RSP Asteri 3 LED front light

A very well made light with a great run time, the Asteri 3 is an excellent choice if your commute takes you beyond the city limits. It's a pity there's no side visibility but apart from that there's plenty to like.

The Asteri 3 is a chunky torch-style light with an internal Lithium Ion battery. Constructed from Aluminium with a single 3W LED to the fore it's a well sealed unit and nicely finished too. There's a single push button switch to cycle the modes (high power, low power and flashing) and the mount is a quick release affair that adapts fairly easily to standard or oversize bars.

We measured the output of the light at 503 lux at 2m, which is comparable to the slightly more expensive Niterider MiNewt USB we tested not so long ago (530 lux at 2m). The Asteri has a fairly narrow beam and as such is best on road. It doesn't fall off too sharply so there's enough peripheral light to get your bearings. The beam is plenty bright enough for pootling along unlit lanes and even the occasional offroad excursion if you're not after a personal best time. Like most torch-style front lights it gets the standard point deducted for having no side visibility. Come on guys, it's not rocket science: all you need is a drill and a couple of bits of plastic.

35mm (56mm effective), 1s, f5.6, ISO800, Milk carton markers at 10, 20, 30m

The best thing about this light is the run time. Given its size you might expect it to fizzle out after a couple of hours – especially since it's quite bright – but it'll go for over 6 hours on full beam with no problems, and after that you can have another 3 hours of low beam before the battery finally gives up. That's enough light for an all-night excursion right there in a tiny torch, it really is extraordinary what these lighting chaps can achieve these days. Once you have run out of juice you're an overnight charge with the supplied mains adaptor away from another full night of illumination.

Verdict

There's plenty of good lights for this kind of money and RSP might not be the first name you'd think of but make no mistake, this little light is a real contender for your cash. Add some side windows for next year and it'll be even better.