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This week’s Five Cool Things is all things cycling tech and gear. From Garmin’s Varia Vue light with built-in 4K camera to a ceramic bike coating from Dynamic, Litelok’s high-security wearable lock, a wireless charging Quad Lock phone mount, and Carradice’s 20L bar bag. Here are the previews with full reviews coming soon.
Garmin Varia Vue (£459.99)
The Varia Vue is Garmin’s new front light with built-in 4k camera, sitting alongside the Varia rear light radar in the brand’s safety accessories line-up.
Garmin’s light has five modes maxing out at 600 lumens. On the battery life front, the Varia Vue offers seven hours of continuous recording too, when in day flash mode, or up to nine when the headlight is off.
Could Garmin’s new front light with built-in 4k camera rival the established ride-recording brand Cycliq, whose cameras have consistently impressed. Check back in a couple of weeks to see what Mike thinks.
Dynamic Secret Surface Bundle (£62.96)
Ceramic bike coatings are becoming an increasingly popular way to protect your bike, the idea being that it keeps your bike cleaner for longer while making it easier to clean between rides by reducing surface tension.
Secret Surface is a hydrophobic gel coating designed for bike frames and parts. The brand claims it offers up to nine months of protection against water, dirt, salt, UV rays, and even light scratches.
The bundle includes the Secret Surface ceramic coating, a surface cleaner, a microfibre cloth and a microfibre polishing cloth – all currently discounted to £42.99. Keep an eye out for Ollie’s full review coming soon.
Buy now for £42.99 from Dynamic Bike Care
Litelok Core Plus (£139.99)
The Litelok Core Plus is a wearable bike lock designed to be worn around your waist, though it can also be mounted to your bike using the included frame mounts.
Available in two lengths: 75cm and 100cm, our test sample is the shorter version, weighing in at 1,563g on the road.cc Scales of Truth.
With a Sold Secure Bicycle Diamond rating, the highest level awarded for bicycle locks, it’s built for high-risk areas and extended lock-ups. Josh is currently testing it on his daily commute, so check back soon to see how it performs.
Quad Lock Cycle – Waterproof Wireless Charging Head (£69.99)
Quad Lock describes its system as “the lightest, strongest and most secure smartphone bike mount,” and the Waterproof Wireless Charging Head brings added functionality by enabling wireless charging via your e-bike’s power system.
It’s IP67-rated for weather resistance and uses Quad Lock’s patented dual-stage locking mechanism to keep your phone secure. The mount supports both portrait and landscape orientations.
Mike’s currently testing it so stay tuned for his full verdict.
Carradice Bowland Bar Bag 20L (£124.95)
With so many handlebar bags on the market offering similar designs, it’s often the finer details that separate a decent bag from a truly great one.
The Bowland Bar Bag, part of Carradice’s Adventure Range, is built with long-distance rides, adventure touring, and commuting in mind. Available in 12L and 20L sizes, we’re currently testing the larger version.
Built to withstand the elements, it’s made from waterproof 1000-denier military-grade Cordura, with a roll-top closure and reflective details for added visibility.
Buy from Carradice for £124.95
For all the latest full test reports on road.cc, head over to our reviews section. For more advice before splashing the cash you can check out our buyer’s guides, and head over to road.cc Recommends to find all our top-rated products in one place.
4 thoughts on “Will Garmin’s new front light/4k camera combo set the new benchmark for recording bad drivers? Plus new gear from Litelok, Dynamic, Quad Lock + Carradice”
Unless I’m missing the point,
Unless I’m missing the point, I notice that Carradice’s range of ‘traditional’ saddle bags (the cotton duck and leather straps ones) seems to be getting smaller and smaller.
They’ve got a lot listed as
Re the Garmin Varia Vue, I
Re the Garmin Varia Vue, I hope the full review includes getting footage off it and on to a Mac. Their (Garmin) switch to MTP protocol connection has made connecting devices like an Edge extremely unreliable and clunky. Expect this will be the same.
KDee wrote:
It’s not the same. I’ve had one for about a month now. The Varia app formats the microSD card as ExFAT, your choices for getting footage using this method are either plug the unit in via USB or pull the card out and place in a reader. It mounts as a drive in Finder.
However, one huge improvement on the Vue over the RCT715 is the speed of the ad-hoc wifi connection to the mobile app, it’s many times faster, I don’t bother with the cable or card reader myself, you can pull a 2 minute clip to your photo library in less than 30 seconds.
I posted my initial thoughts about it at the time here:
https://road.cc/content/tech-news/could-new-garmin-light-4k-camera-rival-cycliq-313449
‘Cycliq, whose cameras have
‘Cycliq, whose cameras have consistently impressed’
I’ve owned 3 Cycliq cameras…….From my experience I can’t even begin to understand why you’d describe them as ‘consistently impressive’.
maybe Road CC were given the special ‘press’ models to test?
Nothing wrong with the film capture, but from my experience you’d be lucky to get more than 1 year usage from them. And Cycliq don’t respond well when questioned on the quality and lifetime of the product.