Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)The Cygolite Night Rover Xtra is one of the best sub-$100 lights on the market. The combined power of both bulbs is intense. Not only will oncoming vehicles see you for blocks, but the ground will be clearly illuminated. Using standard M16 reflector bulbs, replacement and retrofitting is easy. Yet, the circular beams produced by MR16 bulbs is less than ideal for most cycling.
The majority of incandescent bicycle lights in this price range use spotlight bulbs with circular lenses. While useful for their ubiquity, the beam pattern is undesirable. Depending on the type of riding, cyclists primarily need ground illumination, forward illumination to alert motor vehicles or a combination of both. What riders do not need is illumination of the sky above. When using this light in a wooded area, you will notice the trees illuminated. This represents wasted lumens.
As you can see from automobile headlights, the optimal vehicle beam is rectangular. This maps well to human vision created by two eyes and little need to see obstructions high above the road surface. Interestingly, many of the inexpensive bicycles lights such as the Bell Night Trail (see review) have a rectangular reflector and lens. Hopefully, the high-end light manufacturers will adopt this pattern in the future.
Design problems aside, the Night Rover Xtra is made well. The build quality of the housing, battery bottle and cable is excellent. With the battery in a separate location, the dual beam head is rather diminutive and light. However, there is one minor problem with the head in its lack of side illumination that would come from by two small windows. Again, this is a feature common on less expensive all-in-one lights.
Having a separate battery in a water bottle form factor lowers the center of gravity and provides a quick means of stowing and removal. However, this arrangement obviously consumes one of the cages. A better solution, in my opinion, is a frame-mount battery, which is typically found on high-end HID lighting systems. Unfortunately, the conspicuous placement of the battery leads to another problem -- theft.
After several months of reliable use, my Night Rover Xtra was stolen at 3:00pm in an affluent area on the North side of Chicago. My recommendation to anyone who leaves his bike unattended is to replace the head thumbscrew with a regular bolt. You might also want to consider securing the cable with several locking ties and Gorilla tape. Otherwise, you may be shopping for another one in the near future.Pros
Value
Bright
Standard bulbs
Cons
Circular beam that wastes light output
Consumes water bottle space
High left risk
No side illumination
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Product Description:
Endurance light, 6 hour run time. Half the size of standard water bottle. Dual beam; 6 watt wide angle, 10 watt for long distance. Built in low battery LED indicator.
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