It’s a 3 XML bike light- it doesn’t have a model # and is completely unbranded- but I don’t think anyone else has reviewed this yet. The video review contains beamshots/ profiles, runtimes, a disassembly, actual night footage of me riding with it, etc. This is one of those headlamp/ bike light combos.
Pros:
* Decently driven low @ 1.61 amps.
* Actual light is pretty high quality. All aluminum and glass components.
* Nice thick aluminum slab for the XMLs to sit on, and in combination with the reflector it provides a good deal of thermal management.
* From what I can tell, over 1000 lumens? Check out the beamshot comparison in the video… brighter than the EA4 on Turbo, but not near as bright as one of the crappy versions of the Sky Ray King.
Cons:
* Very moderately driven on higher modes
1-LED Low……….1.61amps
2-LED Medium……1.90amps
3-LED High……….2.07amps
Charging time sucks. If you drain the battery till the button glows red- at least an 8 hour charge. I actually own a single xml bike light that I got from Wallbuys that charges faster- and it has a similar style battery pack (apparently not all 4x18650 packs are 8.4v). Looking at a lot of bike lights on ebay it seems most use a 8.4v charger and pack, while the battery pack here is definitely a 4.2v one.
I wish the battery pack had removable batteries. I can’t tell what’s in it without ripping it apart. I don’t trust it to keep out water.
Needs a slightly longer cord on the light. I’d like the cord to run all the way to my seat post, so I can zip tie it to my bike and only remove the battery pack for charging. As it is, it only runs about 2/3 the way down the length of the main bike tube. If you’re one of those people who removes the valuables from your bike and mount it only when you need it- this is probably a moot point.
Other things to note.
Definitely a cool white light.
Pretty Floody.
Secondary XML’s that are activated on low and High, do not seem to be driven as hard as the one only illuminated on “low” mode.
Gets pretty hot without airflow, but not something that will burn your hand. You can hold it for several seconds before it gets uncomfortable.
One thing I think I missed is a closeup of the circuit board for curious BLF’ers. If anyone truely needs this I could take some still closeups of it.
Brilliant review! I think you covered everything there very well. The only curiosity I have is the draw current on this one with those 3x XM-L's it must be pretty conservative ?
Thanks for sharing, I'm looking forward to your next one :)
Is there a way to test this without tearing the whole battery pack apart? The place where the pack and light join doesn’t really allow for DMM leads. I am assuming it’s very conservative. It’s nowhere near the lower quality SRK’s- but considering the small package, I don’t know if it could handle being driven as hard as the SRK.
Did I spell it wrong? Oops. I used to think that Cat Eye was the bomb. That and I paid pretty close to what this light is retailing for on Banggood.
You can get an extension cable for a couple bucks and use that between the battery pack and head to test the current. When you're done, you might even want to put a voltmeter in there.
That’s what happens when you take a 700c tire on rough pavement. The light cable actually came unplugged on that bump because I didn’t have it properly connected- I used it as the fade out. The light didn’t move though! Those silicone o-rings don’t do too bad a job. Thanks for the kind words.
I think these battery packs are pretty dubious anyway. No info on most of them, and no way to open them without destroying the wrapper. I wish some of the vendors here carried accessories like battery packs that you can replace the batteries in and extension cables. I mean they carry like 30 different lights all that use what appears to be the same basic battery pack, and cable design- and no way to improve them. I like this light a lot- just hate the charge time- not sure if it’s the battery pack or the charger.
I guess there’s this. I wish there was a little more info on it- or someone who had it cheaper.
Got your answer. It is the same one every time, and they always light up in the same order.
I was able to get a voltage reading from the battery…. it’s only a 4.2v. So I guess using a 8.4v charger wouldn’t work on this. I tested my other identical looking battery pack- and it’s an 8.4v- so not all these 4x18650 battery packs are the same voltage. Since I don’t know the specs I can’t be certain that I can use the 8.4v pack with this light.
I have updated the original post to include this information.
I was about to post a solution but you figured it out pretty much like I did except I used shrink wrap :) It's not easy avoiding sparks though
Thanks for the readings, funny how they drive a single emitter at 1.6A then when all 3 are running they're only pulling approx 700mA each. Weird setup indeed
Yeah, and now I wonder why the battery pack is only a 4.2v, when all those other lights (including another one I have) use 8.4v (2s&2p). Maybe it’s under driven because of the weak battery pack that comes with it?
Thanks for the review! WRT heatsinking, does the pill touch a large area of the inside of the head?
WRT output, I’m SURE if the battery had a lower internal resistance, those current readings would be higher.
To be honest, it could use a very thin wrap of copper tape. There’s about a mm of space around the whole thing
In this photo I drew the lines where the heatsink rests (touches) inside the housing. I believe the band of the actual heatsink ring touches the inside of the aluminum housing.
A very entertaining review in a unique and enjoyable style. Keep up the great work!
Just one question regarding the comparison shots. I have the EA4 and from the video review it appears the alignment may not have been quite right. Is it possible that the EA4 might have been aimed a little high as it does have a fairly tight hotspot and the upper part of the tree behind looks particularly well illuminated?
Not meaning to criticize, just asking as the difference seems quite a bit more than I would have expected.
Yeah it may have been aimed a little high. It’s got a tighter spot, so it was a little harder to hit the target. You can see it throws father than the others though- by the amount of light on the trees in the background.
