Lezyne Super Drive review by The Hub Cyclery
A great review of the Lezyne Super Drive as a “bikepacking” light….sweet.
“This light is very powerful, lightweight, and relatively inexpensive. With four settings 450/300/100 lumens, plus blinking, it’s versatile to boot.”
Check out the full review HERE.
Initial Review: Lezyne’s Compact Super Drive Headlight
Thanks to all great folks over at BikeRumor.com, enlightening the world about all of the great and not so great products in the industry. In all honesty, I didn’t expect to like Lezyne’s Super Drive. As a commuter who regularly starts and finishes his morning commute in the dark, I’ve been spoiled by trail-ready 900+ Lumen lighting systems and the vision -and visibility- that they guarantee. Coming from substantially more powerful lighting systems, I wasn’t sure what a 450 Lumen light with a mere 90 minute runtime could offer- especially at $110. After about eight weeks of near-daily use, I now know- and have taken quite the shine to the little light. Click through to find out more…
With its replaceable internal rechargeable battery, the Super Drive is a slick little package. Slightly smaller than an Exposure Joystick, the Superdrive is similarly built almost entirely from aluminum, making for a sturdy light. Tool-free 31.8mm and 25.4mm Composite Matrix (plastic) bar mounts are included in the package, as is a Mini USB charging cable. Though there is no battery gauge on the light itself, the LED itself flashes while charging. Though it’s tempting to use the Super Drive as a flashlight, Lezyne warn users not to- without cycling’s air flow, the light can’t evacuate the heat generated by the LED emitter and the body can in my exterience get quite hot.
Lezyne’s Uniform Power Beam reflector makes the most of the light’s moderate 450 Lumen claimed output (on high- medium and low put out 300 and 150 Lumen, respectively). Though not as pencil-thin as the Joystick’s, the Super Drive’s beam is among the more focused I’ve seen on the bike and the concentrated center makes it seem a whole lot brighter than it should be. The beam almost creates a tunnel of light for riding in- not really broad enough for bar-mounted mountain biking, but plenty wide for road and commuter biking. Aimed properly, I haven’t found myself wanting for more than the Super Drive’s high output while commuting, even at 30mph. The hooded is a nice touch and does a good job at preventing accidental self-blinding when standing for climbs. (Why doesn’t everyone do this?)
Though it’s reasonably stable once fitted, the combination of the charging port seal and aggressive tab on the hot shoe-style bar mount makes mounting the Super Drive a 2-handed affair. Despite tightening the thumb screw as much as I could, it remains easy to aim the light from side (and so also to knock it off center). The location of the charging port and its chunky rubber cover make it difficult to charge the light while it’s mounted- not a big deal unless you have an outlet near your bicycle parking spot.
About the diameter of a roll of quarters and the length of a smartphone, the Super Drive is easy to remove from the bike when locking up for the day. The 90 minute runtime requires regular topping off- thankfully the USB charging port makes at-work charging easy.
As good as it is, with its relatively focused beam and light 125g weight, the Super Drive is really screaming for a helmet mount. This would make the most of the beam, allow the rider to catch the eye of drivers merging from side streets, and enable off-road use. Happily, one is in the pipeline and should be reaching distributors by the middle of February. For the next generation, a bit of clipping at the top of the beam might be nice as well. Aiming the center spot fairly far out makes the most of it’s punch- a rotated “D” shape might make a bit more of the light’s output while sparing oncoming traffic. But these would be a minor change and do little to take the shine off the little Lezyne.
Though it may not seem like it on paper, the Super Drive is a heck of a package- and especially impressive for a first effort. The price is reasonable, additional batteries are available if needed, and the output is surprisingly punchy. The self-contained design has sidelined my more powerful headlight for commuting- and I haven’t missed that light’s higher output. If the forthcoming helmet mount is half-decent, the convenience and safety of its high position could well make it the commuter light to beat. Stay tuned for more…
Lezyne Super Drive Front Light Review
Smart light good for those who want a commuting torch powerful enough for occasional on and off-road night riding.
Lezyne have built a solid reputation in five short years for revolutionizing the multi-tool market, making tools for the first time sexy.
They’ve since expanded the range into other areas, the latest addition is a range of three LED lights. We’ve got our hands on the most powerful of the three, the Super Drive.
Packing 450 Lumens, this is the brightest on offer (the Mini Drive, reviewed here, has an output of 150 Lumens, while the mid-range Power Drive puts out 300 Lumens), and with a price tag of £99.99, it’s immediately clear you’re getting a decent whack of illumination for little money (it is significantly cheaper, for example, than the Exposure Lights Joystick, which only manages 325 Lumens ).
So already it’s off to a good start. A rechargeable Li-Ion battery provides 1.5 hours of juice on the full 450 Lumen mode, while the rubber button on the top of the light can be used to cycle through the other three modes; medium, which sees battery life extended to a more useable 2.5 hours, low and flashing.
Lezyne developed their own lens to make the most of the available output from the Cree LED. Combined with a mirror polished parabolic reflector, the 450 Lumens spill out with a very wide beam.
Charging is simply a matter of using the supplied USB cable, removing the light from the mount and, turning it upside down to reveal the charge port cleverly tucked underneath a rubber protective flap. Charge it at your desk during work hours and it takes about four hours to top up from empty.
The clever mount – it uses a knurled thumb screw designed to prevent over tightening – keeps the light securely in place. Very little bounce occurred even over some of the rougher paths we encountered when taking the light off-road. Each light comes with two mounts, for 31.8mm and 25.4mm bars.
A very useful touch, and something that shows Lezyne really do pay attention to the details, is the small amount of rotation the clamp design allows. You can point the light just where you want it, especially useful if you can’t or don’t want to fit the light right up beside the stem (if you’ve have a Garmin fitted for example).
All in all, Lezyne’s first entry into lights is a well priced, nicely designed and focused light that offers a surprisingly powerful beam.
Performance
Lezyne have set their sights on cycle commuters and those after an affordable, small and light unit that doesn’t break the bank.
However, that said 450 Lumens is still a decent whack of output (certainly more than we had when we first started night riding ten years ago) and we found it the beam ideal for riding on unlit roads when using the most powerful setting, although the battery life is limiting for extended rides.
We’ve also found the Super Drive to pump out enough light for off-ride night riding, providing your sticking to a reasonable speed on familiar trails. However, the launch of Lezyne’s helmet mount (available separately for £16.99) means it can be combined with a more powerful bar-mounted beam, making the Super Drive the ideal filler light for those spots, particularly corners, that the fixed main beam can’t reach.
All that makes the Lezyne Super Drive a smartly designed torch good for those who want a commuting light powerful enough for occasional on and off-road night riding.
TwentyNineInches.com Reviews the Super and Mini Drive LED Lights
Guitar Ted reviews our Super and Mini Drive lights. An honest and well-thought out review. Thank you sir.
We at Twenty Nine Inches received a pair of Lezyne’s 2012 LED lights a while back for test/review. We had heard about these new products last year at a Press Camp attended by Grannygear and when the products were ready, Grannygear and Guitar Ted each got a sample to test out. Granygear received the Mini Drive while Guitar Ted reviews the Super Drive here. Without further adieu, here are their thoughts on these new for Lezyne products, the Super Drive and Mini Drive LED lights.
Guitar Ted’s Super Drive Review: When I heard Lezyne was going to do a line of LED lights, I was intrigued. I have used their pumps and have seen their accessories for cyclists, so the overall look and function of their products was well known to me. Would a line of LED lights live up to expectations? Grannygear’s trip to vist Lezyne only whetted my appetite even more after he described some of the lights he saw then to me over the phone. To say that my expectations were set at a high level is an understatement.
Impressions And Tech Intro: I received the Super Drive and was immediately struck by how diminutive it was for a rated 450 Lumen of lighting power. The pewter anodized look was typically elegant for a Lezyne product, and as far as aesthetics go, this met my approval and expectations right out of the box. The battery for the unit is a 18650 Li-ion button top 3.7V cell with built in protection for overcharging and over discharging, but it isn’t unusual enough that a serviceable replacement couldn’t be found. (Note: Lezyne says only their battery should be used in the Super Drive). Lezyne does sell spare batteries if you want to have back ups available. You also get mounts suitable for 31.8mm or 25.4mm bars in the box along with the USB type cord for recharging duties.
The battery needs to be charged out of the box, and the port for the cable is located underneath the light body, covered by a thick, rubber piece that is tethered to the main light body. Plug in the USB cord to any computer or USB compatible wall charger and the Power Drive blinks softly to let you know it is taking a charge. It stops blinking when it is done, and to double check the level, you unplug, then plug in again, at which time the light should blink once and cease. I had to do this three times upon the first charging to see one blink, and the total time to charge was about an hour and a half out of the box. This went away and the light charged as described in the instructions after a couple of uses.
The mount is simple, made of plastic, and has a thumb screw style attachment. The light clips into this base in a rather simple but effective manner. It allows the light body to swivel a few degrees so you can center the beam pattern and of course, you can swivel the entire mount around your bars to attain the perfect beam spot pattern on the trail that you are riding. Note: I never had any issues with the mount in rough terrain. It always held the light body firmly in place. The Lezyne Super Drive weighs in at 140 grams with the 31.8mm mount. Just recently a helmet mount was announced by Lezyne that fits all the LED lights in their line-up.
Run times are as follows: High: 450 lumens- 1.5hr Medium: 300 lumens- 2.5hr Low: 100 lumens- 4hr Flash: 300 lumens- 5hr
Run times seemed pretty consistent with spec, and when you run out of time, the Super Drive resorts to the 110 Lumen setting, and blinks intermittently to let you know you are running on the 15 minutes of reserve power.
The light has a simple protocol for the single button which has a rubber cover and is located near the front of the light body on the top side. Press the button for a couple of seconds and release to turn the unit on. This gets you to the highest setting, which is rated at 450 Lumen. Press once to lower the output to 300 Lumen, and once again to drop down to 110 lumen. One more push will yield a blinking pattern at the 300 Lumen level. Finally, hold the button down for a couple of seconds in any mode to shut the unit down. You do have to toggle all the way through the settings to get back to a higher out put. Maybe not an ideal set up, but the Super Drive does retail for MSRP $110.00, so I can forgive this little annoyance.
Performance: Lezyne makes some pretty heady claims for the Super Drive’s light performance. A light- no matter the power rating- is only as good as its optics. Would the Super Drive measure up? In a word: Yes. The beam pattern shows no “hot spots”, corona effects, or any weirdness at all. The light color is neither too blue or too warm/yellow, (for my eyes, at any rate. Yours may vary.). The intensity at 450 Lumen is great, and typically I stayed with the 300 Lumen setting to milk more run time from the light. But this was not a big compromise in my mind. The difference between 450 and 300 Lumen being negligible as far as what I could see.
I think you could definitely use the Super Drive as a casual single track light, and it is overkill for a commute. In fact, the 110 Lumen setting may be all you’d ever use in a city setting, the beam pattern and throw is that good. Plus, you’ll get more run time out of it. I used this light during a 65 mile snow bike event that took me from day into night. The 110 Lumen setting against a snow covered trail was all I could ask for in terms of not washing out the contours and giving me plenty of light thrown down the trail to cover ground as fast as I wanted to go.
Conclusions: The Super Drive is just, well…super. I can recommend it for anything from commuting to casual single track riding off road. Back road riding, gravel roads, or service roads would be this lights domain for sure. The mount is secure enough for rough riding, but severe, rock infested, fast down hill type mountain biking isn’t where this light should be used. Maybe as a good back up/bail out light for your current, high powered system perhaps.
The light charges as stated after a few charges, and otherwise I have no concerns about the Super Drive. The beam pattern is near perfect, and the performance for the dollar says “high value” here. I highly recommend this torch.
Mini Drive Review:
I received the Mini Drive model to review, the least powerful of the range of Lezyne’s LED bike lights. Rated at 150L (lumens) on high, and with light level options for a 100L, 50L, and a high rate and slow rate flash, the Mini Drive looks poised to be a commuter special more than a true off-road bike light, but we shall see. It charges like the bigger brother Guitar Ted tested, with a USB cable and a blinking LED (the same one that lights your way) to tell you the charging state. I had some issues the second time I charged it in that the LED never stopped its slow flash even after all day of charging. It is supposed to stop blinking when it is fully charged. The circuit protected CR123a battery measured to be at its full capacity (with a DVM), so that seems like a bug with the programming of the unit I had. I also played around with the cooling abilities of the Mini Drive by turning it on high and letting it sit at room temp while I hit the case with an infrared temp gun. Beginning with 68.5* ambient temps, after 20 minutes it reached a high of 93* right at the emitter end of the unit. However, putting a bit of air across the Mini Drive dropped the temps to 89* within 3 minutes. Putting the light outside on a breezy 45* day, the external case temp plunged to 60* in 2 minutes. It never got hot enough to self protect (the driver will lower the current if it overheats) and it would seem that the small case is plenty to keep up with the demands of the 150L output.
The physical size is super for the light output and the Mini Drive looks solid and tough. It does not feel like a toy, but looks like a high quality flashlight. The clamp holds the light well and it never bobbled or slipped on the bars, holding the light body very securely. The beam pattern of the Cree XP type emitter and reflector is very spot in nature rather than flood so even with the 150L limit, it reaches out pretty well. I used it off road and even at 20 mph speeds on fireroads, I had enough distance to the beam. However, the overall pattern is not that pleasant as the hot spot gives way to a shadow quickly off center. As well, there are some artifacts from part of the lens holder ‘fingers’ that I could see in the beam pattern that were annoying.
Battery life seems to be a bit limited and that is typical of an All-In-One light like this. The battery can only be so big and still fit in there. I would anticipate that a regular user of this light would charge it every time after use or expect a dim light mid-ride.
So what do we have in the Mini Drive? I think the off road potential is limited, not just by the beam pattern, but the run time. But really, no serious night rider will be looking at a 150L light for his main light source, and if he was, having to cycle through the High-Med-Low-Fast Flash-Slow Flash to get all the way around to High again is really annoying and a bit dangerous in a true off road light where you may need to go from Med to High in a moments notice.
But let’s step down our expectations a bit and put this light on a commuter’s handlebars, or a recreational rider that needs a light source for under a 2 hour ride. Now there the Mini Drive would be very good. Most commutes are under an hour one way and as long as the light was charged while you were at work, it would have more than enough capacity for the journey. And the flashy modes, something that is just annoying to a dedicated off road night rider, gains value as a ‘can you see me now?’ factor, even in the daytime. Although Lezyne does not suggest it be used as a stand alone flashlight, obviously it could be removed from the bar clamp and used for roadside repairs, etc, especially since that typically would be done at less than the full 150L High setting.
In this mode of use I can overlook the faults of the Mini Drive and enjoy the small size, great build quality, easy charging, great mount (no silly rubber O rings) and decent price ($69.95 suggested retail) + bike shop warranty support. It also has good potential as a helmet light for an off road rider, as long as the Mini Drive helmet light was in addition to the main bar mounted light. For a first shot at lighting your bike’s path, Lezyne has hit the ball well. Maybe not out of the park yet, but the fence is coming up fast.
NOTE: Lezyne sent out the Super Drive and Mini Drive lights out at no charge for test/review. We were not bribed nor paid for this review. we strove to give our honest thoughts and opinions throughout.
Here’s a great review by Andy aka Rut on MTBR.
So last night was the first night I have been able to use our new Lezyne Super Drive lights. I mounted two on the bars and headed out for a few hour ride. I turned one on low and proceeded to do get into the 1 1/2 hour climb. With another person behind me, I was being “flooded” out by their light, but that was my doing. I did, after all, have the light on low.
Once we got to the top, I turned both lights to full power and was amazed by the power of the lights! Holy Shimoly! My riding buddy was using another brand of lights which were brand new and we both decided the Lezyne Super Drive lights simply covered the singletrack better. It had a wider coverage and was bright as hell. Both of us had two seperate lights on the bars.
I love the USB port for plugging it in and can’t believe how small the entire unit is. Not to mention having no battery pack is simply mind blowing. The whole unit is on my bar mount. Incredible!!! Oh, and it weighs about 125 Grams!
The only draw back is it lacks a helmet mount. Once Lezyne comes out with a helmet mount this unit will be unstoppable!
I am not affiliated with Lezyne in anyway and was really surprised at how awesome this unit is. There are tons of other technical info about this light to be found on the net. I believe Francis has posted some stuff on it too.
If you are interested in purchasing a light, check into this unit. I love it.
HubPages Features Lezyne Lights
Lezyne Super Drive Light to Make Your Night Journey Pleasant and Secure.
LED lights are now part of your home and of course, your car. The popularity of LED compared to incandescent has increased because of myriad of advantages it offers including longer life, easy installation, low energy consumption and reliability. These comforts are usually not present in traditional incandescent light.
Competition has not spared this product also. Manufacturers are facing tough competition but some brands like Lezyne have emerged as one of the best selling brands in both low-beam and high beam driving lights.
A Lezyne Super Drive light is able to work longer (more than one thousand hours) comparatively. Like incandescent, it doesn’t get burnt quickly even if you frequently turn on and off. Though LED driving lights are expensive, their longevity makes it a worth buying car accessory. LED light can easily operate with the dimmer switch whereas an incandescent doesn’t. It makes your night driving easy because you don’t strain your eyes to see pot holes.
The interesting thing about a Lezyne Power Drive is that it comes in three stunning colors. The black and silver color LED lights suit with almost all cars.
Exceptional Features
Lithium ion batteries are easily available in consumer electronics. These batteries are excellent for a long drive as they don’t run out so easily. They are one of the major reasons to make LED driving light popular among drivers.
No wonder, aluminium is a versatile ceramic material with many practical uses. From tap washers to body armor, it has been used frequently. Nowadays, advance version CNC is being used to make iPhone case and cases of driving lights.
If you are concerned about your automobile accessory, go through the casing material of your driving light. If it is made of aluminum, it means you are on the right way of purchasing a durable light.
UPPGRADER (a men’s fashion, swag, and upscale product blog) features Lezyne’s Super Drive. Pretty sexy. We are glad that Lezyne can roll with the best of them.
[$110] Night biking- it’s not the brightest idea in the world, but sometimes it happens. If you plan on doing any night biking, gear up with the 450 Lumen Lezyne Super Drive LED. The Super Drive uses a unique lens and reflector setup that illuminates near and far simultaneously without sacrificing visibility in either field. It’s programmable with three custom modes ranging from 150 to 450 Lumens (about 4 hours to 1.5 hours battery life). Housed in a tough aluminum body with composite handlebar attachment.
RennRad Mag Says Just Use the LED Super Drive
RennRad Mag shows how you can bring light in the darkest night – just use the new LED Super Drive.
SAZ likes our brand new LED Super Drive and Shop Shock Drive.
New Super Drive Review
MTBR has posted an extremely thorough review on our new Super Drive LED.
Ahh Lezyne…they’re a fairly new company that quickly revolutionized tools and pumps. Early this spring, they held a press camp to announce their entry into the lights arena. At first, I didn’t give it a second look as it seemed like small commuter lights. But the more I looked at them and now that I’m using them, the more I find their products very compelling.
The Super Drive is a self-contained light that claims 450 lumens. It uses a Cree XML emitter that is housed in an all aluminum case for heat dissipation. The battery is a standard lithium cell that can be replaced on the trail. The rear of the light unscrews easily much like a traditional flashlight and the battery can be replaced with a fresh one for longer run time.
Although this is Lezyne’s first effort in lights, they have invested significant time and money to research the competition and their own lights. They’ve purchased their own integrating sphere to measure actual lumens output. With advanced tools, they’re able to control and publish how their lights behave over the whole battery cycle. They’re also able to analyze losses in lens and reflector designs.
The Super Drive is the top of the line of a family of three lights from Lezyne. It retails for $110 and puts out a claimed 450 lumens. The other lights in the family are:
Power Drive – $90 at 300 lumens claimed output
Mini Drive – $70 at 150 lumens claimed output.
These lights are charged via USB and there is no USB charger included. It is assumed that you have a charger or computer somewhere in the household. If you need one, a separate charger is available for $20.
Something interesting about the Super Drive and other Lezyne lights is there is no tiny indicator lamp for charging status or light switch illumination. It uses the actual LED as an indicator by flashing it very faintly to indicate that the light is charging. This shows Lezyne’s focus on keeping the light as simple as possible and hitting the $110 retail price point.
The light head itself has a lip on the top rim and that’s actually useful to keep the bright light away from the rider’s eyes during out of the saddle efforts. We love light’s with wide beam patterns but a downside is when you climb out of the saddle, you get way up front and the light can shine on your eyes a bit. The lip found on this light blocks some of that light spill at the top.
Quirky Light Switch:
The light switch is a bit quirky and non-intuitive. We all know how to turn a flashlight on and off. Some companies have deviced in protection for accidental turn-ons for self-contained lights (in the bike bag) by implementing a double-click on or 2-second button press to turn on. Lezyne has gone further by putting more light logic feedback on it. When you press the button, it will turn low instantly. After one second of button press, it will turn to medium indicating it’s ready to be released. When you release the button, it turns to high. When turning off, a similar logic is applied. It doesn’t make sense to the newbie until someone explains it to them. After that, it’s easy enough to do but it does our brains process what’s going on every time we turned the light on and off. We believe that’s overkill and non-intuitive. But, it’s a pretty minor complaint as the switch action and quality is excellent. At the end of the day, one has to hold the light switch for two seconds to turn on and off.
Specifications:
Mounting:
The mount is pretty simple hoop style with a plastic tightening knob for tool less mounting on to the handlebar. The light can be aimed left to right with indexed positions on the mount positions.
Helmet mounting is not available at this point but with any helmet mount from other manufacturers that simulates a handlebar pipe on to the helmet, the Lezyne mount will work for helmet use.
MTBR Actual Lumens and Lumen Hours Measurements:
This light measured 44 lux ont the MTBR Lux setup. In a laboratory environment with an integrating sphere, it measured at 421 actual lumens.
This is the most exciting field in lights today as 500 lumen self-contained lights have become very affordable. For comparison, the competition is at:
Serfas True 500 $150.00 – 43 Mtbr Lux
Niterider Minewt 600 Cordless $150.00 – 50 Mtbr Lux
Dinotte XML-1 C $169.00 – 51 Mtbr Lux
Light and Motion Urban 500 $160.00 – 53 Mtbr Lux
The Lezyne Super Drive is not the brightest but it is the most compelling because of its quality and $110 price.
We also want to note its honesty in reporting. Claiming 450 lumens for a measured output of 421 lumens is one of the most honest we’ve seen to date as the industry usually 30% off.
Light Meter Charts and Comparison Table
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Bottom Line:
This is a ground breaking new light from a new light company. They could sell a few of these lights at $250 so we suspect they will sell a lot at the $110 price.
The question most people will want answered is ‘Is it bright enough for trail riding? 450 lumens does not sound like a lot’. The answer is yes. It is a great beam pattern that accomplishes a flood and a decent spot at the same time. Also, it is bright enough as you can see in the photos. And although it only claims 450 lumens, it actually measures the same at 44 Mtbr lux as the first Magicshine MJ-808 that we got last year that claimed 900 lumens.
And the real bonus is if you want it brighter, buy two. If you want more run time, buy more $10 Lezyne batteries.
Value Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
Overall Rating: We can give this light 5 stars already but the we’ll put a tiny chink in its armor for lack of optional helmet mount and the quirky light switch logic. 4.90 out of 5 Stars
Beam Pattern Photo:
