Gloworm CX front light

The Gloworm CX is a very interesting 1,200-lumen front light with seemingly no end of mounting options, lens choices, practical abilities and programmable light functions. It performs pretty decently, too. But it's also expensive, complicated, fiddly and at times rather frustrating.

• Pros: Well made, almost no end to customisation, good performance
• Cons: Fiddly to set up and operate, expensive, couldn't get flash to work

One area where there are no cut corners is with the provision of clamps and other assorted paraphernalia. As well as handlebar mounts, there's also a wired remote on/off button and provisions to attach it to your helmet. That, though, is not particularly convenient as the light itself – weighing in at more than 200g – is heavy enough to make itself known up there.

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Even after going on the Gloworm website, I'm still none the wiser as to the importance of some bits in the box. The bundle of cable ties, I presume, are for when you grow entirely exasperated with the other clamping options and just decide to cable tie the thing to your bar.

One interesting extra, though, is the choice of two lenses – either a spot/spot configuration or a wide/spot. You simply remove the two mini-hex bolts on the light front with the supplied key and swap in the lens you want. I say 'simply' – you're going to want to do this operation in an environment with laboratory-like tidiness because those mini-bolts really are minute.

That's not where the customisation ends. You'll have to tackle some more mini-bolts depending what kind of mounting you want to fit to the light's base and, should the urge take you, you can also unscrew the on/off/mode button housing. In short, if you didn't get the Meccano set you really wanted for Christmas, this might go some fiddly way to make up for it.

The battery is also removable thanks to the rear opening – just pull in this case, no need for too much fiddling. And when it comes to light operation and mode, that can be tweaked and programmed to your heart's desire without any connecting to computers or t'web. It's not particularly simple, though, and requires a fair bit of patience just to navigate the instructions.

Speaking of which, all the info to get the most out of your light can only be found on the Gloworm website – the supplied guide card is cursory at best. I have to admit, as a time-poor cycling journalist who just wants to see how well things work, the Gloworm has tried my patience. But if you are happy to see bike light ownership as both a financial and time investment, and you have no other hobbies or demands on your time, fill your boots.

Modes and operation

Before we get to performance, we also need a quick masterclass in standard light operation. To switch on 'Trail Mode', you give the rubber top button a single click. Then further clicks cycle through the low, medium and full 1,200-lumen high mode. If you hold the button for a couple of seconds you can also put the light in 'dim' mode. Holding the button for five seconds switches the light off.

However, if you double click the button while the light is off, you can switch on 'Commuter Mode', which gives the option of just low and high settings, although, in my opinion, they looked much more like medium and high. Then, in theory, if you hold the button for a couple of seconds in Commuter Mode, you'll switch on flash mode. This didn't seem to work for me and the light just went into what looked like its low setting instead. I did a factory reset to check I hadn't accidentally put it in programmable mode, but still no joy with the flash – a warranty issue if you'd parted with cash for it.

Performance

Enough faffing around. Let's cut to the chase – how does it perform on the road in the dark? Thankfully, pretty well. On high mode with the spot/spot lens there's plenty of light to see the way with a nice round, relatively compact beam pattern. It's really impressively bright in the centre, and even at the sides it's not too bad.

This can be enhanced further by fitting the wide/spot lens, which offers a far broader beam with very little penalty in terms of straight-ahead brightness. To be honest, I think you'd very happily live with either lens option, but for commuting and general road duties, the wide/spot lens probably just gets the nod.

In terms of output, the low and mid settings don't seem like too much of a drop down in performance and you'll find they'll do the trick for almost all urban adventures. Incidentally, run-time on high is officially around two hours, but I seemed to be getting closer to three. Charging time for me was just over four hours – officially, Gloworm says minimum charge time is five hours. Finally, remaining charge is indicated by the colour light shown below the rubber operation button. It's not the most informative system and – like the rest of the light – you'll have to grow to understand its quirks.

Value and conclusion

One area that I haven't touched on is that the compact and sturdy CX aluminium body is very well made and, for all my moaning and confusion, there are some interesting practical features. For example, as well as being able to remove and replace the battery, the CX can also be used to charge other devices, and you can even have it lighting the way while simultaneously being charged by a dynamo.

So it's very clever – certainly too clever for me – but at £129 is it worth the money? Looking at the rest of the market, you'd have to question it. The only lights we've tested recently that come close in terms of price are the 2,000-lumen ETC Alcor that costs £140, and the £119.99 1,200-lumen Topeak CubiCubi, which also suffers from a bit of over-complication. Both of these we viewed as no better than average value and, for all the Gloworm's added abilities, I'd have to rank it similarly.

> Buyer's Guide: The best 2019/2020 front lights for cycling

In many respects, though, the value of the Gloworm CX is entirely dependent on the opinion of the potential owner. With the exception of the flash mode, which I couldn't get to work, it's a veritable Swiss Army knife of front lighting, with enough mounts, modes and functions to satisfy any desire. If you've always wanted a front light you can get your teeth into, pull apart and play around with, this is for you. For the rest of us who just want to see where we're going, there are cheaper and simpler options.

Verdict

No shortage of features and performance is decent, but the CX is expensive and possibly overkill for road riding