Dinotte 200L......a good main (front) light for commuting?

tom-nook

Hi,

I've recently started a college course and over the next month or so I'm going to be doing my 1st nightime riding. I'm looking for a front light that isn't too expensive, is reasonably lightweight & quickly removable as I wouldn't want to risk leaving it on my bike all day.

My cycle is only 5-6 miles each way on a combination of the following:

- lit dual use cycle / footpath
- unlit cyclepath
- lit roads

I'm considering this one but not sure if it'd be upto the job:

Dinotte 200L AA 5w Ultralight

Does anyone have any experience of this or a similar light? Also are there any alternatives worth considering around £100 or less?

Many thanks!

cntl

I like where the description says: " (...) have a high powered solution that is affordable "

Affiordable, what a JOKE. You can buy a pocket PC for that money (basically a bulb with a battery)

andyp

Ignore cntl - he obviously thinks being bright and seen isn't worth much.

I have a Dinotte front light (and the rear one too) and I think it's a superb piece of kit that should last for years and years.

They are very bright so should illuminate the unlit cycle path for you. They are also extremely easy to fit and remove as the fixing mechanism is a (durable) rubber band.

If you do get one it's best to invest in a battery charger and some rechargeable batteries as they do use them up quite quickly.

tom-nook

Thanks andyp.

Glad to hear that it's a good robust piece of kit with decent performance. The rubber band mechanism is a nice bonus as I really don't want to have to do anything that needs much manual dexterity on a cold day.

It was really the unlit path I was worried about as it has a fairly steep downhill section & I didn't want to run the risk of hitting something/ someone. Sounds like the Dinotte is more than up to the job though.

In my eyes £100 sounds a relative bargain considering the price of some similarly specced lights....while it may not be quite as 'funky' as a pocket pc I know which I'd rather have strapped onto my bike

Thanks again

Cunobelin

Second these..

I use for commuting, and they are fine.

Don't buy the spare "O" rings from On-ome though, the local plumber will have them for a few pence, and in different sizes.

tom-nook

Cunobelin wrote:

Second these..

I use for commuting, and they are fine.

Don't buy the spare "O" rings from On-ome though, the local plumber will have them for a few pence, and in different sizes.

Thanks for the reply & the tip re. the o-rings....I'll bear it in mind!!

the grinder

A question that Cunobelin could answer please.

Do the o-rings tolerate being taken on and off repeatedly? Are they OK to switch back and forth from different sized bars?

yinya

the o-ring survives about one winter (for me) trhough all weathers.

i'd suggest getting the Li-ion version though. longer run-time and better convenience.

alfablue

I have the previous version (the Ultra 5w) and it is superb - ticks all the boxes, plenty bright enough, easy to fit, bombproof construction, and I like the ability to swap the AA's - I carry a spare set (I bought an extra battery holder for £2.50). The Li one might be better if you also have a spare battery but that pushes the price up somewhat. I got some 2800mah rechargeables of ebay. The 200L is supposedly brighter and a longer run time than the Ultra 5w so should be even better, I don't think it can be beaten by anything at this price.

I also run it with an Electron Nano 1W led as backup / to add a flashing light for city riding (40hr run time).

graeme_s-2

I'm seriously considering getting one of these for my commuter. Alfablue, can you give me a bit more information about what charger and batteries you use with your Ultra 5W please?

I'm not very knowledgeable about rechargeable batteries.

alfablue

I got 8 x 2800mah batteries from here - about £10 posted, and for a charger I already had a Uniross smart fast charger (charges in 15 minutres), but something like this should do (its the same model On-One sell, just slightly cheaper). (A smart charger means that it just charges the cells as much as they need, rather than being based on a timer, and in addition, each cell is charged individually, with its own charge indicator, and you can use it for 1 to 4 cells).

The charger I have is a Uniross Sprint 15 - note this is a 4 cell version, they do a 2 cell one as well, so don't get that.

alfablue

ps the Ebay shop I got the batteries from were really good - one of the batteries had a leak, they sent out a new set of 4 next day after I emailed them, no questions asked, didn't even have to return it, so I reckon they are a very good company to deal with.

graeme_s-2

That's brilliant alfablue, thanks very much!

richardjallen

I am thinking of getting one of these as well. For those of you who have one how bright are they compared to say a Cateye EL500 or EL400. When it comes to the o ring it looks like you could tilt the light slightly up or down but what about pointing it left or right (rotating about the vertical axis)?

alfablue

The 5w Ultra is as bright as a 10 to 15w halogen, several times brighter than the EL500, difficult to compare exactly as Cateye quote candlepower, Dinotte, Lumens. The Dinotte is a genuine contender for seeing on unlit roads, the Cateye's are not.

richardjallen

I hate how cateye quote candlepower I assume its to make it hard to compare them with others and they must be dimmer.

BentMikey

The Cateye EL530 is rather brighter than the 500, and quite alright for seeing on unlit roads. I wonder how the new EL600 and EL610 will do, they are quite a lot brighter still going by the claims and spec.

graeme_s-2

Holy crap, I just got my 200L. I've only tested it indoors in daylight but this thing is insanely bright! :shock:

Very neat little package. The light and the battery pack are smaller than I thought they would be. The light is very unobtrusive on my bars, and the battery pack is tiny, and sits comfortably under my stem.

alfablue

Graeme_S wrote:

Holy crap, I just got my 200L. I've only tested it indoors in daylight but this thing is insanely bright! :shock:

Very neat little package. The light and the battery pack are smaller than I thought they would be. The light is very unobtrusive on my bars, and the battery pack is tiny, and sits comfortably under my stem.

Yeah - its the "dogs"

andyp

I've had at least three people comment on how cool my Dinotte front light is today as they've messed about with it in the office.

They are great little lights.

graeme_s-2

Just had a thought. How well does it stand up to heavy rain? Is it worth maybe putting the battery pack in a plastic bag during such conditions?

andyp

Graeme_S wrote:

Just had a thought. How well does it stand up to heavy rain? Is it worth maybe putting the battery pack in a plastic bag during such conditions?

It may be worth it but so far, and I've had my Dinotte lights for over 6 months now, I've not had any problems in the rain, including the wet ride home last night.

I spoke with a guy on a very nice Eddy Merckx fixed at the junction of Lordship Lane and the South Circular who commented on how bright my rear Dinotte was. He'd caught me and said he'd seen me ahead for miles!