They're pretty bright, especially when fully charged. Can't go wrong with the red ones. I like to mount the light with button on top on the 4th setting. This setting flashes an intermittent light going upwards, which I think is a cool effect. Also, don't pull too hard on the rubber rings when mounting. I've broken a plastic tab doing that. Still use the light with 3 of 4 intact tabs, though.

I don't think much of the Lumintop battery capacity specifications. 180 mAh battery to drive a total of 130 lumens is a recipe for a short run time between charges. I often suggest a pair of Lezyne Drive clones readily available from US sources on eBay for under $10 a pair including shipping. The internal USB rechargeable battery is 500 mAh. That meant I can use them in flashing mode for several days worth of rides before recharging them. One white and one red light $9.58 postpaid https://www.ebay.com/itm/165623980506

I bought the Lumintop lights... I like them so far. I don't ride in the dark very often, so run time isn't an issue for me; I anticipate using them maybe a few times a year. So far they're adequate for my needs (visibility).

Need little more to get the best
Check out ORCYCLE C2 at Amz

Bought a Cygolite Hotshot 150 specifically for the seat stay mount, because I use a Carradice seatbag. $27 on Amazon. The seat stay mount mount is way too big for my 1973 frame. It's not that hard to get the mount to fit, but it's annoying.
Cateye has a mount that supposedly fits tubes as small as 12 mm in diameter. That would work fine on my bike, but I don't know if the Cygolite fitting is the same as Cateye's.

I talked with Cygolite. Their solution is rubber strips inside the seat stay collar. Tude on with the seat post mount, but I'd have to cut it. I'm using my normal circumvention - cotton handlebar tape. Not perfect, but I've got the clamp mount on a strut of my Blackburn rack. I think that will work well.

I'm not buying a new bike to make the accessories fit better. IMO, brifters are ugly. Very ugly. If brifters would win a race for me, I'd still go with DT shifters, but I don't race anyway. I'll accept the annoyances foisted upon me by the bike industry rather than buy a new bike. Besides, if I bought a new bike, it would be a Mercian, which might still have thin stays....:)

This thread was started in June 2014. Officially, a June 2014 price-tag of $25 (USD) is now inflated to a price-tag of $33.02. What now costs $25 would have officially cost $18.93 in 2014.

Unofficially, has anyone been buying groceries or insurance during the last 10 years?

So my vote for best-bang-for-the-buck rear bike-light goes to the $35 NiteRider Vmax+™ 150. I've got better lights that cost $$$, but for the price, this light just can't be beat.

https://www.niterider.com/products/v...bike-taillight

I've got a couple Planet Bike Grateful Red USB lights that I'm really happy with. It would be nice if they were updated to use USB-C, and it looks like the Vmax+ would be a lot brighter, but I think the Grateful Red is bright enough and I like the pulse mode. The included seat post and rack mounts are really nice, too. The mount looks similar to the NiteRider mount. Wouldn't it be nice if they could use each other's mounts?
https://www.planetbike.com/grateful-...ke-tail-light/
https://cdn11.bigcommerce.com/s-i3pt...531990.jpg?c=1

some friends have Planet Bike lights. and they are all dim.
I looked up the PB Grateful Red rear light and sorry to say that 20 Lumens is not adequate.
from PB spec page...

• FL1 Tested - Run times: 5 hrs (steady – 20 lm), 9 hrs (Courtesy™ – 6-18 lm) and up to 30 hrs (Superflash™ - 20 lm)

The same $30 (add $10) can buy a 150 lumen Cygolite or a Lezyne Zecto 200+ Rear. Both are great.

Cygolite Hypershot 350 USB

Very good illumination. Several patterns for flashing, pulsing, steady. Can be found for ~$40-45. A couple of these can make it impossible to not make out a cyclist even in the toughest situations. Only downside is the built-in Lithium-Ion battery, which can't be easily replaced (ie, with a simple battery swap). I use two of these (one on rear of rack, one on helmet), and it makes a difference in terms of vehicles passing with greater courtesy, giving a wider berth.

https://cygolite.com/product/hypershot-350-usb/

I would not have included that light in this thread because of the price, but I'm glad you did. I've owned many taillights, and I like this one best. I've had it for about 13 months. Really good, and since it's so powerful, I would expect the battery to drain more quickly than my other lights, but it doesn't.

I had a cyclist behind me tell me it's too bright, and I'm sure he's right from his perspective. There is a mode where it goes gradually from dim to bright and back rather than flashing. I suspect that would be easier on the eyes. I won't make it flash if I know someone will ride close behind me.

Keep an eye on the back of the light, where the mounting clip attaches to the light's main body. Another bf'er reported that his cracked at that spot; when I went out to the garage to check mine, I found the same issue. I used some Krazy Glue for a quick fix, and it has been alright so far, but I don't think it'll last forever.

The problem, I think, is that the clip is exactly the same as those used on smaller/lighter Cygolite taillights -- and it's just not strong enough for the 350.

The other issue that you may run into is that the battery life will start to die. Mine got noticeably shorter in only about 1.5 years of use -- and not even daily use, since I have other taillights.

So, yeah, it's hella bright and has lots of modes. And I regard almost any bike taillight as sort of a consumable, anyway, since they won't last forever. But the 350 had a shorter lifespan than my Cygolite 100.

As another poster noted, $40 isn't much off the inflation-adjusted ~$33 price point.

The light is a very, very good one, if safety is the primary goal.

I was tired of buying cheap lights on Amazon that would eventually fail and not be repairable. So 10 years ago I bought two PDW Danger Zones for $30 each.. I have a Maha smart charging station and a bunch of Eneloop batteries.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b1b752353a.jpg

I dropped one - it was clipped on a bag or something and jostled loose. That killed one of the two LEDs. It still works but I usually just swap this one from bike to bike.

Link assist:
https://www.amazon.com/Gaciron-LOOP-.../dp/B0CJJ9H47R

I have not had good luck with clipping lights to bags. They always launch onto the street for me, usually sooner rather than later.