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Moon Meteor-X Auto Pro

9
£39.99

VERDICT:

9
10
Excellent for town and evening rides, and strong enough to be a primary for night rides
Weight: 
109g

At road.cc every product is thoroughly tested for as long as it takes to get a proper insight into how well it works. Our reviewers are experienced cyclists that we trust to be objective. While we strive to ensure that opinions expressed are backed up by facts, reviews are by their nature an informed opinion, not a definitive verdict. We don't intentionally try to break anything (except locks) but we do try to look for weak points in any design. The overall score is not just an average of the other scores: it reflects both a product's function and value – with value determined by how a product compares with items of similar spec, quality, and price.

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The Moon Meteor-X Pro is a brilliant light that packs way more punch than its price tag would suggest. It's easily capable of acting as a primary light for night commuting and the day flash is perfect for an anytime blinker.

  • Pros: Powerful, versatile, great price
  • Cons: Full power constant could last longer, charging is fast but fiddly

When I first saw the Meteor-X Auto Pro I thought it looked a little bit like my Lezyne Micro Drive 450XL, and was expecting it to be a decent support light with a slightly flimsy design. How wrong I was.

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Okay, on its 450 lumens high constant setting, battery life is nothing to shout about. The 1.5hr run-time was sufficient to get me home easily, even after riding to work with the light flashing, but chances are you'll have to remember to charge it between rides.

For the size of the unit, though, I'm pretty impressed by the output. Visibility is good when used alone, even on unlit roads under tree cover. The beam is nicely direct, illuminating what you need to see, with very little wasted power out of the sides.

You can of course drop the lumens to 250, giving you 3hrs of run-time. I didn't quite get that on one daytime training ride, the light went out after 2hrs 53mins, but it was a pretty cold day. This setting is perfect for street-lit rides in the evening.

My favourite setting is the daytime flash, which puts out 700 lumens in a slow rhythm. I actually used this at night, along with my regular main light (a Light&Motion Imjin 800); the setting might be called Day Flash, but I found it really useful for getting that extra bit of attention from drivers on narrower lanes.

> Buyer's Guide: The best 2017/2018 front lights for cycling

In the day flash setting you'll get 45hrs out of the light. That's easily enough for all the riding I can do for nearly a month. It's perfect for training rides when the sun never really comes up.

There is an auto mode, which turns the light on and off in whichever of the light's seven settings you choose, depending on how dark/bright the conditions. Some will appreciate this (George found it 'interesting' when he reviewed the slightly lower power non-Pro Moon Meteor-X Auto), but I'm pretty indifferent to it. I'm sure there's an application for it, I just never found it.

A quick poll in the road.cc office suggests everyone has their own favourite methods for mode selection, which might explain why George found the Meteor-X Auto a bit confusing whereas I found the Auto Pro easy and familiar: a double-click to change between constant and flashing, then single clicks to select your preferred lumen output. Most of us tend to choose a favourite one or two modes and stick to them anyway.

The button itself is easy to find, with its grippy rubber sitting proud above the light's shell.

Mount-tastic

The mount is another great feature. Here, the piece that sits on the bar is shaped to give perfect contact on a round bar. For my flat top aero bar that should be an issue, but the attachment hook at the rear can move to accommodate any tube shape. It's been perfectly secure on my oddly shaped bar.

Charge!

Charging times are pretty quick. I had this one recharged from low to full in just over two hours. Most of the time I just left it plugged in; the Moon will cut off automatically when it's done charging. Accessing the charging port is a little fiddly – the rubber mounting strap gets in the way a bit – but you get used to it.

Reliability looks to be very good too. I'm ashamed to say that I've left my bike outside to be rained on quite a few times with this attached. It's also seen all the frost that we've had with no problems.

At £39.99 it's a great unit, and beats my Lezyne hands down: the beam seems more direct and the day flash is more powerful. I'm also happy with the robustness this has shown so far, having lost my Lezyne's USB cover...

Verdict

Excellent for town and evening rides, and strong enough to be a primary for night rides

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Moon Meteor-X Auto Pro

Size tested: Size (W x D x H): 88 x 30 x 34mm

Tell us what the light is for

Moon doesn't specifically say. I imagine it's intended for road riding and commuting where the majority of riding is done on lit or partially lit roads.

The excellent day flash mode opens this up to those wanting extra safety when riding during the day.

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the light?

From Moon:

1 pc CREE XM-L2 (U2) high brightness LED

CNC Aluminium heat sink light cap

Light sensitive auto ON/OFF

Mode memory function

Quick release rechargeable lithium ion battery (3.7V 1400 mAh)

7 modes: Mode1 / Mode2 / Mode3 / FL1 / FL2 /DAY FLASH (DOUBLE BLAST) / SOS

Quick release universal bracket RB-25 (fits all round bars and AERO style bars)

Low battery,charging and fully charged indicator

Automatic fully charged cut-off system

High precision optical lens

Side visibility

Water resistant (IPX 4)

Size: 88 x 30 x 34mm

Rate the light for quality of construction:
 
8/10

No water has worked its way in, which is quite an achievement as it's seen a lot of rain.

Rate the light for design and ease of use. How simple was the light to use?
 
9/10

To get such good power from such a compact design is great. The mode cycling is easy to use in big gloves. The charging port is a little fiddly but it gets easier with practice.

Rate the light for the design and usability of the clamping system/s
 
8/10

It fits my bar which is as wide as I've seen. There's no rotation, which would be a massive bonus.

Rate the light for waterproofing. How did it stand up to the elements?
 
9/10

Left this in the rain and also washed it along with my bike. No problems.

Rate the light for battery life. How long did it last? How long did it take to recharge?
 
8/10

Battery life on full power is the only slight issue. I'd have liked 2hrs at 400 lumens to get me to and from work without having to have a charger at work.

On day flash mode (700 lumens), my favourite setting, this will last about three weeks in between charges. That's impressive.

Rate the light for performance:
 
9/10

It's not meant for pure darkness so it was better than expected.

Rate the light for durability:
 
8/10

I left it out in the rain. It got muddy, washed and generally mistreated. It's come out working perfectly.

Rate the light for weight:
 
8/10

85g is nothing.

Rate the light for value:
 
9/10

It's got great performance, great battery life on flash mode and it's robust: £39.99 very well spent.

Tell us how the light performed overall when used for its designed purpose

As a standalone front light for nighttime road riding it was easily good enough to get me home through the lanes. You've got to watch your speed a little, though; I found anything over 25mph was stretching the limits of the beam's range.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the light

The run-time of the day flash mode meant I rarely had to remember to charge it.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the light

Nothing really to dislike here; run-time on constant full power could be longer.

Did you enjoy using the light? I did. It's super-easy and lasted for weeks on my favourite setting.

Would you consider buying the light? Yep, £39.99 is a great deal for this.

Would you recommend the light to a friend? Yes, anyone riding in pretty much any situation would benefit from this light.

Use this box to explain your overall score

This light features brilliant adjustability for attaching it to oddly shaped bars. It's powerful enough to be used as a nighttime commuter but its best use is as a support light, with the excellent 700-lumen flash lasting for ages.

For it to have been given the full five stars, I'd have liked a slightly easier charging access point and just a little more life out of the full power constant setting. For the money though, it's excellent.

Overall rating: 9/10

About the tester

Age: 22  Height: 177cm  Weight: 64kg

I usually ride: Cannondale Supersix Di2  My best bike is:

I've been riding for: 5-10 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: road racing, time trialling, cyclo-cross, commuting, club rides, general fitness riding, I specialise in the Cafe Ride!

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5 comments

Avatar
Jefferson8170 | 5 years ago
0 likes

I had the same problem with the Moon Meteor Pro interfering with my Cateye computer - Solution - mount it on the forks about two thirds of the way down - problem solved ! 

Avatar
Jefferson8170 | 5 years ago
0 likes

I had the same problem with the Moon Meteor Pro interfering with my Cateye computer - Solution - mount it on the forks about two thirds of the way down - problem solved ! 

Avatar
Rex | 6 years ago
0 likes

I would warn potential purchasers that if they have any other wifi linked items on their bike this product may well prevent their operation.

I have contacted the manufacturer about this problem and they suggest increasing the separation beteween the conflicting item and the headlamp. I have written to them saying that I cannot separate them further as both need to be on the handlebars and asked what is next. I am still awaiting a reply. I have found that if I could mount the lamp near the hub of the front wheel that would be OK!

I have a Leyzne headlamp as well and that does not create RFI that messes up my wifi liked item.

 

Avatar
gemmoglock | 6 years ago
0 likes

I use the auto pro and find the charging still alright as I unclip my light from the mount before charging. Don't really use the auto mode, and thankfully there's a memory function as cycling through all the modes is not confusing, but quite slow and bothersome for me. The day flash is crazily bright, second that about catching the attention of drivers  3 Funnily I would prefer the beam be a little wider than for catching the sides of the path, but to each his/her own!

Avatar
Alex26c | 6 years ago
0 likes

I bought the moon vortex on sale for £30 to put on my helmet. It is a bit more powerful than this one. Only down side the button is not easy to press with thick gloves.

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