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review

Lezyne Zecto Drive Max rear light

9
£48.00

VERDICT:

9
10
Great range of modes from bright to downright insane in a compact package
Weight: 
70g

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The Lezyne Zecto Drive Max 250 has a range of modes that start at sensible light output and increase to the ever so slightly insane with a mighty 250 lumens topping the bill. Each one has its use though and allows you to balance power with battery life whatever the conditions.

Pros: Plenty of mode options, impressive battery life

Cons: Hard plastic body can scratch seatposts

Lots of manufacturers are starting to include daytime modes to their lights and this is what Lezyne have done with the Max 250. You get two 'day flash' options both of which flash in bursts of two, gap, two flashes, gap etc. The fourth flash is the brightest – an attention getter if you like – at either 125 lumens or 250 lumens. The other three are around 35 lumens. You get nine hours run-time at the 250-lumen setting and 14 hours at 125 lumens.

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The 250-lumen flash can be seen a good distance even in bright sunshine and for this reason I'd suggest never using it in the dark as it is downright antisocial for drivers sat behind.

The three constant modes are: 35 lumens (giving a run time of 6 hours); 20 lumens (9.5 hours); and 5 lumens (24 hours). There are also 3 flashing options that power the 3 LEDs in various combinations: Flash 1 – 35 lumen (7 hours); Flash 2 – 10 lumen (24 hours); Flash 3 – 35 lumen (6 hours).

Everything is controlled through the power button: a long press turns the light on or off and then a single press to scroll through the modes. The Zecto Max has mode memory too, so whatever setting you turn it off in is the one it'll be on when you start it back up again.

Read more: The best rear lights — make sure you're seen at night

As you can see from those timings battery life is pretty impressive from such a compact unit and I was achieving +/-5% of those depending on conditions. Recharge time is just 2.5 hours via micro USB.

The charging port sits at the bottom of the light when it's attached to your seatpost and although it has a rubber cover you really need to make sure it is inserted correctly as it isn't the most perfect of fits. I'll be interested to see how it performs as the rubber ages.

If everything is fitted correctly though waterproofing is good and I had no issues with water ingress riding in the wet without mudguards. It passed my power shower test too.

To mount it you can either fit it to your seatpost with the rubber ladder strap or turn it the other way up and clip it your clothing or a bag loop. On the seatpost it's secure and stabl,e and the angled housing keeps the light pointing straight behind. The only criticism I have is that the hard plastic can scratch the lacquer on a carbon seatpost.

Read more: Should cyclists use daytime lights + 8 of the best

At £48 the Zecto is competitively priced. There are cheaper lights but if you want a bright light you're going to be looking at something like the Exposure Blaze with its 90-lumen output. The build quality of the Blaze is top notch but so it should be for £90.

The Lezyne is well built too and what it lacks in shininess it makes up for in robustness; it'll definitely take some abuse.

If you want one of the brightest rear lights on the market I'd probably not look any farther than the Zecto Max 250.

Verdict

Great range of modes from bright to downright insane in a compact package

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Lezyne Zecto Drive Max rear light

Size tested: n/a

Tell us what the light is for

Lezyne say, "The Lezyne Zecto Drive Max 250 is a super compact, ultra-visible taillight with increased battery capacity."

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

Max 250's three LED system produces up a 250 lumens in Daytime Flash mode.

Eight total modes including the long-lasting Economy Mode for up to 24 hours runtime.

Durable composite matrix construction featuring a machined aluminium faceplate. Patented versatile 2-in-1 clip and strap mountain system.

Micro-USB rechargeable.

Recharge time: 2.5hrs

Rate the light for quality of construction:
 
8/10
Rate the light for design and ease of use. How simple was the light to use?
 
9/10
Rate the light for the design and usability of the clamping system/s
 
8/10
Rate the light for waterproofing. How did it stand up to the elements?
 
9/10
Rate the light for battery life. How long did it last? How long did it take to recharge?
 
9/10
Rate the light for performance:
 
9/10
Rate the light for durability:
 
9/10
Rate the light for weight:
 
8/10
Rate the light for value:
 
7/10

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

It's hard to knock performance wise as it delivers a range of outputs and light patterns to suit the conditions and battery life.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the light

Brightness

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the light

Hard plastic clamp can scuff seatposts

Did you enjoy using the light? Yes

Would you consider buying the light? Yes

Would you recommend the light to a friend? Yes

Use this box to explain your overall score

Against the competition it offers a lot of light and battery life for the money and it's simple to use. The only things to take away top marks are that plastic mount and how the battery cover will perform once it starts to age.

Overall rating: 9/10

About the tester

Age: 38  Height: 180cm  Weight: 76kg

I usually ride: This month's test bike  My best bike is: Kinesis Aithien

I've been riding for: 10-20 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: time trialling, commuting, club rides, sportives, fixed/singlespeed,

As part of the tech team here at F-At Digital, senior product reviewer Stu spends the majority of his time writing in-depth reviews for road.cc, off-road.cc and ebiketips using the knowledge gained from testing over 1,500 pieces of kit (plus 100's of bikes) since starting out as a freelancer back in 2009. After first throwing his leg over a race bike back in 2000, Stu's ridden more than 170,000 miles on road, time-trial, track, and gravel bikes, and while he's put his racing days behind him, he still likes to smash the pedals rather than take things easy. With a background in design and engineering, he has an obsession with how things are developed and manufactured, has a borderline fetish for handbuilt metal frames and finds a rim braked road bike very aesthetically pleasing!

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9 comments

Avatar
Hodge | 3 years ago
0 likes

I've got 2 of these. Good light but in neither of them will the rubber grommet fit properly to protect the charging port.  This is a very poor bit of the design.

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brooksby replied to Hodge | 3 years ago
0 likes

You have to sort of wiggle it a bit, to get it to stay.  But I agree, it's not the best design element.

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KnightBiker | 6 years ago
0 likes

They look exactly the same as a similar Planet X offering... which was 1/3 the price... (very happy with it)

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brooksby replied to KnightBiker | 3 years ago
0 likes

I think you'll find that the Planet X offering at 1/3 the price was a knock-off of Lezyne's design.

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HLaB | 6 years ago
0 likes

I have one of the first type zecto drive and its usb cover if anything was too robust and would sqeeze the charging cables of the connectors unless I held the cover open with a band or something but it outlasted the straps which eventually failed but not before I got good use out the light.  It no longer holds charge for more than 30mins but its so good I've bodged it onto the back of my TT bike.

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BrokenBootneck | 6 years ago
2 likes

Good light, more than happy with mine. Relivent colour tape depending on bike. And a bit of old bar tap stuck to the back. No issues so far!

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Boss Hogg | 6 years ago
2 likes

Have been using one of these since 2014, robust, quality finish, very bright. Sticking a small piece of black electrical tape where the light goes on my carbon seatpost eliminates possible scratching issues. Mine also has small indicator lights on the sides (blue green yellow red), which show how much juice there's left in the battery. Highly recommended.

Avatar
chaos | 6 years ago
1 like

I used this light for two years. Nice size, easy to use. Then it packed up. It actually rattles if you shake it. I can only assume battery or whatever else has come adrift.

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markfrost | 6 years ago
1 like

I have one of these and it's a great light, but can also attest to it scratching the seatpost.  I recommend sticking some rubber to the plastic clip to avoid this.

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