Exposure Joystick Mk10

Exposure's own opinion of the Joystick Mk10 is that it's only 50 per cent recommended for 'road' use. I'd agree – had I purchased the Joystick hoping it would solve all my road cycling night-time needs I'd be disappointed. That doesn't make the Joystick a 'bad' product – far from it.

As a light just for cycling quickly on unlit roads there are better options for the money. Although 800 lumens help to make up for a wide beam angle, you're not going to be getting more than 12-14mph out of the Joystick without risking running into things unless you have the eyes of Clark Kent.

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It's great for mountain biking, where helmet-mounted wide-angle lights are very handy for peering around corners, but for road riding it's wasted power outside of your speed-narrowed field of vision. It's too bright when angled down close, and when angled up the whole picture is reduced, with half the photons sneaking off to annoy owls, HGV drivers and pilots alike.

For overall comparison the 475-lumen Lezyne Powerdrive XL delivers more light where you need it, with similar build quality, for a lot less money. Based on pure useful-light-on-tarmac the comparison is valid, but the Joystick is much more than a bright torch, and for some road cycling use cases it excels.

Form factor

The Joystick is 28mm wide and only 87g. The handlebar mount is a simple affair: a rubber ladder strap securing it, and the Joystick clicking into the top. You can't pivot the light, which does leave it wanting on tightish right-hand corners at speed.

Another drawback is that the Joystick can be very easily knocked out of vertical alignment when pressing the button or riding over rough roads. The optional £24.95 alloy mount addresses the vibration/button-pressing issues. There are aftermarket options that allow you to mount a Joystick onto GoPro or Garmin mounts.

The included helmet mount is ball-jointed, and firm enough to stay put once you set your angle. There's a thin lanyard to wrap around the Joystick and through your helmet vent or handlebar.

Charging the Joystick is via the Smart Port, and there's a mains charger as well as a USB cable. The Smart Port can also push power out, with the main light on or off – Exposure does a range of matching accessories to further lighten your already thinner wallet.

On the button

The on/off button works both as function switch and mode/battery indicator. It can be tricky to get to with thick gloves on, and the very-well-sealed Smart Port is raised considerably higher and can get in the way.

When on, the button glows green – after 50 minutes on 800 lumens, green became amber, signifying 50 per cent battery. After 66 minutes amber changed to red, 25 per cent left. Flashing red and 5 per cent arrived at 101 minutes – 11 minutes over the 90-minute run time for the highest 800-lumen output. Over the next 30 minutes the brightness ramped down, until after 140 minutes it was not really useful for riding.

The gradual, intelligent run-down is a very useful get-you-home feature. I've tested premium lights that go from full power to off without warning – if it's your sole light source that could be dangerous on or off-road.

If the Joystick overheats then its Intelligent Thermal Management feature kicks in. It preserves the LED's lifespan (and battery life) by reducing power wastage trying to push the LED harder than is efficient or sensible.

Get with the program

Exposure lights combine different settings within 'programs' – Optimum Mode Selector – so you can choose the one that best suits your needs for a particular ride. There are no fewer than seven programs here, each with a number of power levels to choose from. Program 4, for example, is a Hi-Lo option of the full 800 lumens (run time 90 minutes) paired with what looks like around 400 lumens and a 4-hour run time. Other programs include triple options of 3-10-24 hours, 4-12-36, and 10-24 plus SOS flashing.

A Flashing mode is available in all but one program – a constantly-on low light overlaid with a bright 1.5Hz flash; in other words, perfect for an efficient be-seen solution during the day. In tests this mode managed to last a frankly ludicrous 24 hours at least.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the Joystick's value will come down to what you want to do. If you want to ride fast on the road, in the dark, this probably isn't the light you're looking for.

If you want a light to do helmet duty off-road, yet also act as a many-weeks-long handlebar be-seen flasher light for commuting, it's a serious contender. If you add in the occasional late-night trip along dark lanes, this too could be compelling.

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If you want a light that can have multiple accessories added to it as you swap between mountain biking, adventure racing, road riding, commuting and maybe just dog walking, the Joystick must be one of the most able devices around – even more so when you consider that if you do buy into the Exposure lighting ecosystem, everything works with everything else.

So to revisit Exposure's self-assessment that the Joystick is only 50 per cent suited to road cycling: correct. It's not the best primary light for fast, dark rides, but for slower rides, daytime rides, or as a helmet light, it excels.

Verdict

A premium bit of kit for a premium price – just be careful to understand your use case