Gemini Lights

cornerblock

I'm currently looking for an additional good front light, mainly to be used for commuting but also some longer winter weekend rides. The Gemini 1500 Lumen Duo LED Light 4-Cell is on the short list, if there is anyone here who has bought this particular light or has any experience of Gemini lights and would care to share their thoughts it'd be much appreciated.

http://www.alwaysriding.co.uk/gemini-li ... -1449.html

meanredspider

My first impression is that this is an MTB light - the blurb suggests it's a high power wide beam pattern which isn't very suitable for road use. Secondly, mounting options for a road bike look pretty limited - interesting that they show an MTB bar with no stem fitted. AyUps, for instance, come with a "bridge" style mount that spans the stem. And, at least with the AyUps, the two lights are individually adjustable for angle. No experience of the brand but given there are so many options on the market these days, it's the details that set them apart.

apreading

There is alot of discussion of the Gemini Duo and clones of it on Candlepower forums. The use of lenses rather than reflectors to shape the beam seems to work well and allows you to buy different lenses to vary it if you want.

The Gemini's also have a neat feature that they are programmable, so you can choose what % of max power you want on the three presets it has.

You can get MUCH cheaper clones but they wont be programmable, may not have as good a driver and probably wont have as good a battery.

If you want the Geminis, I think you may be able to get them cheaper from the manufacturer. I think they may be in USA though, so there would be shipping/import tax to take into account.

Search on Candlepower forums and you will find much more.

meanredspider

apreading wrote:

The Gemini's also have a neat feature that they are programmable, so you can choose what % of max power you want on the three presets it has.

I had a light a few years ago from one of the more well-known manufacturers (though I don't recall who) that had this feature. I thought at the time (and still think) isn't this just a bit of a gimmick? Maybe in the situation where you weren't quite going to finish a ride on full power burn time you might think to drop it back to 80% but it does feel more like an MTB feature than a roadie feature.

cougie

£150. I'd rather go with a couple of torches on the bars for what £20 or £30 ? And then if one breaks - you still have the other. If your battery dies on the expensive torch - are you left with zero light ?

dwanes

If you are going to spend decent on a front light then consider this for just over £100

http://www.bike24.com/1.php?content=8;n ... d=42;pgc=0

It is not legal as a handlebar light in Germany so buy the dedicated handlebar mount accessory for a couple of quid extra.

It sells for over £200 at Halfords.

Its German so Reliability and build quality is second to none so you wont need a reserve light, its a simple light but throws out loads of light.

cornerblock

Thanks very much for the replies all, some good food for thought there. Spending £100-150 for a reliable light that is going to see me through 3-4 winters seems worth it to me. Not saying that bright lights can't be bought for a lot cheaper but it could be a false economy.

The Sigma light looks interesting so it's been added to the contender list, but I have to admit I do like the dual adjustment on the AyUps, I hear what you are saying MRS regarding the light spread of the Gemini which is why the AyUps road kit is looking favourite at the moment.

Monty Dog

I have a Gemini Olympia which at 2000 lumens is too bright for road use even on half-power but it's good quality.
As an alternative you could try this:
http://www.mtbbatteries.co.uk/mountain- ... lumenator/
Everyone uses the same light units but you get the benefit of a decent charger and battery, the bits that usually go wrong.

jameses

For what it's worth, I have just bought one of the un-programmable clone versions of this light. It can be set to focussed main beam, dispersed wide beam, both together or flashing. It's certainly bright enough to inspire confident riding along wet, winding country lanes that I'm not too familiar with in the dark; output isn't far off car headlights. The wide beam pattern is actually quite useful when the roads get a bit twisty and you need to see a bit more of the direction the road takes rather than what's directly ahead.

The mount looks to be the same, a simple o-ring that loops on to catches at the front and back of the unit (so no stem mounting), but held the light firmly in place over some pretty rough, gravelly surfaces.

I haven't properly tested out the battery life yet (it's probably better on the genuine article), but I got one 1 hour 15 minutes out of it this evening and the first (of three) charge indicator lights had only just gone when I got home, so I would be looking at maybe 2.5-3 hours run time. That was with main and dispersed beam lights both on for about a third of the ride, main beam only for the rest.

apreading

JamesEs wrote:

For what it's worth, I have just bought one of the un-programmable clone versions of this light.

Linky??

jameses

apreading wrote:

JamesEs wrote:

For what it's worth, I have just bought one of the un-programmable clone versions of this light.

Linky??

Here you go. Took about 3 weeks to arrive. Figured it was worth a punt for £25, pleasantly surprised so far. I'm not entirely sure the claimed 5800 lumens is accurate, though!

Ouija

JamesEs wrote:

apreading wrote:

JamesEs wrote:

For what it's worth, I have just bought one of the un-programmable clone versions of this light.

Linky??

Here you go. Took about 3 weeks to arrive. Figured it was worth a punt for £25, pleasantly surprised so far. I'm not entirely sure the claimed 5800 lumens is accurate, though!

Physically impossible to be 5800 lumens with only two XM-L's. If you ran both at their max output of 3 amps each you'd be struggling to get over 2000 lumens. Most multi head emitters run them lower than 3 amps to utilize the greater efficiency of LED's at lower ampage (3 XM-L's running at 1 amp each put out more light than 1 XM-L running at 3 amps, but both get the same amount of runtime from the same battery pack).

apreading

That's not a clone of the Gemini, doesnt use the lenses for light distribution but normal reflectors. I have been watching some of those spot/spill combos on ebay for a while and keep telling myself I dont need yet another light but they do look very interesting...

Ouija

apreading wrote:

That's not a clone of the Gemini, doesnt use the lenses for light distribution but normal reflectors. I have been watching some of those spot/spill combos on ebay for a while and keep telling myself I dont need yet another light but they do look very interesting...

The closest one to the gemini is this one for a tenner....



Most of these Chinese torches/lights can have their reflectors lenses replaced with a bewildering variety of alternatives (Kaidomain do quite a few).

apreading

Anyone seen this one: http://www.lightmalls.com/trustfire-tr- ... ttery-pack

Ouija

apreading wrote:

Anyone seen this one: http://www.lightmalls.com/trustfire-tr- ... ttery-pack

2100lumen.. so not really much brighter than the smaller twin head units. Must be running each emitter at slightly less than 1 amp (so about 6/7 amp draw on the battery). That's the problem with multi head units. People think that a seven head unit is going to be seven times brighter than a single head unit when in fact they are just running lots of emitters at very low ampage to try and take advantage of the greater efficiency of doing so and try and squeeze out a few more lumens while still drawing a low amount from the battery (there are limits to just how many amps a battery can put out). I'm not sure i'd like a big monstrous contraption like that on my handle bars for only a few more lumens than can be got from hotter running twin or triple head units.

jameses

Wasn't far off in my estimate - runtime of 3.5 hours with both LEDs on from full charge.