-Five bright LED bulbs---visibility up to 2 miles
-2 ¼ inches tall x 3 ¼ inches high
-Three modes---Flash, Steady and Chase
-Water resistant
-Long life---200 hours in Flash/Chase, 50 hours in Steady with two AA batteries (included)
-Seatpost mount and clip mount included, can be mounted to standard reflector bracket Mtbr Bike Lights Shootout - over 50 bike lights reviewed, photographed and measured here.
Submitted by
NateTheGreat
a Cross Country Rider
from Rockville
Date Reviewed: April 14, 2007
Strengths: Very Bright, and lasts long on AA batteries. Lasts much longer than the AAA units that are the rage now.
Weaknesses: You need to clear tape the red plastic cover to the frame to prevent it eventually rattling (falling) off. Then it is a pretty good light. VistaLite could add a screw to hold the front bezel to improve the unit.
Bottom Line:
I have bought about 4 of these lights. For the buck, they are a good deal and AA batts make the unit run a long time.
One unit has a crappy electrical problem I cannot figure out.
Similar Products Used: Cat eye, Xenon strobe (Radio Shack), Walmart, Belt Beacons and the like.
Bike Setup: Touring, Mtn, etc.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
John
a Weekend Warrior
from Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Date Reviewed: August 6, 2005
Strengths: Small, light weight, long lasting batteries, 5 led's, 3 different light patterns, seat post mount & a clip to hook to your hydration back pack. You can be seen from far away and I've been mistaken for police on bike at night a few times with the light in the "chase" mode (my favourite).
Weaknesses: I thought $17/CAN was a little pricey. I'd of expected it to be in the $10-15 price range.
Bottom Line:
I use this light on my 2001 Trek Fuel 90 Disk for night rides attached to the larger diamter seatpost then on my 1996 GT Ricochet. I've never bothered to use the clip and attach it to the Blackburn Hydra Pack that I use. I cycle on a 30km (round-trip) route that is 40% street and 60% water front bike path. I use the "chase" mode as it drains the least amount of battery power, has mistaken me for the police and is 1 button press away from shutting it off. For street legal reasons (as in not to get a ticket) I have it with me for every night ride. But ever since 1 evening back in 2003 when 3 teens got angry that I was NOT the police, they opted to block the path in places with barricades (from a nearby construction site), tree branches and smashed beer bottles. I've decided to keep the tail light off and not warn pedestrians of my appraoching except for the use of my Vista Lite V0513 Satellite (15&10 watt) and Cat Eye HL-NC200 (10&6 watt) dual beam headlight systems. From 2001-2003 I had used it on every night ride till this unfortunate turn ov events. The 2 last times that I fell, I then turned it on and cycled home using city streets. Bottom Line: A great light with 3 flash modes, a little pricey and can't be used with all seapost diameters.
Bike Setup: 2001 Trek Fuel 90 Disk, 1996 GT Ricochet.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Les
a Cross Country Rider
from Edmonton, Alberta Canada
Date Reviewed: May 15, 2005
Strengths: Very Bright, easy to see, vehicles give you lots of room! Uses AA batteries, 3 modes to chose from, but I find I use the flashing mode the most. It comes with a standard seat post mount, although I mounted mine on the reflector bracket of my rack. Combined with the reflective strips on my bags, it gives great visibility when commuting.
Weaknesses: So far, none. It would be nice to have a quick release mount though, or a method of attaching to a belt or helmet.
Bottom Line:
Excellent product for the money. Very, very bright. I have heard the lens covers come off easily, although that hasn't been the case with mine. The activation switch also works works very well. The streets in my city are sometimes quite rough, but that doesn't seem to bother this light. The real acid test will be how it performs in the rain. If I was to find a fault (and I'm really nitpicking here) it would be the lens gasket is easily dislodged when removing the lens. Be carefull when installing or changing batteries and it shouldn't be a problem.
Bike Setup: Norco Monterey, with Axiom Journey rack, and Cartier bags.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Brian Lalime
a Weekend Warrior
from Portland, ME
Date Reviewed: May 9, 2005
Strengths: Very bright and visible,particularly during overcast conditions or during dusk and dawn. It's also noticeable during times of heavy traffic. Belt clip holds well on a knapsack or Hydropack unit.
Weaknesses: Options using the belt clip are limited and may not always work. While it does clip to a bike shirt pocket, it might fall off.
Bottom Line:
I recommend Super Nebulus 5 for people in cases of commuting, long rides, or use for safety. It's the best product I've seen and used so far.
Weaknesses: The seatpost mount can break when you crash a lot.
Bottom Line:
I crashed heavy a week ago and snaped the seatpost mount on my blinkie light. So I called Bell Sport (1-800-456-BELL) to order 2 more because I did the same thing with another one a couple of years ago and the nice lady replaced both at on charge. I recieved the mounts today. Thats good service. Thanks, Bell.
Strengths: Very bright and visable, long battery life, very water resistant.
Weaknesses: It would be nice to have a quick release.
Bottom Line:
Best rear light I've owned yet. It's stood up to some rain and is esentially the same as a very old Vistalite I own which has been through hell and back (and still works).
I LOVE the chase mode ... one of the things I hate about flashing mode is that it can be hard sometimes to judge your distance (as a driver) to the bicyclist. I drive around Boston all the time and I get to see it all (big college bike riding town). The "Cylon" mode, besides looking damned cool, is as good as steady for judging distance and as good as flashing for power saving and simply catching your eye.
A decent quick release would be nice. TREK has a well designed quick release on it's rear lights which uses the built in belt clip (although with TREK the plastic it's made from is garbage). If I left this light on a bike for more than 2 minutes in Boston it would grow legs and leave. I rigged up a pseudo quick release using the speed knob for the seat post mount and cutting down one of the screws with a Dremel tool. Regardless it does fit a standard 2 hole reflector bracket so there are many mounting options ... I mount mine on the reflector mount of my rear rack.
I only wish for 2 things. A well designed quick release that can be mounted on a reflector bracket or seat post mount, and a more positively secured battery cover. Given the long life of the batteries a screwed on cover would not be much of a hassle. A 1/4 turn flat head screw would be great for this ... Vistalite uses them for their Road Toad front lights already (which they package with this rear light as well). I'll still give this 5 stars (or whatever) since it's as good as it gets so far.
Similar Products Used: Lots over the years ... recently, TREK and cheeper "oval" Vistalite (both junk).
Bike Setup: Old School hardtail MTB with fenders, rack, commuter tires ... typical rainy day city / path bike.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Dirk McGeek
a Weekend Warrior
from Houston
Date Reviewed: October 29, 2003
Strengths: price, hours of flashing
Weaknesses: Mount - Seatpost mount is under-engineered, looks like it will fall off. Totally not secure for gonzo biking. After a fall, I don't want to have to hunt around in the mud for my light that fell off.
Defect - Mine also came with a broken switch.
Poor design/Quality - The cover comes off at the slightest pull. I checked to make sure it was seating properly, just seems really cheap like a china imitation - not a vista light should be. This hacked me off as this is why I purchased this brand, was to avoid cheap crap like this.
Bottom Line:
check it out before buying, looked like cheese to me.
Similar Products Used: I had one of these before but it was ancient and eventually I let batteries rot in it and it died because of that. Now I'll be forced to get something else.
Bike Setup: '93 cannondale delta V with upgrades
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Steven
a Cross Country Rider
from St. louis
Date Reviewed: July 28, 2003
Strengths: Bright, easy to put on your bike, 3 modes of flashes
Weaknesses: none
Bottom Line:
Its a really good rear light for all of your commuting needs. It will definatley get you noticed by cars.
Bike Setup: Specialized Enduro Expert, Gary Fisher H.T.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Lenny Taylor
a Weekend Warrior
from Sacramento, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: January 19, 2003
Strengths: Nice size, good visibility, Several different mounting options
Weaknesses: None
Bottom Line:
This is a great light, not just becuase it works well, but because of the variety of mounting options. I used the belt clip for quite some time before permanently mounting it to the rear rack on my bike. It's larger than many rear lights, a plus if you're really concerned about being seen, and uses easy to acquire AA batteries. I highly recommend it.
