Bike World News

We’ve recently had a chance to spend some time with Light and Motion’s excellent Seca 900 light.

The Seca 900 gets its name from the claimed 900 lumens of light that it produces. The numbers don’t mean all that much to me. All I know is that the Seca 900 put out the brighest, whitest light that I’ve ever seen from a bike light.

The light quality made my nighttime excursions with the light the most comfortable that I have ever had. The road ahead was clearly illuminated and I was easily able to see potholes, twigs, pedestrians and other possible obstacles in the road. As well, I was confident that I was clearly visible to cars as the light output probably comes closer to what you would see on a motorcycle than you would get from a typical bicycle light.

Even on the low setting, the light provided enough illumination for safe road riding. For trail use, I can see that the higher settings may be warranted.

The light mounted easily on both road and mountain bike handlebars, though I wondered how long it would be before the rubberband “stretch and notch” type mount would start to crack and break down. The battery back attached with a seemingly more secure velcro strap.

I did find that the power/output switch for the model I tested had a bit of a “hair trigger” and that the light turned on at the slightest provocation. I learned to unplug the battery pack when I was done with the light the prevent any unnecessary battery drain.

All in all, the Seca 900 would be an excellent choice for those who spend a lot of time on their bikes in less than favorable conditions. The “flash” and “low” modes would likely be sufficient for bicycle commuters heading into the office in the morning as they easily provide more light than the average all-in-one handlebar mounted light. For training at night or trail riding, the “medium” or “high” settings will give plenty of security.

The Light & Motion Seca 900′s excellent combination burn time, light quality, brightness and ease-of-use help to justify its price for those that spend their time riding in the dark.

• Features: Bar and helmet mount; 3 brightness settings; one flash setting; low-battery warning and auto shutoff
• Burn time: 3.5 hrs. (high); 7 hrs. (medium); 14 hrs. (low); 100+ hrs. (flash)
• Charging:  DT/dt Smart charging (DT/dt measures the change in temp/ change in time of the battery to safely prolong battery life)
• Charge Time: 2.5 hrs.
• Battery Type: Six-cell 11.1v Li-ion
• Bulb Type: Cree LED

Pros:

• Excellent burn time; even the low mode provides an excellent amount of light
• Excellent light quality
• Easy to mount and use

Cons:

• Not sure about long term durability of the bar mount
• Heavy battery (but justified by the light output)
• “Hair trigger” power switch.

Rating: 4/5

For more information about the Seca 900 and all of Light & Motion’s lights, visit their web site at http://www.bikelights.com/

Disclosure: Light & Motion provided a loaner/test unit to us for review. The Seca 9o0 was compared against other handlebar mounted lights that I own and have purchased. There was no comparison.

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