joshuatrio

Been using Light and Motion's Urban 550 headlight with the Vis 180 Micro taillight (combo package) for about 4 months now. Wanted to throw a review up for you guys.

Pros:
The headlight is crazy bright. Like insanely bright. The beam pattern is perfect - not a lot of wasted light off of the sides. It's easy to strap on to your handlebars and should fit any bike. The headlight has an easy to read battery indicator, showing you how much charge you have left - if you pay attention to it, you'll never ride in the dark. It has high, medium, low and strobe.

The taillight is insanely bright as well. It's like having an aircraft strobe light on the back of your bike. Again, easy to strap on or clip on. It pulses - kinda cool, very visible. The red is very "piercing" with amber strobes on the side.

Love charging - super easy, plug into the pc and forget about it. Leave one usb cable at home and one at work.

Both lights are light and compact. No bulky batteries/wires to deal with, nor do they take up much space on your bike.

Cons:
The rubber strap - I'm not sure how long it's going to last for both the headlight and the taillight. Fortunately, for the taillight, I use the clip. After 4 months, the headlight strap may need tightened to the next notch.

I haven't fully tested if the headlight will last 1.5 hours on high, but I'm skeptical that it will make it. Again - not verified. L&M usually stand behind their products, so it probably does.

The taillight - I often wonder if the Planet Bike Super Flash's pattern is more effective in warding off cars. Since the Vis180 doesn't have a strobe option, just a few pulsating patterns, I'm not sure.

Summary:

Overall, I'm pleased with the purchase. I've found both lights (front and rear) to be significantly brighter than most others, and I can usually make the commute a few times before requiring charge.

I DIG usb charging. I hate changing AA and AAA batteries.

Several drivers have commented that the headlight is the "most annoying light they've ever seen." One driver said "I can't stand that thing on strobe, it's terrible." The Urban550 is so bright that my biking friend went out purchased the Urban 400. He said my 550 was so bright that he wanted something "less insane."

Oh yeah, I did a side by side comparison. My 550 vs. an early 90's Toyota Corolla. No joke, my headlight was brighter than both headlights on the Corolla (from a driver standpoint).

I really like how both the head and tail lights have amber "sidelights" on them - which may help in being seen.

Would definitely buy this combo again. Runs around $200 new, but so far seem well worth the money. The pro's appear to outweigh the cons and the psychotic brightness of the headlight alone makes me smile every time it's turned on.

....I bought this set after coming within 2 feet of an F-150 and haven't had a major run in since. **knock on wood**

jputnam

There's a rider near me who has a light like that, can't stand it when I'm driving.

Figure if he can't bother to obey the law himself, he won't really mind my car's high beams flashing in his face at night.

agent pombero

Sounds like this belongs in the PRO column!

I'm running 2600 lumens up front and love these kinds of comments from drivers, pedestrians, and other cyclists

tarwheel 

I've been using a L&M Urban 500 for 1.5 years, and it's been a great light. Mine was one of the first batches sold and it had a firmware problem, but L&M fixed it under warranty and sent me a free Vis 180 taillight for my trouble. The headlight is bright enough that I run mine on the second- or third-highest setting most of the time, which also extends the battery run time. I cannot complete a round-trip commute with light on high unless I recharge it at work, and that's not worth the trouble since the light is bright enough on lower settings. Although the strap may seem fragile, mine has held up fine so far and L&M sells replacements for just a few bucks.

I ended up selling the taillight because I could not figure out a way to mount it on my frame. I am amazed when companies will design a product that can't do basic things -- in this case, mount to a frame. The taillight is designed to mount to a seat post, but a large percentage of cyclists use seatbags that block their posts -- so what good is that? The optional clip was also poorly designed and wouldn't attach to my seatbag, and there were no provisions for mounting it to a seat stay. Long story short, I sold it on eBay. Finally, I was not as impressed by its brightness as the OP. I have three other taillights and would take any of them over the L&M Vis 180. First, the beam is too focused and concentrated, so I don't think it would be very visible unless the driver is directly behind you. My PB Superflash and Radbot 1000 taillights "appear" to be brighter -- at a fraction of the cost -- because their beams are wider and their flashes more distinctive. I also have a Dinotte 140 taillight, which simply blows the L&M light out of the water in every respect. You can buy a Dinotte for a few bucks more than a L&M Vis 180, and it far surpasses the L&M in brightness and spread. Sorry L&M, I am a fan, but you struck out on the taillight.

psy

I have the lm taillight and I have to agree it looks kinda cool but isn't nearly as bright as my cygolight hotshot, and the mounting bracket is awkward .I cut two slits In the bottom of my fender and run the strap through it for a low mounted position.I don't think I'd use it as my only tailight but I'm sure its adequate.

I'm currently waiting on my bm luxos u and toplight plus taillight, could be here as soon as the end of next week.ill be sure to post some pics and a review myself.

no motor?

I've used a Viz 360 for a few years now, and the 120 lumens they estimate for the front light output are pretty conservative when compared to the xml lights I use with it.

joshuatrio

Maybe if people paid more attention while driving, we wouldn't have to have such bright lights.

Ditto - after several close calls, most of which are people yapping/texting on their cell phone - I could really care less how bright my beam is.

Thanks for the feedback ! On sunnier days, I often run the headlight on low or strobe. Mainly the same reasons as you - in that the high beam is just insane. That's good to know on the straps - hope mine holds up as well.

Taillight: Because I haven't been able to compare it side by side to the PlanetBike SF, I'm not able to make the most informed decision. However, it's much brighter than my old blinky. But from what I can tell - when standing directly behind the Vis180 (on high), it appears much brighter than the SF. So maybe it's (like you said) the beam is too concentrated. If you're looking at the light from an angle, it's brightness diminishes quickly. Also, because it doesn't have a strobe option, I make sure to run it in tandem with the old blinky light (just to be safe).

I do agree about mounting being awkward if you have a seatbag - the small area on the light clip is funky because of the protruding plastic on the clip. Using a hacksaw, the plastic was trimmed back - and it mounts (with the clip part) nicely on the seatbag now - without a need for the rubber strap. So it's more functional now - for my circumstances anyways.

Also got the Vis180 for free, so it's just been icing on the cake.

droy45

600-650 lumens should be the most you would want to use on the roadways as you have to remember your dealing with other vehicles and don't want to flash drivers with overly bright lights. I hear of those insanely bright lights like 1600+ lumens which should be used only in the forest trails at night. I have a 350 lumen light that is more than adequate for my commute. I tested 3 levels with a test driver before purchasing and we arrived on anything in the 600 lumen or less range did not produce and ill effects on the driver.

Commodus

This is my opinion as well. I have a light capable of 1200 lumens, but I run it on low almost exclusively when in the city. A nice bright, solid headlight allows drivers to identify you and more accurately estimate your distance and speed. Flashing headlights are not a great idea...it's not enough to just get a driver's attention. The driver needs to be able to figure what to do with you.

CaleBaldwin

I purchased the Light & Motion Urban200 a few months back and I have to say that for commuting through the city which includes some inner city riding with mostly a dedicated trail the 200 lumens seems like plenty to me. Rocking that strobe at night on the trail makes my head hurt though. Most cyclists I pass on the trail are courteous and try and block their million lumen lights as I go past which is definitely appreciated.

joshuatrio

Disagree - it depends on the situation. During the day time, and in traffic - it's much more effective than a steady beam. At night, it's more of a nuisance for the biker than the driver.

Yup. 200 is actually pretty sufficient - but after you make the jump to 4-500 lumens, you won't go back. My last light was a 200 lumen L&M light, and I enjoyed it... until getting the 550.

The strobe I only use during the day and/or in heavy traffic. Using the strobe at night always results in a splitting headache.

Commodus

ah daytime...yea I can see that.

CaleBaldwin

Definitely agree on the strobe only during the day and in heavy traffic. I can only do the techno party for so long in the dark. Maybe I need to rock some headphones with the strobe to get the full effect

Mr. Hairy Legs

I rode through the winter with the L&M Urban 550 and it served me very well. I found I really needed the highest setting on rainy nights, but without the rain the medium setting is plenty bright.

Nobody has seemed to be too bothered by the headlight, although I did hear a "F%&k that's bright!" once from another cyclist. He was using one of those little weenie lights and clearly had lumen envy.

I never use the strobe, too irritating.

AdamDZ

If drivers complain about your light being too bright that means it's working as planned. I couldn't care less either if it annoys anybody. No week passes by without several pedestrians and cyclists being killed or maimed by cars in NYC and "I didn't see him/her" is the #1 defense.

joshuatrio

Nice ! I'm really digging the 550 so far. I agree with you - medium is overall sufficient.. The one guy who said is was super annoying, is always a good friend who passed me (in his truck). He said he felt like a deer looking in the rearview mirror, and that he couldn't quit looking at it.. hehe.

Another instance was a fellow cyclist - I was coming at him head on - and he was like "wow, i couldn't tell if that was you, or a motorcycle."


Exactly.