Topeak Taillux 100 rear light

The Taillux 100 USB is Topeak’s super bright rear LED light, and packs a mighty 100 lumens. It’s compact yet highly visible, and comes with an array of different fit adaptors. It is very easy to accidentally turn on in a bag or pocket, mind, and there is no way to lock the button.

The Taillux offers four modes from its nine LEDs (three large ones down the centre line, and six smaller ones around the outside). Constant mode, as you’ve no doubt worked out, lights all nine constantly and gives three hours of burn time.

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Blinking+Constant lasts five hours with the central LEDs flashing and the outsiders static, while Constant+Blink Sequence (central LEDs static while the outsiders flash in sequence) stays lit for 10hrs.

Lastly, Full Blinking runs for 30hrs, and I found those times achievable within +/-5% depending on conditions. A full charge takes 3-4hrs using the supplied USB-C cable.

Setup

Unlike quite a few rear lights, the mounting system of the Taillux doesn’t take into account the angle of your seatpost, so the light is aimed towards the ground rather than straight back. LEDs work best when seen head on.

I’m not going to be too critical of this though, as 100 lumens is a fair bit for a rear light, so not having it point directly into drivers eyes will reduce dazzling. Also, the Topeak lights up your rear tyre and the ground behind, so it can actually boost visibility… well, to those who are looking, anyway.

It would be nice to be able to tweak the angle for daytime use, though.

Fitting

That aside, the Taillux comes with plenty of fitting options by way of rubber mounts and clips. It can deal with round seatposts, aero seatposts and helmets, while it can clip onto bag loops too. Two sizes of rubber strap allow fitting on narrow tubes such as seatstays, which is perfect if you have bikepacking bags covering your seatpost.

Rated to IPX6, the Topeak is designed to keep out heavy, high-pressure sprays of water and – as long as you ensure the snug-fitting charge cover is closed – you should have no issues. I gave it a dousing with the bathroom shower too, and it suffered no ill effects.

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If you have to leave your bike unattended and stick your lights in a bag or pocket, be wary of accidentally turning the light on. The switch is very sensitive and only needs a single press to switch on – whereas to turn it off it takes a press of a few seconds.

It would be good to see some kind of lock to stop you accidentally draining the battery, or at least a double click for on.

Value

The Topeak costs £36.99. That’s £6.99 more expensive than the Lezyne Stick Drive Rear Light, but you are getting an extra 70 lumens and much better burn times.

For £34.99 Giant offers the Recon TL-200 which can deliver up to 200 lumens and offers pretty good burn times too.

For £45 there’s the Exposure TraceR MK1 DayBright, as its 75 lumen constant/flash mode is very noticeable and durability is very impressive too. Admittedly you have to buy separate mounts if you don’t have a round seatpost, though.

Overall

The Topeak Taillux 100 offers plenty of light output for the money, good burn times and the bonus of all the accessories. The easily knocked switch, which could leave unfortunate commuters lightless, is pretty much the only quibble.

Verdict

Bright, eye-catching LED patterns and decent burn times, but easily switched on in your bag

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