daoswald

I have a Bottle Blinky from Planet Bike on one bike which has worked out fairly well. I think it is a pretty good balance of convenience, light weight, safety, and battery life. The mount point below a bottle cage is out of the way and not too ugly. But possibly is lower than a motorists line of vision sometimes.

I need a second side light for another bike. I'm considering the Brightside Side light. Pro: I can mount it higher for better visibility, it is probably brighter, removable when not needed, rechargeable. Cons: Shorter battery life than bottle Blinky, and possibly that the mount isn't as secure (but I'm looking for feedback on this point).

Has anyone had experience with the Brightside Side light? Is the mount sturdy enough to retain the light when I hit a pothole? Is it comparatively brighter than the Bottle Blinky?

FWIW, I ride more after dark hours than daylit hours. In my experience I highly recommend side blinkers to reduce 2-way or 4-way stop roll-throughs, driveway pull-outs, etc from side swiping you at night.

canklecat

Couldn't hurt. But spoke lights are more effective.

I do a lot of nighttime rides, including group rides. I see all kinds of efforts to enhance visibility. Nothing works better than LED spoke lights. They don't even need to be particularly bright to grab attention. I've noticed them immediately while riding in cars and buses too.

Some headlights, like the Light & Motion Urban and some Serfas lights, have side ports to enhance visibility from sides. I've added a hood to my L&M Urban 500 that further enhances visibility from the sides. It still doesn't compare with spoke lights.

During holidays several friends decorate their entire bikes with lights. Even static frame lights don't pop as much as rotating spoke lights.

The next best thing is helmet lights. I those front and rear, usually flashing. I've actually had pedestrians, drivers and passengers compliment me on the increased visibility. It helps to have helmet lights with good peripheral visibility, but the natural action of moving our heads to look around will enhance visibility.

I've added simple white CatEye spoke lights to my hybrids. These aren't the fancy multi-colored lights that form patterns. So far I use them only on the rear wheel. Some folks say they find it distracting to have rotating lights on their front wheels. Others say they don't notice after the first one or two rides.

fietsbob

Who is going to buy both, Not I..

daoswald

Someone with a couple of regular-use bikes that get ridden at night, and a will to try new things. Maybe me, in which case I'll post my conclusions. But even if someone only has the Brightside that person's experiences would help, too.

I do need both of my bikes to be configured for evening use so that they can be ridden at the same time, loaning one to my brother once in awhile.

fietsbob

Sometime 'you guys first, tell me how it worked out' , like sending a scout on patrol, ahead, gets no volunteers,

Solution: , buy one of each yourself. on each the 2 bikes and report what you learn, for other folk's benefit.. eh?

I Live in a Small town my (Dynamo) tail light is visible from the side adequately..

If I needed a side light I got a couple white ones I can clip on the webbing around my bike bags (& hope they don't fall off)

they were freebies to promote bike use by local transportation agency.. no idea where they got them..





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daoswald

I can finally follow up owning one for each bike. The Brightside is brighter, seems better made, and is rechargeable. The Bottle Blinky is smaller, has a more out of the way mounting scheme (so you're more likely to install it and just leave it in place all the time), and lasts for up to 100 hours on two AAAs versus up to 36h on a charge for the Brightside.

I feel the Brightside will get noticed more readily, which is the whole point. But both appear to be effective. As a matter of convenience the Bottle Blinky is better because once it is installed it stays put. Even battery changes don't require removing it. But as a matter of sheer visibility the Brightside is the one to beat. I question how long lasting the Brightside's rubber-band-secured mount will last, but I guess only time will tell. And it's not an uncommon means; Garmin uses bands for its standard mount, and Light & Motion uses a thicker band for its mount.

One thing worth mentioning; if you mount a pump on a bracket that fits adjacent to your bottle cage the Bottle Blinky may be blocked on one side by the pump. This is the case with my Lezyne pump, and one of the reasons I ended up needing the Brightside on my road bike.

On my hybrid my pump is mounted on a seat stay, so it doesn't interfere with the Bottle Blinky.