Product | Olight RN 1500 Headlight And SEEMEE 30 Tail Light |
Available at | |
Design | Bike Light Set |
Max Output | 1500 lumens (RN 1500)/30 lumens (SEEMEE 30) |
Max Beam Distance | 164m (RN 1500)/ 800m visibility (SEEMEE 30) |
Weight | 172g (RN1500)/ 24g (SEEMEE 30) |
Price: RN1500 | £79.95 |
Price: SEEMEE 30 | £16.95 |
My Rating | 9.3 out of 10 |
I just love the outdoors… everything to do with the outdoors and that includes cycling.
One of the things that I still have to tick off from my bucket list is going on a cycle tour (haven’t decided where yet… could be UK, or better still Europe…) and camping in a hammock or tent at night.
As any cyclist knows, one of the most important pieces of equipment that you need for your bike is a light – a good light will allow you to see and, perhaps more importantly, allow you to be seen in the dark.
There are literally hundreds of cycle lights available, but they are not all the same… a good bike light should have a few essential features to make sure that it does its job of protecting you and protecting others properly.
In this post, I’m going to be looking at the new Olight bike light set to see if it has these essential features that are needed for a good bike light.
Overview
The Olight bike light set consists of the RN 1500 headlight and the SEEMEE 30 tail light.
The RN 1500 is described as a multi-functional bicycle light powered by a 5000mAh 21700 battery with a maximum output of 1500 lumens, featuring anti-glare light distribution to reduce visual distractions for motorists and a USB-C charging port.
The SEEMEE 30 is described as a USB rechargeable lightweight tail light with a maximum output of 30 lumens, equipped with a high transparent optic lens producing a soft and uniform beam and featuring a versatile rubber O-ring mount for securing to a bicycle seat post.
In the Box
RN 1500
RN 1500 (batteries included) ×1
Handlebar Mount ×1
GOPRO Mount ×1
Silicone Strap x3
USB-C Cable ×1
3mm Hex ×1
User Manual ×1
SEEMEE 30
SEEMEE 30 (batteries included) ×1
Rubber O-ring mount ×1
Micro USB Cable ×1
User Manual ×1
Specification
Output
RN 1500: Maximum Beam Distance – 164m
SEEMEE 30: Maximum Visibility – 800m
Light Source
RN 1500 uses a Luminus SST40 LED
SEEMEE 30 uses a COB (Chip-on-Board) LED
Dimensions & Weight
RN 1500:
Length: 4.21 in/107mm
Head Diameter: 1.22 in/31mm
Body Diameter: 1.22 in/31mm
Weight: 6.06 oz / 172g
SEEMEE 30:
Length: 2.56 in/65mm
Width: 0.59 in/15mm
Height: 0.82 in/21mm
Weight: 0.85 oz / 24g
Body Material
RN 1500 – the manufacturer’s literature doesn’t specify what material the body is made of… however it looks and feels very premium and is probably made of an aluminium alloy like a lot of Olight’s torches.
SEEMEE 30 – plastic
Power Source
RN 1500 – 3.6V 5000mAh 21700 rechargeable battery.
SEEMEE 30 – 330 mAh polymer battery.
Waterproof Rating
RN 1500 – IPX7 (Protected from immersion in water with a depth of up to 1 meter (or 3.3 feet) for up to 30 minutes)
SEEMEE 30 – IPX6 (Protection from water projected in powerful jets from a nozzle with a 12.5mm diameter opening in any direction)
Based on this both the front light and the tail light should be perfectly fine for use in even heavy rain.
Drop Rating
RN 1500 – 1m
SEEMEE 30 – 1m
Warranty
Olight’s 2 Year warranty
My Impressions
Beam Quality
The beam quality of the RN 1500 headlight was very impressive.
Olight describes the headlight as having a ‘high efficiency optical lens with considerable side lighting’. I found that it produced a nice wide beam that allowed me to be comfortably aware of my immediate surroundings.
The headlight also has an anti-glare lens that levels off the upper portion of the light to reduce the glare for oncoming traffic.
The level 1 setting of 1500 lumens was very bright – I found the level 2 setting of 750 lumens perfectly adequate and would probably use that setting most of the time when it’s dark.
I think the lower setting of 300 lumens would be adequate for cycling in lit up areas.
The SEEMEE 30 tail light gave off a uniform beam that was visible from a good distance.
The image below was taken from a distance of about 250m.
Charging
Both the RN 1500 and the SEEMEE 30 have USB charging, but for some reason the RN 1500 has a USB-C type port, while the SEEMEE 30 has a micro USB port – this seems a bit strange… it would have been much more useful to have the same for both, so that you don’t have to carry around two charging cables. This being said, they charge very efficiently and the RN1500 can even be charged directly from your mobile phone. The batteries are not removable on either of the lights and for both the lifespan is approximately 500 charge cycles. Both the lights have battery indicators.
While the RN 1500 is on, the power button glows green when the charge is 100-21%, red from 20-11% and it will flash red from 10-0%. When the light is off, the charge indicator can be accessed by short pressing the power button once. The SEEMEE 30 has an ‘Ambient Light Sensor’ that auto adjusts the light mode and output depending on ambient conditions. It also has a power saving flash mode that is triggered at 5% battery and lasts for 20 minutes. The RN 1500 charge indicator pulses red while charging and turns to a solid green once fully charged. The SEEMEE 30 charge indicator pulses red while charging and then switches off once fully charged.
I charged both from completely flat and found the charging times as follows:
RN 1500 – 2 hours and 15 minutes
SEEMEE 30 – 65 minutes
Power Button & Modes
Both lights have power buttons that are easy to operate and practically placed and both function as described below.
Long pressing on the power button turns the light on/off. A single short click cycles through the brightness levels/flash mode levels, while a double click switches between the modes. Mode memory function saves the last selected mode and brightness level.
For the RN 1500 there are 2 modes:
- mode 1 is a continuous light, with 3 brightness settings as shown in the output section above.
- mode 2 is a strobe mode and has 2 levels
the first constitutes the light flashing 0-750 lumens at a constant interval.
the second constitutes the light flashing 0-750 lumens, 3 times at the same interval followed by a quicker burst before repeating that process.
For the SEEMEE 30 there are 3 modes:
- mode 1 is a continuous light, again with 3 brightness settings as shown above.
- mode 2 has 3 levels
COMET – the light gradually goes from 30-0 lumens at a constant interval (approx 18x/min).
BREATHE – the light gradually goes from 0-30 lumens at a constant interval (approx 15x/min).
FLASH – continuous flashing at 7 lumens at a constant interval (approx 160x/min).
- mode 3 has 2 levels
SMART MODE DURING THE DAY, 30 lumens.
SMART MODE AT NIGHT, 3-30 lumens.
Regarding mode 3, Smart Mode on the SEEMEE – a sensor determines whether the light enters day or night mode based on the ambient light and then for day mode pulses between 0 and 30 lumens and for night mode pulses between 3 and 30 lumens.
Bike Attachment
RN 1500
The handlebar mount is very easy to attach using the included 3mm hex key.
There are 3 different lengths of silicone straps that should allow the mount to fit most diameters of handlebars.
I used the smallest one and it fitted very snugly with no movement with the light mounted, even when cycling over rough terrain.
The light attaches securely to the handlebar mount by simply twisting and locking it into place and detaches very quickly by reversing the process.
SEEMEE 30
The tail light is easily mounted using a rubber O-ring mount and again sits very snugly with no movement while cycling.
Again is detaches very quickly and easily.
GoPro Attachment
A GoPro attachment is also included to allow the RN1500 to be attached to an existing GoPro bike mount.
Conclusion
The Olight RN 1500 bike headlight is extremely well built and very functional… from the quality of the beam, to the ease of attaching and removal from the handlebar mount – everything about it screams quality and practicality.
As far as the SEEMEE 30 tail light is concerned – it’s simple, yet refined and again very functional… simply put it does what it’s supposed to do and it does it well.
There are a few areas that I feel could be improved…
The different types of usb ports on the two lights means that you have to carry around two charging cables, and the manufacturers literature leaves a lot to be desired… the two lights are really good, but so many of the functions are not explained and you’re left to try and work it out for yourself…but these are relatively minor shortcomings – all in all, this is a fantastic bike light set at a very good price, when the lights were first launched, they were available as a set – but now they are only available as separate purchases…
The SEEMEE 30 tail light is available from OLIGHT UK.
I hope you’ve found this review useful.
During the 2021 boxing day sales, save your money UP TO 35% OFF! Take your SEEMEE 30 with BFL1800 tart your trip.
Mohammad
thecampingequipment.com
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