Ravemen CR1000 USB Front Light with Remote

The Ravemen CR1000 USB Front Light With Remote features a unique T-Shape beam which illuminates the important bits without dazzling oncoming drivers. The 1,000-lumen output, high quality aluminium body and strong run-times make it a good choice for road riders and commuters alike, though the flash modes could be improved and the mount doesn't fit aero bars.

We test lots of 1,000-lumen lights on road.cc, as it's the sweet spot for comfortable vision in full darkness. This means the Ravemen is up against some strong competition – and it puts up an excellent fight.

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Ravemen has crammed a 4,000mAh battery to a very compact body for run-times up there with the likes of the Magicshine Allty 1000 (also 4,000mAh), and comfortably longer than the 2,200mAH Moon Meteor Storm. It takes around three hours to charge completely from flat, which is reasonable, although it's longer from low output sources such as laptops.

The CR1000 measures just 104mm x 29mm x 32mm, and sits neatly without taking up too much bar space. The anodised aluminium body feels high quality, and the 140g heft is on par – for example, the Magicshine and Moon lights above weigh 146g and 207g respectively.

The CR1000 has a claimed impact resistance of one metre, meaning it won't break if you drop it from that height... but not necessarily that it will break under a heavier impact. In reality it perhaps doesn't tell you much.

More meaningful is the IPX6 rating, which is high and means it can 'resist high-pressure, heavy sprays of water,' making it ideal for winter riding. Over the test it endured a few wet rides and the shower test, and it still behaves just as it should.

The 'X' means it's not rated for dust protection, but not that it doesn't keep out dust – just that it hasn't been tested (poor performance would be a 0 instead of an X).

The unique thing about the CR1000 is its T-shaped beam. In Ravemen's own words, this gives 'close-range flood lighting and a long-distance spotlight' without dazzling traffic. It works well, with plenty of visibility far ahead for fast descents, and a channel of light that's perfect for picking up potholes.

Although it's not the widest beam, it's just enough that things in hedges won't make you jump.

The modes:

High – 1000 lumen – 2 hrs

Mid – 600 lumen – 2.7 hrs

Low – 350 lumen – 5.8 hrs

Eco – 100 lumen – 25 hrs

Pulse Flash – 500 lumen – 43.5 hrs

Rapid Flash – 150 lumen – 45 hrs

Operation

A single press of the button on the rear scrolls through the modes – like most lights these days it turns on in the mode you were using when you last turned it off. At first I thought a double-click was taking me straight to the 1,000-lumen mode, but actually I’m told it’s just that the button works really fast – it fooled me, in a good way! Anyway, it's great. Scrolling through umpteen modes is not only tedious but dangerous, and the main reason I've steered clear of the otherwise excellent Lezyne lights such as the Lite Drive 1000XL.
(Editor's note: While the Lezyne Lite Drive 1000XL does force you to scroll through all modes to get from high beam to low when the light is in its multi-function setting, it does offer another more basic very high beam/very low beam only mode setting.)

In thick gloves the button can be harder to use than those situated on the top of the light, as it's both tucked away and quite flat. To get around this you can use the supplied remote with its 35cm cable and much bigger button. The light cannot be turned on or off with it, and a long press engages full power – great for a sudden dark patch.

The button on the lamp doubles as a battery indicator. It's green above 65% charge and red for 10-35%. Dip under 10% and it flashes red, while at 2% the beam itself starts flashing. This works reasonably well, but an orange light wouldn't go amiss as the indicator displays the same whether you've got 100% or 36% juice left.

The six modes cover every base without being excessive, and testing shows run times to be pretty much bang on. That said it hasn't been particularly cold, which can reduce them. Still, two hours is half an hour longer than the Lezyne mentioned above manages at full power, and 12 minutes longer than the Magicshine Allty 1000.

Other modes are obviously better still, although the two lowest constant settings aren't bright enough for full dark. In reality you're limited to 2.7 hours of full darkness riding, but then that's enough for most riders.

The two flash modes have very impressive run-times, but other lights arguably have more eye-catching patterns. The 500-lumen one is plenty bright enough, but could do with flashing a little more often, while the 150-lumen flash is just a bit too easy to miss in a busy street. A brighter, more frequent flash setting would be safer and worth the drop in run-time in my opinion.

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The windows on either side glow orange for side visibility, which is another great feature for urban riding and commuters, and the CR1000 can operate while being charged from a battery pack, too.

The clamp doesn't have quite the same quality feel as the rest of the unit, but it's well designed and it certainly gives a good grip on the light. The clamp itself won't fit to handlebars with an aerodynamic profile – something that's becoming ever more common on road bikes – though it's very far from being alone there. Plus although the clamp doesn't fit round an aero bar the thick rubber band is very stretchy and will fit around all but the widest aero bars – according Raveman's UK distributor. We didn't have an aero bar to try it on, but it certainly fitted securely enough to a semi-aero bar and the feeling in the road.cc office was that while the clamp wouldn't fit an aero bar it would sit on top of some and the rubber band would hold it in place.

The Ravemen fits circular bars between 22.2mm and 35mmm in diameter, though, which should cover the vast majority of commuters, road bikes and mountain bikes. And it holds the CR1000 securely with minimal vibration, and allows easy removal of the unit with a click and slide motion.

At £79.99 the Ravemen is competitively priced, especially considering its battery capacity, build quality and run-times. Of the lights mentioned earlier, the Lezyne Lite Drive 1000XL (£70) is slightly cheaper but the run-times are shorter, and the mode choices are a pain.

The Magicshine Allty 1000 (£69.99) is extremely good value and has more eye-catching flash modes, but the Ravemen has slightly longer burn-times. Plenty of 1,000-lumen lights are more expensive: the Cateye AMPP 1100 front light, for example, is £109.99.

Overall

The CR1000 is a good little light with a big enough punch for medium length nighttime rides. Build quality, burn-times, beam pattern and price are all excellent, though the flash modes aren't as eye-catching as those from competitors, and a mount that fits aero bars would be good.

Verdict

Great build, burn-times and price, though the flash modes are a bit lacking and the clamp can't do aero bars