LEDWear Rucksack Cover

The LEDwear Rucksack Cover is a sensible addition to any commuter's kit giving you the added visibility that comes from the built-in LEDs and decent amounts of reflective material to boot.

The pack cover will happily engulf medium sized rucksacks and packs that range up to around the 35 litre mark, but this would depend to a certain degree on the shape of your pack, so try first if possible.

It is secured using two press-stud elastic strips that cross between your back and the pack. These make it quick and simple to fit and remove when you need to. I have been using it over a 25 litre Lowe Alpine lightweight pack and the cover has plenty of room to spare. I even managed to fit it over a full size rear pannier, although this is not the intended use. The cover also gives a good level of shower proofing, although this is a bonus on top of its more important visibility benefits in traffic.

The LEDs are arranged in a hexagonal pattern in a sensible location towards the middle, at the back of the pack and are controlled via a push switch that can be pressed through the fabric of the pack cover itself. There are several settings, as seems to be customary with LEDs, which allow you to choose between 2 different speed flashing modes and continuous light.

The fact that the lights sit at roughly the level of your lower back make them highly visible, especially in queuing traffic, where a lower mounted rear light might be obscured by a car bonnet. The battery pack is in a small fabric pocket that sits at the base of the pack cover and it really isn't that bulky or noticeable at all.

The fabric itself is fairly rubbery and its yellow colour does pick up the dirt quickly if used without mudguards. However, it does clean-up fairly easily and retains a good bright colour for a long while. A couple of the clear plastic covers protecting the LEDs popped-off the test pack cover when inadvertently brushed against a gate, so longer term durability could be an issue.

If you regularly commute or ride with a bag on your back then this might well be just what you need for night riding or for other situations where you just need to be seen.

Verdict

Useful & clever extra commuting visibility although there may be a slight question mark over long term durability