Light & Motion Vega
I’ve been running the Light & Motion Vega for a hell of a long time now. At least as far as bike lights go. We’re talking years. I got this off my friend Paperjam, who reviewed it for some other bike magazine years ago. At $175 retail, it’s a serious commuter light. Its light output measures up to an impressive 85 lumens from a single 4w Luxeon LED. The self-contained, rechargeable NiMH battery lasts for 2 to 24 hours of riding time.
Perhaps my only complaint about the Vega is one that’s attributable to user error. I always forget to charge the damn thing. It seems to last forever sometimes, and I sometimes wind up finishing my ride home in the dark. Otherwise, the light has performed just about flawlessly. I did manage to crack the plastic mount, but the light still stayed put. Light & Motion offers a lifetime warranty on their plastic parts, so I contacted them for a replacement. I got a new mount in the mail less than a week later, no questions asked.
The Vega is designed for seeing, not just being seen. It’s bright enough to ride unlit country roads at night, and even pitch-black trails through the park. The Vega’s not nearly as bright as the lights designed for nighttime mountain biking, but you’re probably not dodging trees on your way home from work. At 15 to 20mph, you generally have enough light to see potholes and curbs with plenty of time to react. If you do find yourself going extremely fast, you may want more lumens. But for most urban riding, the Vega’s bluish-white light is more than bright enough to see and be seen. In fact, it seems to be as visible as a car’s headlight.
Of course more light is almost always better. And with that in mind, Light & Motion has redesigned the Vega. Click here to read about the redesigned Vega.
