At a glance Super bright rear light with five LED’s, four operating modes and up to 60 hour run time. Comes with universal fixing bracket.
Tested by
Ped Baker, tester for The Bike List
Performance
There's a short stretch of my 15-mile commute that fills me with dread every time I approach it. It's a busy section of A-road that truncates from dual carriageway to a narrow road barely wider than the juggernauts that thunder down it. The road is dangerous enough in broad daylight but in darkness it becomes absolutely terrifying.
There's a remarkable lack of published proof that being more visible to other motorists means you're less likely to be knocked off your bike but it seems logical. During the dark winter months I wear a flouro jacket with reflective piping, Scotchlite pannier stickers and a flashing rear helmet light, but the Cat Eye TL-LD610 is perhaps the most potent weapon against Messrs Scania and Foden.
The 10cm sausage-shaped plastic case of the 610 holds five extremely bright LED's, switched on by holding down the red Cat Eye logo. Pressing again cycles through the four modes: all on, all flashing, left to right pulse, and random flashing. The most visible is the all-flashing mode that has all five LED's pulsing. In any of the three flashing modes, the two AAA batteries will last up to 60 hours. As you can see in the photos, compared to a standard tablet-shaped LED light the 610 is easily twice as bright.
The 610 comes with Cat Eye's versatile FlexTight fixing bracket that expands or tightens to accommodate all sizes of seat tube or post. It's easy to fit and can be set to several angles - an important feature as the beam is brightest and at its most effective when it's aimed directly at the traffic. If you've got the room, the light can also be mounted vertically in its bracket. The only issue with the FlexTight fixing is the spare end of the adjuster that sticks out and can catch your leg as you cycle, although it could be trimmed down easily enough. With an RRP of £25 this light certainly isn't the cheapest out there but it is comparable to Blackburn's Mars 4.0, the Smart Lunar R2 and NiteRider's Cherry Bomb which all offer smiliar performance at the same price point.
Judging the effectiveness of a rear light is, by its very nature, difficult. But the TL-LD610 is extremely bright, easy to mount, has a long running time and, who knows, it might even have already saved my life.
Buy from: www.wiggle.co.uk
Cateye say:
A must-have for urban night riding. The new TL-LD610 is slimmer and brighter than its predecessor, with five LEDs and three modes that maximize your visibility. The FlexTight™ bracket fits all bikes and mounts horizontally or vertically to maximize adaptability. The new low-profile switch eliminates accidental switch-on/off, especially inside your pack. Runs up to 30 hours on constant mode on two AAA batteries.
Functions:
- 5 red LEDs
- 80,000+ mcd
- Runs over 30 hours on constant or 60 hours on
- flashing
- 4 modes (flashing, constant, side to side & random).
Features:
- FlexTight™ universal mounting bracket
- Highly water resistant.
Find out more: www.cateye.com
