Electronics, Lighting, & Gadgets - Blinkie testing: PBSF vs MARS 4.0 vs Cateye LD1100

I finally gathered up all of these lights so thought I would do some testing.

Planet Bike SUPERFLASH (http://ecom1.planetbike.com/3034.html)
http://ecom1.planetbike.com/planetbike/media/3034.jpg

Blackburn Mars 4.0 (http://www.blackburndesign.com/lights.html#mars_4)
http://www.blackburndesign.com/images/mars_4.jpg

Cateye LD1100 (http://www.cateye.com/en/product_detail/550)
http://www.cateye.com/sites/cateye/upload/products/550-og.jpg


Side by side
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/3blinkies1.jpg

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/3blinkies2.jpg

Initial tests are on Energizer Max alkaline batteries.

Central beam comparison:
This is on steady after 6hrs.
Distance 2M

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blinkbig1.jpg

A few notes.
The SF and Mars have crappy beams, not symmetrical.
The Cateye is by far the brightest in the middle of the beam.
The Cateye is the narrowest beam so needs to be well mounted.
I've spent a bit of time looking at all three and I can't pick a clear winner.

Runtime Testing
Energizer Max Batteries. The Cateye takes AAs so should run much longer than the others.
Specified runtimes:
SF 30hrs
Mars 50hrs
Cateye 50hrs


Fresh:
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blink00.jpg

6hrs
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blink06.jpg

12hrs
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blink12.jpg

18hrs
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blink18.jpg

24hrs
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blink24.jpg

30hrs
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blink30.jpg

42hrs
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blink42.jpg

60hrs
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blink60.jpg

Initial tests are on Energizer Max alkaline batteries.

Central beam comparison:
This is on steady after 6hrs

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/Blinkbig1.jpg

A few notes.
The SF and Mars have crappy beams, not symmetrical.
The Cateye is by far the brightest in the middle of the beam.
The Cateye is the narrowest beam so needs to be well mounted.
I've spent a bit of time looking at all three and I can't pick a clear winner.


SF winner on your test.
Your too close.

Thanks a lot for the comparison Znomit!!!
Do you have nay idea why the biggest light might with multiple LEDs produces the most fouced light (cateye)?
Almost looks to me like the cateye has the advantage, although certainly not price-wise.

Thanks for sharing your results with us. Can you also test this light? http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.20333

How would it compare to the ones you listed?

I have the mars 4 and the superflash. the mars 4 seems to eat batteries. but that could be a defective unit. the mars has better side lighting with the leds facing out. but overall I think the superflash is a bit better and more noticeable.
both are brighter then the cateye except from the side. lost my cateye when the mount broke when my bike fell over.

Thanks for sharing your results with us. Can you also test this light? http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.20333

How would it compare to the ones you listed?

I don't have the Cateye or the Mars, but I do have two SF and the Ultrafire, and compared them here (http://www.bikeforums.net/showpost.php?p=8939582&postcount=202).

OP, thanks for the reviews. If more folks took beamshots, we'd all be better off.

can you do a side view test?
but I know the TLD1100 should be the clear winner in that.

Comparison with older blinkies

This is to give a little perspective to the inevitable, and good natured, flame war that will follow, when we argue the differences between these three bright lights. :D

I have an LD600 and a Mars 2.0, compared to the LD1100
Freshly charged NiMH in all three.
Over exposed to show the Mars 2.0

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/twooldonenew1.jpg

Side beam test

I made a simple test rig to see the beam pattern over a quarter circle.
Propped up some computer paper and marked 0 45 90 degrees on it.
Blinkie in the middle pointing at zero.
Camera across the room pointed at the 45 mark.

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/90angle1.jpg

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/90angle2.jpg

Here we have PBSF, MARS 4.0, LD1100
Camera settings the same for all three.
Central pattern over exposed.

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/90angle4.jpg
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/90angle3.jpg
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/90angle5.jpg

Yes the mars sidelights point forward a little, same on the 2.0 version.

I had the LD1100 for a while. The top and bottom rows are independent ... and that's cool. But, they go out of sync and it kind of destroys the "blink" function.

The PBSF is cheaper anyway.

Side Beam Test #2

I thought I'd try this from another angle.

Taped the lights to a door and swung it through 180 degrees.

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/doortest1.jpg

5second exposure at f11, and an ND filter.

5s exposure F11 with a ND filter added.
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/doortest2.jpg

Note the superflash ... is flashing at a high frequency...

Just for kicks here they are on blink
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/doortest3.jpg

http://www.vetta.com/product_show.asp?ptype=whole&id=60
http://www.amazon.com/Vetta-TSL-C-Flat-Pack-Bicycle/dp/B000YXBIA4/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Why don't you test a real tail light? 4AA batteries instead of 2AAA indicates that this is a much more serious light and it has a broader viewing area. It puts the three that you tested to shame. The Dinotte is the only one brighter. After seeing this tail light I wish that I had not fooled with any of the others.

http://www.vetta.com/product_show.asp?ptype=whole&id=60
http://www.amazon.com/Vetta-TSL-C-Flat-Pack-Bicycle/dp/B000YXBIA4/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Why don't you test a real tail light? 4AA batteries instead of 2AAA indicates that this is a much more serious light and it has a broader viewing area. It puts the three that you tested to shame. The Dinotte is the only one brighter. After seeing this tail light I wish that I had not fooled with any of the others.

He Did.
The Vetta is No Brighter then the PBSF.
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/VettaPBSFDistance.jpg


http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/Lights/VettaPBSF.jpg

Please PM me if anyone wishes to donate Blinkies to the cause!

interesting stuff :)

I've also tested these three lights, and have found that both the Mars 4 and the TL-1100 are better than the SF for daytime riding as cars seem to give me more room when using these. I assume that they are more visible during daytime.

Currently I use the Mars 4 (I dropped and broke the TL-1100), and it does consume batteries quickly, although it's not really an issue as I use rechargeables.

Comparison with a 1W led

The PBSF has a 1/2W LED and the Mars has a huge 1W.
Note they don't actually claim to drive the LEDs at these powers, and the AAA batteries would only run for an hour or two at 1W power.

Here is a cree red LED driven at 500mA, approximately 1W.
The LD1100 is used for comparison.
I tried a few different optics and found this reflector looked a bit like the cateye beam.
The central brightness is similar but the cateye only covers a small fraction on the area.

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/onewatt1.jpg

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/onewatt2.jpg

This is about what you would expect from a red torch from DX.
It is a huge amount of light.

He Did.
The Vetta is No Brighter then the PBSF.


I've got both. My vetta is much brighter than my pbsf. Actually it's brighter than 2 of my pbsfs. They're not even close. On a wall bounce, the vetta obliterates the pbsf. Since they're priced nearly the same, it's a simple decision to buy the vetta, if light output is your primary objective. Side-by-side, their output very closely resembles Znomit's "DIY red cree vs cateye" picture above.

The vetta is not a perfect taillight. The 4AA batteries are heavy. The holder and head assembly mount 2 or 3 different ways, and all of them are sorta bad. The actual battery life is much shorter than specified (120hrs on strobe), especially for nimh. If you use nimhs with 1.2v nominal, ~1.35v fresh off the charger, you've only got a short time till the voltage drops until it's inadequate to power the circuit. The light quits on you at about 1.15v/per cell. In my case I get about 4-5 hrs out of sanyo eneloops on strobe, then she's dead. By extrapolation, I estimate you'd get only 10 hrs runtime on strobe with 1.5v alkaline batteries. I don't know how Vetta figures 120 hrs.

Yes guys I'm testing blinkies.
Small self contained lights you can leave on your bike and expect to change the batteries monthly, not after every ride.
Next up, runtime tests in flash mode.
See y'all in about 150hrs...

znomit, what reflector did you use with the Cree? I haven't gotten around to building my rear light yet since I only have spot reflectors. I figure they would work, but if someone hit the bright spot it might blind them and then they would run me over.

Given the old eyball test, side by side, with new batteries, there is no doubt that my Mars 3.0 is the better light.

Hard to believe, but the SF comes in a very good second. It's still a good light, but the Mars is better to the human eye.

He Did.
The Vetta is No Brighter then the PBSF.
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/VettaPBSFDistance.jpg


http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/Lights/VettaPBSF.jpg

I hope you know more about other topics that you comment on than you do about tail lights since it is obvious to me that you know absolutely nothing about tail lights. The Vetta I referenced is so much brighter than the other lights reviewed that it is laughable.

I've got both. My vetta is much brighter than my pbsf. Actually it's brighter than 2 of my pbsfs. They're not even close. On a wall bounce, the vetta obliterates the pbsf. Since they're priced nearly the same, it's a simple decision to buy the vetta, if light output is your primary objective. Side-by-side, their output very closely resembles Znomit's "DIY red cree vs cateye" picture above.

The vetta is not a perfect taillight. The 4AA batteries are heavy. The holder and head assembly mount 2 or 3 different ways, and all of them are sorta bad. The actual battery life is much shorter than specified (120hrs on strobe), especially for nimh. If you use nimhs with 1.2v nominal, ~1.35v fresh off the charger, you've only got a short time till the voltage drops until it's inadequate to power the circuit. The light quits on you at about 1.15v/per cell. In my case I get about 4-5 hrs out of sanyo eneloops on strobe, then she's dead. By extrapolation, I estimate you'd get only 10 hrs runtime on strobe with 1.5v alkaline batteries. I don't know how Vetta figures 120 hrs.

I have not used my Vetta enough yet to deplete the original batteries or to gauge battery life. I will use hybrid rechargeables next. Even if the run time is short the batteries can be recharged hundreds of times and the superior light is worth the effort to recharge them even if it is after every ride.

The bulk of the light does present some mounting challenges. Again the light output is worth the effort.

Flash Patterns
Unfortunately my week long flash runtime test was ruined by me leaving the room light on before I left for the long weekend!
I can tell you that after 6 days the SF was still rocking, the cateye still ok, nothing at all from the mars.
Will retry in a few weeks.

So why does the SF last so long?

To look closer at the flash patterns I hooked up the scope to the batteries.

Here is the cateye and then the mars.
You can see the lights have around 50% duty cycle.
Note with the cateye you can run only half the lights on blink, or on random or sequential mode so only 1 of the 10 leds is driven at once... should dramatically increase runtimes.

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/scope4.jpg

http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/scope2.jpg

And the SF:
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/scope1.jpg

2 big pulses followed by four little ones.
A closer look, the small pulses are further split into 5.
The large pulses are around 40ms, the small ones 1ms

The duty cycle on the SF is around 10%, so it should be good for over 200hrs (based on the observed 24hr runtime on steady).
http://idisk.mac.com/timonz/Public//CPF/Blinkie/scope3.jpg

I was running a Cateye LD550 up until the mount snapped off and fell off the bike:

http://pod.ath.cx/hid/z_old/taillightatdusk.jpg
http://pod.ath.cx/hid/z_old/taillightonsteadflood.jpg
http://pod.ath.cx/hid/z_old/viewfromtherear.jpg

I still have the light but no way to mount it.

I'm now running a Planet Bike Superflash. I was considering getting another to run two.

But maybe I should consider getting the LD600?

i'm using the cateye 1100 it's perfect as a backup, it last forever in 1 set of batteries.

my main rear red, is a P7 8mode with a red film, it last a good 6 hours on high blink (police blink)