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RSP Asteri 6 twin-head LED front light

5
£134.99

VERDICT:

5
10
Super bright lights but the beam is too narrow and the build a bit plasticky
Weight: 
366g
Contact: 
www.raleigh.co.uk

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RSP, Raleigh's product arm, make some very decent lights. Star among them is the excellent Asteri 3 so we were hoping the Asteri 6 would be twice as good. It's not though: the build quality lets it down a bit but the major problem is the beam pattern.

In the box you'll find a rechargeable Li-Ion battery and charger, and two light heads that attach to your bars with rubber straps. It's not the most secure way of fixing a light and they were prone to a bit of movement over rough stuff. You can adjust the beam from side to side if you have swept bars, but only if you're lucky, as the positions on the ratchet are too far apart.

Build quality is a let down compared to the Aluminium chunkiness of the Asteri 3. Everything's a bit shiny plastic, and though we didn't have any water ingress during testing the LED on the battery looks a bit of a weak point, just poking through the cover without any obvious sealing.

Turn the lights on full (they have two settings, full and flashing) and you'll be impressed: they're certainly bright. However, the beam is much, much too narrow. To put it in perspective, at the central point they're not far off the power of Exposure's mighty Six Pack, but even halfway to the edge of our testing arc - just 15 from centre - they're putting out less than a Knog Boomer. There's no peripheral light for spottig potholes at your wheel or picking lines round corners, which is continually annoying and sometimes dangerous.

There's no getting round this, really. You could use one head as a helmet light where the narrow beam isn't such an issue, but there's plenty of cheaper ways of achieving that. Where price is concerned you can have a set of these for around £90, a lot less than RRP. Even at that money, though, they're difficult to recommend. Burn time is a couple of hours on full down to absolutely ages with one light on flashing.

Verdict

Super bright lights but the beam is too narrow and the build a bit plasticky

road.cc test report

Make and model: RSP Asteri 6 twin-head LED front light

Size tested: n/a

Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

* Dual mode 2x3 watt head units provide up to 400 lumens of output.

* Fully rechargeable 2x18650 Li-ion battery pack.

* Pack includes : Smart charger. Battery case. Bike mount and helmet mount brackets.

* 200-400 lumens output.

* Burn time up to 5 hours.

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
6/10
Rate the product for performance:
 
4/10
Rate the product for durability:
 
6/10
Rate the product for weight, if applicable:
 
7/10
Rate the product for value:
 
5/10

Did you enjoy using the product? Not really

Would you consider buying the product? No

Would you recommend the product to a friend? No

Overall rating: 5/10

About the tester

Age: 38  Height: 190cm  Weight: 98kg

I usually ride: whatever I'm testing...  My best bike is: Genesis Equilibrium with SRAM Apex

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

I regularly do the following types of riding: time trialling, cyclo cross, commuting, sportives, general fitness riding, fixed/singlespeed, mtb, Mountain Bike Bog Snorkelling, track

Dave is a founding father of road.cc, having previously worked on Cycling Plus and What Mountain Bike magazines back in the day. He also writes about e-bikes for our sister publication ebiketips. He's won three mountain bike bog snorkelling World Championships, and races at the back of the third cats.

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