Another plus for the Philips LED Bike Light. Distinct top cutoff so it won't annoy oncoming people and it has a strong and wide beam for you to see by. But. It has a lot of artifacts in the beam. I got used to them and don't really notice, but it's by no means the most even.

For an even beam, you might want to look for a light with a multi-emitter LED, like a Seoul P7, Cree MC-E, or Osram SST-50. They tend to put out lots of light but not have a tightly focused hot spot. I started with a couple of the many P7-based flashlights that are cheaply available, and shielded them on top with a piece of heavy rubber innertube that sticks off the front a bit like the bill of a ball cap. That makes an effective cutoff and is durable since it's made of flexible material. It's long, about 2 inches in front of the light, but that's what it takes to block the light for a straight cutoff.

I also tried putting Scotch tape over the lens to make it more diffuse or more even. This worked too well for me, and the light was certainly even but didn't throw more than 20 or 30 feet ahead. Without the tape, or with tape over only the bottom part of the lens to generate a little more spill to the sides, I felt like the beam pattern was completely useful. Of course I still ordered the Philips, because you can never leave your setup alone.