Planet Bike Blaze 1W (10 Month Review)

When I first started commuting via bike earlier this year, I knew I would want a good headlight (and tail light) so that I could be seen by traffic. I didn't want to spend a fortune on a HID or Halogen light or one with a proprietary battery, but I did want something that would work well and be durable. I also wanted to find a set of lights that used good old-fashioned AA (or AAA) cells, there are lots of options out there including Alkaline, re-chargable Nickle-Metal Hydride (NiMH) and a new re-chargable one based on Nickle Zinc chemistry. I did some research, read some reviews and selected Planet Bike Blaze 1W headlight paired with the Super Blinky tail light.

So after 10 months of nearly daily use, what do I think of the lights now?

First the good -
1) These lights are bright! - be careful not to point the headlight directly at on-coming traffic, you might freak some drivers out - but they will see you! The battery life is great, especially on the rear-blinky light. I use re-chargable NiMH batteries and they work OK. I am considering switching to Nickle Zinc batteries because they have a higher voltage that might work better.
2) I liked the look and operation of the lights so much I bought a second set for my son's bike.
3) Mounting the lights was very easy. The Quick Cam for the front light is pretty nifty, it adjusts to a variety of handle bar diameters and holds the light steady most of the time, but...

Now the not-so good.
1) The Quick Cam is designed to stay on your bike while the light unit can be easily unlatched so it doesn't get stolen when you lock your bike up outside. Unfortunately, the plastic on the light housing on both my son's bike and mine cracked and the light would not stay secured to the quick cam. The plastic latch for the light on the Quick-Cam is a bit flimsy and wears out over time. Once in a while when I'd hit a bump the light would fall off and smack the road pretty hard. I had to pick up the pieces on several occasions but was able to get it working again holding it together with some duct tape. A few more hits and the lights would be permanently ruined.

I sent an e-mail to Planet Bike's customer support, Mark LaLonde responded in a matter of minutes and said he would send me 2 new housings for free! Now that's speedy customer service. They came in a couple of days ago, along with 2 replacement Quick Cam mounting brackets that I ordered for $5.00 each. It was like an early Christmas (for me anyway:) Thank you Mark and Planet Bike!

Bottom line: Nothing lasts forever, but Planet Bike would rather help you get your equipment repaired, rather than chucking it into the land-fill. I think that's pretty cool.