped bar you'll need the aero mount that NiteRider sells separately, or a GoPro adaptor so you could fit it under an out-front mount.
When the light slides easily into the mount, a little locking tab holds it in place. I found that sometimes it automatically locked in place, but other times I had to just make sure the tab on the mount was pulled up into place, to hold the light securely. The light can swivel on the mount, which is handy.
The mount has a rubber insert that sits inside it and works really well – there was no slippage, the light stayed fixed in place – but be aware that this can fall out when you take off the mount if you aren't careful.
Also, while out testing the light on the bike I did notice a slight rattle developing when going over bumpy roads, which doesn't give me the best confidence in the mount for longevity.
Travel safe
When the light arrived it was in Travel Lock Out Mode, which, as the name suggests, means the light can't be turned on accidentally; you have to press and hold the power button for 10 seconds. This is ideal when you throw the light in a bag and don't want to risk it turning on and running out of power. Laurence found the 900-lumen model he reviewed had a habit of locking, but I haven't had any issues with this one.
Value
Coming in at £85, this isn't a cheap light. The build quality is definitely high, but for that money I'd expect better battery indication, and while the output is good, the battery life isn't as impressive as other lights in a similar price bracket, such as the BBB Strike Duo that I tested last year, which offers 1hr 45mins at 1,200 lumens for just under £75.
And for around £64 (currently discounted to £49.37) there's the Gaciron Kiwi 1200, which also offers a longer run-time of 90 minutes on full.
It might help if NiteRider included its aero mount or GoPro-compatible adaptor in the box, so the light could appeal to more people, and help justify the price.
Conclusion
To my mind, the rather outdated micro-USB charging and rattling mount detract from the decent light output, and I'd struggle to say this is the one to go for at around £80. It's not bad, but there are better options out there.
Verdict
Decent output, but with some outdated features for the money
Make and model: NiteRider Lumina 1000 Boost Front Bike Light
Size tested: 1,000 lumens max
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?
NiteRider says: "The NiteRider® Lumina™ 1000 Boost is the perfect light for mountain bikers, road riders, adventure riders and urban commuters."
NR lists these highlights:
* 1000 lumen Boost Mode, double tap power button to unleash maximum LED output!
* Collimator Lens, distributes a generous even widespread beam pattern
* 5 Light Levels plus 1 Daylight Flash Mode
* Secure on and off-road capable handlebar mount
* Fits standard and oversize 35mm handlebars
* Perfect for helmet mounting (Helmet Mount sold separately)
* Low battery indicator
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the light?
NR lists these features:
* Lumen Output: 1000
* 6 Modes with Run Times: 1:00 – 21:00hrs
* Charge Time: 2:30 / 5:00 hrs
* Weight: 172g
* Battery: Li-Ion
* Low Battery Indicator
* Micro USB Rechargeable
* 1000 lumen front bike light with Boost Mode
* Water / Dust Resistant IP64 Rated
RUN TIMES
Low - 6:00h at 200 Lumens
Med - 3:30h at 300 Lumens
High - 1:30h at 750 Lumens
Boost - 1:00h at 1000 Lumens
Pulse Flash - 10:30h at 750 Lumens
Fast Flash - 6:00h at 750 Lumens
Walk - 21:00h at 50 Lumens
Rate the light for quality of construction:
8/10
Rate the light for design and ease of use. How simple was the light to use?
8/10
With a single button, it's very easy to use.
Rate the light for the design and usability of the clamping system/s
7/10
On a classic round bar then the clamp is very solid and won't move. It doesn't fit to a deeper aero bar, though, so if you have one of those you'll need to buy the aero bar mount, available separately.
Rate the light for waterproofing. How did it stand up to the elements?
8/10
It's rated IP64, which means it's resistant to spray, but it has held up very well in the rain, with the rubber sealing for the charging port being a very good fit.
Rate the light for battery life. How long did it last? How long did it take to recharge?
5/10
Takes a very long time to charge compared with USB-C lights, and the battery life is a little disappointing for the price.
Rate the light for performance:
6/10
It's definitely bright enough to see with, but the battery doesn't last especially long in the brighter modes, so it's not the best for long night rides.
Rate the light for durability:
7/10
The body of the light feels very solid and durable, but the mount is already rattling – it's early days and might be fine, but doesn't give me much confidence.
Rate the light for weight:
8/10
At 172g, this is quite light; if you need to chuck it in a bag then you won't really notice it.
Rate the light for value:
4/10
Tell us how the light performed overall when used for its designed purpose
It worked well, and was bright enough to see with, but the battery doesn't last very long and it takes ages to charge.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the light
I like the solid feel of the light body.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the light
The use of micro-USB, and the limited battery level indicator; also, that you need to buy a separate clamp for aero bars.
How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?
For the output and battery life, this is at the upper end.
Did you enjoy using the light? It was okay.
Would you consider buying the light? Not for the money.
Would you recommend the light to a friend? Unlikely
Use this box to explain your overall score
It has a decent output and you can definitely see with it, but the battery life is average, the charge rate is slow, and it's difficult to see how much juice there is left. It's quite good, but there are better options out there.
Age: 23 Height: 174 Weight: 72
I usually ride: Storck Aerfast My best bike is:
I've been riding for: 10-20 years I ride: Every day I would class myself as: Semi pro
I regularly do the following types of riding: road racing, commuting, touring, club rides, fixed/singlespeed, mtb,
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