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Cheap CREE LED lights from Kogan?
Kogan are selling a 1200 lumen CREE led headlamp (no handlebar mount)for $35. Not the latest state of the art however $35 for around 1200 lumens seems like fair value if the quality is ok and the design looks very familiar to several others out there in the marketplace. could be a good cheap commuter light. Anyone have any experience with these units?
http://www.kogan.com/au/buy/cree-t6-led-bicycle-...
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look just like one I recently bought from ebay. My advice would be to avoid like the plague. The charger melted when I went to charge the battery. I finally managed to get it charged with another charger and mounted the unit to the bike. After a couple of trial runs up and down the road, the light unit started switching off randomly - not the sort of thing you want to happen while bombing a single track in the dead of night. however if all you want it for is commuting then fine - although when it is switched on it is extremely bright and may blind motorists.
These crappy chinese lights are just that - crap. And dangerous. Certainly not compliant for sale in Australia.
I have something similar from ebay.
The lights itself is OK and bright enough.
Battery doesn't last as long after a few months of usage and the handlebar mount is very ordinary and will slide around when you hit a pothole. You can put velcro to improve on it.
Looks very similar to the ebay ones. They are OK, the battery and charger are definitely the weak point. Do not under any circumstances leave it to charge unattended. At least this one seems to have a proper aussie plug.
they are really bright though.
I have had bad experiences with Kogan though!
Tks guys for the feedback, I decided to take the plunge anyhow. I figure for $35 bucks it will probably be ok as my workshop headlamp. I've noticed my old one doesn't quite cut it these days and I know it's got nothing to do with getting old and going slowly blind! Maybe I should have taken the extended warranty option .. lol!
I bought it from oversea for 20 but slightly different version with helmet. I found the version shown hard to fit with helmet on. Or I don't like something sticking on my forehand.
For the battery, the shop explained different grade of battery available. I did upgraded mine and it's ok.
Hope help.
Btw, people said even cheaper if the locals buy in china.
I bought one of these from Kogan last month or so when they were on sale for $30. I've used it a few times on the handle bars in conjunction with other helmet lights & they're not too bad. I wouldn't necessarily use them by themselves though. There's a hotspot in the middle & a sharp outer edge to the illuminated area that more expensive lights don't have, but I can live with that for $30.
However, I agree with other posters about the mounting being a bit too wobbly for off-road use - I've managed to bodge something up from old bit & pieces in the garage to make it more secure. The light head has a threaded hole in the bottom that you can use.
Also, I've managed to kill the supplied battery when checking the voltage after a ride. I must've shorted it out when I was trying to position the voltmeter probes into the connector. No big deal since I was planning on purchasing a better quality one from elsewhere, anyway. The battery seems quite cheap & nasty - there's absolutely nothing printed on it anywhere to ascertain its specifications.
Can someone tell me if the charger is Australian Certified? I'm assuming it should be given it's being sold by a local Australian company rather than direct from China?
Also, why are you having mounting issues? Don't they supply 2 different o-ring sizes? Or is the head mount the issue? Never used a head mount, only these helmet mounts http://www.action-led-lights.com/collections/acc...
The reason I'm asking is a work collegue wants one off ebay but I'm thinking this is local so should have an approved charger and it comes with 12months warranty. Just need to buy the proper helmet mount and its all good.
The light unit is rather top-heavy & the O-rings don't seem to grip well on my carbon bars. So they flop about a bit too much for my liking.
As to the charger being Australian certified - I'll have to check later tonight & get back to you. I'm assuming it would be certified since its being sold here locally & needs to conform with Australian laws & regulations.
Ok thanks for that.
wrt the o-rings you can buy smaller purpose made orings. Normally 2 is supplied, a small one for the helmet mount and larger for bar mount.
The charger has the familiar CE & Tickbox logos printed on the underside, so yes, it'd be Australian certified.