Night-Rover is the most popular and economical rechargeable headlight system for the night time commuter. This 12.5-watt dual beam system is compact and lightweight, with a rechargeable frame mount Gel-Cel battery pack that will continue charging for years. Night-Rover comes with a CYGO LITE exclusive, PITCHED DUAL BEAM, giving the rider a 5 degree difference of beam aiming angles allowing full road coverage.
Thumbscrew easily adjust beam direction up and down
Easy-to-mount, compact rechargeable battery pack
Runs up to 3 hours on single beam- 1 1/2 hours on dual
Submitted by
timmcdonald
a Cross Country Rider
from Marysville WA
Date Reviewed: January 16, 2012
Strengths: Price, durability,
Weaknesses: Heavy battery, not near as bright now since battery wearing down, pricey repair/replacement parts
Bottom Line:
The Cygolite Rover was my first and still only light. I bought it 7 or so years ago and it's still going strong. The battery is coming to the end of it's life cycle though and it doesn't get quite as bright as it did when new. However it still works for nightly 30 minute round trip. It's good for about 60-90 minutes of run time but dims drastically if it goes past an hour running. I finally just burned out the 2nd halogen bulb after years of use. I found a Phillips LED 20watt equivalent bulb at 140 lumens that is an MR11 size and it fit perfectly in the casing. So I put it and one of the burned out bulbs back in to seal it up. It was $25 at Home Depot. They also had a 100 lumen bulb for $20. I figure it was worth it to try since the Cygolite website has replacement bulbs for $11.99 plus shipping. The packaging says this bulb is good for 23 years of working life and is ok for damp conditions. It's meant for track lighting though so it will be interesting to see how it lasts out in the rainy Seattle elements. There are better LED options out there now but if you found a cheap used Rover, you can upgrade it to LED lights for $25. If I can, I'll post an update down the road sometime after I've used the Phillips LED bulb for awhile.
Submitted by
rooftop77
a Weekend Warrior
from grand rapids, MI, USA
Date Reviewed: October 20, 2008
Strengths: Easy to Use
Weaknesses: Battery Life
Bottom Line:
For the price it's a nice light. I have always disliked the battery. I only ever got about an hour out of a charge. It lasted about two years. The charger and the light itself are still in great working condition dispite being beat to crap.
As an entry level light for less than $100 it is well worth the investment. I am older and more pickey now and would like a Li-Ion battery that lights up the world.
Bike Setup: 1996 Mongoose Rockadile Rigid converted to road style gearing.
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Submitted by
Patrick
a Weekend Warrior
from Minneaplis
Date Reviewed: August 18, 2006
Strengths: Cheap, bright.
Weaknesses: Bad switches, delicate battery.
Bottom Line:
The ability to break the battery by overcharging or overdischarging is a great weakness. Damn switches work fine in the garage, then go bad on the road. I'm looking forward to an upgrade, but it has served me well as a decent entry-level light.
Similar Products Used: This is my first decent (>3W) headlight.
Bike Setup: Windsor Fens, Specialized Rockhopper.
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Submitted by
Clint B
a Weekend Warrior
from Charlottesville, VA, USA
Date Reviewed: April 17, 2006
Strengths: Cheap, reasonably bright for price range.
Weaknesses: Battery very heavy & large. Only getting ~1.2 hr run time. Don't waste your money on helmet adaptor-I did & it lasted less than 10 minutes.
Bottom Line:
This light does it's job, and is is very cheap for a light that is bright enough to actually mtb with. My biggest complaint is the weight & run time of the battery; but you get what you pay for. If you mtb at night regularly, my advice it to buy something more in the $180+ range.
I purchased this light, and only used it once or twice for the 1st year; then I let it sit in my garage all winter before attempting to use it again; DON'T DO THAT! The cold & long-time without being used killed the battery, and it cost me close to $60 to have the cells replaced--almost what I paid for the entire system. I probably should have just bought a nicer battery with what I now have into this light. Even if you do not use this light (or any other for that matter), do your self a favor, and run it mostly down & then recharge it for the manufacturer-suggested time at least once a month. The charger is a "dumb" charger, so you have remember to not over or under charge the battery, or you can damage it. Still, for the price, I feel that this is a decent light.
One last thing: do not waste your money on the adaptor that allows you to attach the light to your helmet; I did, and it did not even last 10 minutes before it failed completely. That could have been disaterous had I been bombing downhill when it happened.
Bike Setup: 2004 Gary Fisher Sugar 2 Race, Reba Team Fork w/ U-turn.
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Submitted by
johnnyb
a Cross Country Rider
from Fairfax, Cali
Date Reviewed: November 3, 2005
Strengths: I've used this light for FIVE years, three times a week for about 44 weeks a year and I've replaced only one light and the battery charger.
Weaknesses: Not 100% waterproof, limited bright light time.
Bottom Line:
For a $65 dollar light, plus $20 for the charger and $10 for the light bulb--a total of $95 is a great deal for five years. In fact the original charger still works but the red light is burned out.
This cheapie light is still chugging along. I've waterproofed along all the joints by laying a bead of glue gun glue and it has worked great, when I changed the bulb, I had noticed there was water inside the body housing and not sure if that was what burned out the bulb. But everything has been good since. With the original lead-acid battery, the light at full power will last a little over an hour, running one light with occaisional hi-power you can get 2 hours. Enough for my commute and enough for a moonlight mountain ride.
No complaints here. Just dry off the equipment and when the battery is really low, charge for 12 hours.
The service department people may be bored but they got the parts right away to me.
Bike Setup: Bianchi Vigorelli (I know its a road bike), and Mountain Cycle Rumble
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Submitted by
Greg
a Cross Country Rider
from Vancouver, WA
Date Reviewed: July 24, 2005
Strengths: Best lights per dollar
Weaknesses: light switches break
Bottom Line:
I have to admit that I have purchased three of these. They keep breaking and I keep buying thinking I will have spare parts - and I do! I will not purchase anything more from this company due to the unreliablity of the switches.
Submitted by
Nathaniel Williams
a Cross Country Rider
from Lynnfield,mass,usa
Date Reviewed: May 13, 2005
Strengths: Wicked bright dude!!!!!!!!!!! I went from L.E.Ds to this, I almost blinded myself! Price. You get 2 halogeon lights,not just one.
Weaknesses: Short burn time when in the woods you can barly see the stuff around you. Velcrow-yes it's spelled wrong,I know-is anoying, battery pack is huge. Falty switches so, somtimes you can turn only one light on.
Bottom Line:
The folks at cygo lite are nice and understanding, but so unthusiastic, the guy I spoke to was half dead.
Bought used, with one light burned out which got a replacment for free.
RECOMENDED FOR COMMUTING ONLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Similar Products Used: cateye, crap from toys R us
Bike Setup: Marin w/ Marz comp, avid bb mech disc, stell bike, deore
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Submitted by
Paul Robbins
a Weekend Warrior
from Huntington Beach, CA, United States
Date Reviewed: February 17, 2005
Strengths: Throws lots of light, weight of battery
Weaknesses: battery is only good for 1.5 hours with both lights on
Bottom Line:
Excellent light and value. I have tried others in this price range and this is the best for the money. I purchased this light in used condition on eBay. It arrived without the handlebar mount. I called Cygolight, explained the situation and FOR FREE they gave me a replacement one that day. Andrew could not have been nicer-they have and deserve this customer's loyalty.
The Night Rover has worked very well, but I am most impressed with their service. I had my bike stolen and was able to get replacement parts promtly before an upcoming race. The service people helped to fit my needs and even recomended replacement bulbs for the type of race I was competing in.
Submitted by
Bob
a Weekend Warrior
from Melbourne, Australia
Date Reviewed: May 25, 2004
Strengths: Lights are terrific, must be one of the more affodable twin light sysytems available. Using both beams you get a a very good coverage - especially for commuting or on bike tracks where l do most of my night riding.
Weaknesses: Cost of replacement parts - battery, globes etc. But if you are willing to contact the guys at Cygolite they are fantastic and will go out of their way to assist you and at a fraction of the cost of buying them locally - Australia
Bottom Line:
Good lights at a terrific price - backed up by a manufacturer who is prepared to fully support their product. Well done guys.
Submitted by
adam
a Cross Country Rider
from Kokomo, IN
Date Reviewed: September 4, 2003
Strengths: 5 degree difference between spot and flood very clever and nice. ok value. ok battery life
Weaknesses: switches suck if you don't have a third arm (please keep the laughing to a minimum. lol). very dim for XC. bearly acceptable under city lights. might make other night riders laugh at you compared to their 20+ watt systems, but who cares about that?
Bottom Line:
the only real nice feature is the 5 degree rise on the spot. i am not someone who rates things harshly when i use the product in a situation it was not designed for. if someone buys a HID system and rides a lot of XC at night, they made a good decision. if they use that in a city situation, good luck avoiding the police! when i ride at night (and more often when falls rolls in), i ride through a couple miles on well-lit sidewalks and streets. then my destination is almost pitch black. this light honestly performs poorly in both situations. it is simply not bright enough. i would recommend it to anyone who commutes under low-light conditions and have healthy night eyes. this is a tough review because i need something bright for my type of riding. someone else may find it plenty for their needs. oh well. i eventually replaced this product with a 25 watt bar-mounted system and a 12 watt helmut system. i guess that is needed for my riding.
Strengths: More bang for buck than competitors Bright Enough Choice of Wide/Narrow Beams or combo SENSIBLY Upgradeable Customer Service A+++
Weaknesses: It would be nice to have a separate handlebar switch
Bottom Line:
UNBELIEVABLE VALUE. Bashes similarly priced units! Bright enough for parks, light trails, and asphalt as I do 90% of riding at night. This is a fantastic entry-level light system. In fact, the term entry-level does not do this product justice! Helpful reps on phone, and you can upgrade easily if desired. For longer, trecherous trails I would opt for a higher output(also from CygoLite)and more batt life, but this system suits my needs and my *wallet* perfectly. An upgradeable charger is also in the works from Cygo making recharging a little more simple. It takes a LOT to impress me and this system really did. BUY IT NOW BEFORE these guys wise up and double the price to match competition. CygoLite can add one more very satisfied customer to their list. CycleTech has BEST prices!
I returned it after using it once, and am going Franken-light. These things are just way too expensive. 12 watts is not bright enough for single track at night. Maybe okay for riding the local commuter path or rail trail or to be seen by cars. For about the same amount of money and some time in the workshop, you can build a dual beam, 35 watt system with a 1.5 to 2.5 hr run time.
This is a *great* light for the price. I was looking for a light that could offer more than the 2.5w lights, but that wasn't gonna cost me an arm and a leg. I simply have no need for a light that is worth more than my bike! :-) This meets all the requirements. I am cycling both city and rural roads early in the morn, or after sunset. With this light, I feel like I can travel 15-20 mph and see far enough ahead that I won't be caught by any surprises in the road.
The downside is the battery. I am used to my cellphone, cd player and laptop all charging as much as they need automatically. The whole concept of noting the amount of light usage and charging accordingly - with the danger of ruining the battery by either under or over-charging - feels a little outdated. But, that's why the price is so low, and I can live with that.
This light is a *tremendous* value and I highly recommend it if your usage is anything like mine.
I tried a search, and didn't see anything about this so.......
I saw a thread about upgrading a Cygolite DualCross with Cree Q5 stars. Saw comparison beam shots of before and af Read More »
It looks as though I've lost my charger for my Cygolite Night Rover NiMH Xtra 16W.
I got the set so cheap on sale locally (half price) that I'd hate to have to buy a new charger Read More »
