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review

RSP Evolve rear light

6
£24.99

VERDICT:

6
10
Good light and well suited to trailers but loses out to longer lasting, more powerful models
Weight: 
77g
Contact: 
www.raleigh.co.uk

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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Oh my, the RSP Evolve rear light and the Cateye TL LD600 look as if they were separated at birth. Same cigar-shaped profiles that's bang on for trailers, tag alongs, identical number of LEDs, fuel source - interchangeable mounting hardware to boot!

Ok, so we've established some uncanny similarities but before we get side tracked with the rights n' wrongs of badge engineering, let's get some facts straight. First and foremost, the internals are genuinely very different.

Two half watt LEDs are sandwiched between three tiddlers providing some helpful percussion and are conducted by an easy to spot, sensibly positive grey switch of the sort that doesn't feel vague or misbehave in panniers. High quality plastics inspire confidence and there's only access to the battery tray, which also explains why it's withstood full on saltwater submersion and similar cruelty without incident.

Smaller riders with compact geometry bikes will be pleased to note it also mounts vertically, offering a 180-degree arc without spoiling the aesthetics - ours occasionally caught my inner thigh when assuming the lowest possible horizontal position. While I think of it, the supple post clip is perfect for the contours of low-slung trailer tubing but has demanded some custom shimming on larger diameter posts. The clothing clip by contrast gets top marks, gripping most fabrics from heavy-duty cotton duck through to elasticated loops.

Overall performance has given much to smile about- we're talking visibility to 750 metres, 600 in constant on clear nights, dropping to 450 through suburbs and town. However, in a trailer context, it lacks knockout punch, and middle of the road pricing doesn't compensate for so-so economy.

On that note, we've returned a consistent thirteen and twenty three hours (constant/flashing) respectively from premium grade AAA cells, dropping to ten and eighteen using rechargeables.

Verdict

Good light and well suited to trailers but loses out to longer lasting, more powerful models.

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road.cc test report

Make and model: RSP Evolve rear 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?

"*2 Super bright 0.5 watt LEDs

*3 Angled LEDs

*Full beam 18 hours

*Wide arc of visibility

*Flashing & constant modes

*Water resistant

*Quick release bracket

*Belt clip mount for backpack or jacket fitment

*Horizontal or vertical mounting"

Generally agree, although run times less generous than quoted.

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

2 Super bright 0.5 watt LEDs

*3 Angled LEDs

Collimator lens technology.

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
7/10

Well sealed using decent quality plastics.

Rate the product for performance:
 
6/10

Good output and solid build but there are many models offering better performance and/or economy for similar money.

Rate the product for durability:
 
7/10

Passed my torture tests with flying colours.

Rate the product for weight, if applicable:
 
6/10
Rate the product for comfort, if applicable:
 
7/10

Pleasant to use-switch easily operated in winter weight training gloves.

Rate the product for value:
 
6/10

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

Another powerful light, the evolve is particularly given to trailer/tagalong duties thanks to excellent weatherproofing, decent output and generous surface area. However, economy feels poor alongside similarly priced contemporaries.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Great presence, decent build quality.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

Mediocre economy.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes.

Would you consider buying the product? On balance, no.

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Quite possibly.

Anything further to say about the product in conclusion?

A good light with great potential let down by so-so economy.

Overall rating: 6/10

About the tester

Age: 38  Height: 1m 81  Weight: 70 kilos

I usually ride: Rough Stuff Tourer Based around 4130 Univega mtb Frameset  My best bike is: 1955 Holdsworth Road Path and several others including cross & traditional road

I've been riding for: Over 20 years  I ride: Most days  I would class myself as: Experienced

I regularly do the following types of riding: cyclo cross, commuting, touring, fixed/singlespeed, mtb,

 

Shaun Audane is a freelance writer/product tester with over twenty-eight years riding experience, the last twelve (120,000 miles) spent putting bikes and kit through their paces for a variety of publications. Previous generations of his family worked at manufacturing's sharp end, thus Shaun can weld, has a sound understanding of frame building practice and a preference for steel or titanium framesets.
Citing Richard Ballantine and an Au pair as his earliest cycling influences, he is presently writing a cycling book with particular focus upon women, families and disabled audiences (Having been a registered care manager and coached children at Herne Hill Velodrome in earlier careers)

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