The 7 Best Mountain Bike Light Under $100 in 2019
For biking enthusiasts, reliable bike lights are an essential investment. After all, who wants to cut down their exciting ventures in the mountains only because it’s about to turn dark. In fact, you may even require some illumination in case of an overcast during the daytime or in the pouring rain to improve visibility and see where you’re headed. However, choosing the best lights for your bike can be a tough decision but we’re here to help you with that. In this article, you will learn everything you need to know about the best mountain bike light under $100 in 2019.
Top 7 Best Mountain Bike Light Under $100 in 2019
- Lock mode, perfect for use during storage and transporting the light. Press and hold power...
- Important: the Lumina 1200 boost is set to lock mode at the Factory. Unlock before use.
- DuaLens Optical Design for Road Biking Mode, providing broad closed range flood light with...
- HiLo Beam System for Mountain Biking and Emergency Modes, providing illuminating light...
- 【SUPER BRIGHT at REAL 3000 Lumens】 Cyclepartner Discovery-3000 built with 4*CREE LED,...
- 【Extremely Long Run-time】 Packed with 8800mAh high-performance battery which owns four...
- Incredibly powerful 1100 Lumen USB rechargeable bicycle light for road & mountain; first...
- 9 lighting modes (hours): low (10), Med. (3), high (1: 30), boost (1), steady Pulse (4),...
- Lock Mode, perfect for use during storage and transporting the light. Press and hold power...
- IMPORTANT: THE LUMINA 1000 BOOST IS SET TO LOCK MODE AT THE FACTORY. UNLOCK BEFORE USE.
- 1200 LUMEN MAX OUTPUT MAGICSHINE BICYCLE LIGHT ★ The Magicshine Light MJ-900 is the...
- OUR BRIGHT BIKE LIGHT BOASTS 4 DIFFERENT INTENSITY MODES PLUS FLASH MODE ★ The...
- EXTREMELY BRIGHT and now FULLY WATERPROOF 1600 Lumen CREE T6 LED Technology - Our Newly...
- NOW FITS ALL HANDLEBARS - - SAFETY - MORE FEATURES than any look-alike - Includes FREE...
Buyer’s Guide
Equipped with long-lasting battery life and amazing features, there are an array of light options in the market to choose from. However, some are obviously better than the others and with a budget, of less than $100, finding the best one according to your needs can be quite a bargain. So how can you make the right choice without going too overboard? Here are some of the things you need to keep in mind before making the final decision.
Bike Light Types
In broad terms, you have the option of choosing from headlights, taillights or a combo set for your mountain bike. Headlights can either be helmet-mount or handle-mount to illuminate the path in front of you. Mounting a light on the bars is quick and easy, but a helmet-mount light makes mountain biking a lot easier during the night as the beam can follow the movement of your head, allowing you to see through corners. On the other hand, taillights are essentially used to ensure your visibility to other riders on the trail. They are either mounted under the saddle, at the back of the helmet, on your backpack or on the bike's seat stay. For mountain biking, it's best to opt for combo light sets that contain headlights and rear lights so that you can benefit from both the options in a single package and minimize shadows on the trail.
Lumens
Lumens are the industry standard for measuring the brightness of a light source. A road bike can get away with around 400 lumens light as the surroundings are well lit but since mountain biking imposes different challenges, you need a light with a high lumen output. A minimum of 800 lumens headlight is necessary to ride safely on rock infested trails in the dark at a speed of 20mph. However, bright rear lights are equally important to ensure your safety. Taillights with lumens in the range of 50 to 150 are suitable as they can be spotted from over a mile away. Some MTB lights also high lumen flash features so that your bike can be spotted over a long distance.
Beam Pattern
Along with the lumens, a key performance indicator of an MTB headlight is its beam pattern, or how the lumens in the light is spread out. Essentially, the beam pattern can either be spot or flood but a few light models combine these two under one product. Spot-patterned lights have a focused beam that spans over long distances with a relatively small angle, generally between 17 and 20 degrees. This makes them a great choice for mounting on the helmet as the extended beam can help you easily look through turns even at high speeds. Meanwhile, flood-patterned lights have a beam angle between 25 to 35 degree and hence they can illuminate a wider area ahead of you. They are a great choice if you're more concerned about visibility than the distance, particularly for low-speed biking. We recommend choosing a spot-pattern light for the helmet and flood-pattern light for the handlebars.
Battery Life
Battery life is an important feature that needs to be considered since you don’t want to be left in the dark halfway through your journey. The run time can differ between the models due to the brightness settings. In fact, the battery life can range between 4 to 10 hours on the lowest brightness settings in some MTB light models. However, most lights on the market have around 1 to 2 hours of run time when being operated at their maximum allowable lumen intensity. For mountain biking, it’s a good idea to purchase a light with a greater lumen output that’s actually required so that you can use the light on lower settings and extend its run time. You can also follow these basic tips to conserve the battery:
- Turn off the lights when not in use
- Adjust the lumens as needed
- Make sure the lights are fully charged before you head out on the trail
- Cold temperature tend to drain the batteries quite easily, so place the lights in a warm area when you're not riding your bike
- Keep spare batteries and/or charger with you at all times
Water-Resistance
How often does unexpected downpour hinder your plans of going for a mountain biking adventure or stops you from proceeding further on the tracks? In such situations, waterproof bike lights can come to your rescue. You can rely on them to improve visibility as you ride without worrying about them being damaged under the pouring rain.
Weight
The weight of the light should be an important consideration particularly if you plan to mount it on your helmet. After all, you don’t want to feel like you’re carrying an extra burden on your head instead of concentrating on the trail and making the most out of your riding experience. Anything under 4 ounces should virtually go undetected in terms of weight, so make your decision accordingly.
Conclusion
A good MTB light can facilitate your journey and greatly improve your overall experience. However, investing in a suitable light under $100 can be challenging given the array of options available to you but with this comprehensive guide, we hope that this task will be quite stress-free for you. Our product listing contains some of the top-rated models under $100 available in the market so make sure to give them a try.
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