Lazer Sphere KinetiCore Helmet

The Lazer Sphere KinetiCore is a comfortable, cool and – at least to my eyes – sleekly good-looking riding companion. The ventilation is well thought out and it’s light enough to forget about while you’re riding. You may want to consider sizing up if you’re near the upper limit of a range, though, as the cradle adjustment is slightly limited there.

The Sphere has been in Lazer’s range for a while now, but this version has been updated with the ‘Controlled Crumple Zones’ of KinetiCore. Like the well-known Mips, it’s designed to mitigate rotational impacts (which are not actually covered in the European Safety Regulation EN1078), and add extra protection.

Having admired the tasteful Harbor Grey (one of four colour choices), I set the cradle adjuster and that was it – setup done! Luckily. I was on the widest setting already, despite my 58cm head being 1cm under the Medium’s 55-59cm limit. I felt that I was close to needing to size up, but at least that’s an option as the Large covers 58-61cm.

Despite this, the helmet felt really comfortable straight away, which doesn’t happen too often with me. the helmet sat correctly on my forehead and above my ears, while the cradle sat correctly on the back of my head.

Other than the chin buckle, however, the straps are not adjustable, and for me that meant the straps sat on top of my earlobes rather than beneath them.

A couple of friends with smaller (55cm and 56cm) head measurements tried it too, and they had no such issues with adjustment or strap positioning. If you’re near the upper limit of a size then, consider going up to the next one instead.

I found this remarkably comfortable, to the point where I would forget about it. Even the straps on my earlobes didn’t cause a problem. The eight front and eight rear vents do a good job drawing air through the helmet, though in 5°C I didn’t need a skull cap either, so it’s not a total wind tunnel. On a later fast and hot (27°C) ride, however, I still stayed cool.

While I can’t verify the abilities of the aero panel on the rear half, I can tell you it has an unintended consequence… in heavy rain it keeps your head noticeably drier than more open helmets do. I rather like this ‘feature’! I also really like the slim profile of the helmet. No mushroom-head vibes here.

The Sphere features four removable, washable and antibacterial pads. They’re Polygiene, a fabric I’ve experienced before on an older helmet (a Lazer Strada), and I found they worked well over three years of use and washing.

I really like the rear light port, though inevitably it’s a proprietary system so it only fits Lazer’s own lights, such as the Lazer Universal Rechargeable LED. It does work really well, though – they weigh 21g and cost £30. I bought one for my Strada, and found it a good addition for night riding.

The Sphere has two ports for this light. One on the helmet, and one in the clicky wheel of the cradle. Whilst the upper port was the best position for my riding position, the lower port will suit more upright bikes.

The helmet has ‘eyewear docking’ too, or as we innocently used to call such things, ‘holes.’ The sports glasses I tried sat nice and close to the helmet for that Pro look that adds at least 463.2 Watts.

If eco credentials of a product are important to you, look no further than the glue. Or lack of it. The helmet uses a zero-glue construction, and has interlocking components for easy disassembly at the end of its lifecycle. It’s a nice touch, though as Caroline discovered in her excellent review of the very-eco Rudy Project Sinergy helmet, it’s not necessarily going to help much in the UK.

Value

I really like the style, comfort and features of the Lazer Sphere, and at £139.99 it sits pretty firmly in the middle of the market. You can spend less and still get much the same thing, however – the Van Rysel Road Bike Helmet RCR MIPS is £79.99, for instance. Our reviewer Shaun found it ‘well priced for the specification and overall standards of manufacture.’

Coming in at £90, the Kask Sintesi was well liked by Lara. She found it was ‘light, comfortable, looks good, and is suitable for all styles of riding, from urban commuting and road cycling to gravel.’ It features WG11, which is Kask’s own version of a Mips/KinetiCore style rotational impact system.

That’s not to say the Sphere is overpriced, though, as you can also spend considerably more on similar specs. The HJC Ibex 3 is a lovely lid, for instance, but it’s not light years ahead and it’s £249.99.

Overall

Despite not allowing much adjustment for heads at the top of its given size range, this proved a very comfortable and wearable helmet. It’s sleek, nicely made and has some genuinely useful features. Yes, you can get similar things for a good chunk less change, but if you do buy one (and size up if necessary) you’ll almost certainly be happy you did.