NiteRider Lumina Pro 1000 Front Bike Light

The NiteRider Lumina Pro 1000 packs a punch for riding in the dark, and features lots of different modes to choose from. The tool-free mount can fit larger handlebars and is easy to swap between bikes, making it very versatile. The light's only real drawback is that battery life isn't great in the highest modes, for longer night rides, and it's a little on the pricey side. Check out our guide to the best front lights for more options.

The Lumina Pro 1000 is really simple and quick to fit, using a tool-free mount that's secured with a thumbscrew. The light slides into the mount, clipping into place securely, and the position of the light can be adjusted to get the beam pointing exactly where you want.

This mounting system can also work on some helmets, so you could run it as a headtorch; given its weight of 193g, it doesn't feel too cumbersome.

Modes & run-times

The light features eight different modes: five continuous steady beams and three flashing. These max out at 1,000 lumens in the Boost steady mode, and 750 lumens for all three flashing modes.

On dark, unlit roads the 1,000-lumen Boost enables you to see far enough ahead to avoid any obstacles and keep a good speed going. However, the benefits of the brightness come at the expense of battery life. It has a claimed run-time of an hour at 1,000 lumens, though I found I got slightly more than that. That's enough if you're doing a short commute, but if you're looking to take to the darkness for longer then it's a bit limiting.

The next-brightest solid beam, High, at 750 lumens isn't hugely better at 1 hour 30 minutes (though again, I got slightly more on test), and I had to resort to the Medium mode for longer rides. While the run-time on this is far better at 3hrs 30mins, it only puts out 300 lumens. I found this okay when riding on lit roads where my main priority was to be seen, but on unlit roads I had to alter my riding quite a lot to accommodate the lack of brightness.

There's also a Low mode, 200 lumens, which lasts 6 hours.

Battery life is much less of an issue in the flashing modes, where the Super Flash will give you 8 hours of life.

You also get a 50-lumen Walk mode, which gives a reasonably competitive 21 hours.

Charging

To charge the light back to full takes four hours, using the USB-C cable supplied in the box.

Battery life is indicated by the lights on top, which also indicate the mode and remaining power. These range from green when full, to red when there is around 15 minutes of charge left. Another warning comes with a flashing red light with 7 minutes of battery to go. At this stage the light will dip into a lower mode to conserve juice.

Operating the light is really simple: two buttons allow you to scroll through the modes easily and quickly – in the solid modes, higher with the plus button, lower with the minus; in the flashing modes, changing the patterns. The buttons are easy to operate, even in full-finger gloves.

An IP64 rating keeps the light both water and dust resistant, and though '4' isn't the highest waterproof rating, even when riding in horrible weather with plenty of dirt the light functioned just as expected without any issues.

Value

Though the Lumina Pro 1000 is a good light, I think its £140 rrp is a little steep compared with others out there.

The latest Moon Meteor Storm Pro, for example, has come down in price since our review in 2017, to £120, and has a new high max output of 2,000 lumens, with a claimed battery life of 2 hours at 2,000 lumens – twice the power and run-time of the NiteRider.

And if you have a look at the lights listed in the beam comparison engine above, you'll see quite a few offering claimed higher output for less – the Ravemen LR1600, for example, is £115, and the Magicshine Ray 2600B is £129.99 – though the performances don't always match the numbers, it has to be said. Or keeping to lower outputs there are much cheaper options: Cateye's AMPP 1100 is £79.99, Lezyne's Micro Drive Pro 1000+ is £75, and Gaciron's Kiwi-1200 is £65.

Conclusion

Overall, the NiteRider Lumina 1000 is a pretty good light for dark commutes or staying seen on gloomy days. It's easy to use and can be swapped quickly between bikes, but longer run-times and a lower price would add appeal.

Verdict

Pretty good for dark commutes or staying seen on gloomy days, but not the cheapest or longest running