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#21
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
wrote in message oups.com... Mike: My understanding is that they last a long time, but eventually burn out. I did get a response from Dinotte that the light is under warranty for two years, which includes the bulb. If it burns out after that you have to return the light to them for bulb replacement (it is not user servicable). Current bulb replacement cost is $40, but they expected better and cheaper bulbs in two years. I'm looking forward to hearing your opinion of the light. Hope you like it. Bruce Bruce-- I got the light today, and managed to take it out for a short nighttime cruise. Much brighter than the Hong Kong 21 LED eBay special I have on my town bike, but the HK light was 10 bucks, too. My first impression was disbelief that a light so small could possibly be very bright. I was mistaken. The light is so bright that glancing at it directly for more than a second is almost painful. The beam is not very tightly focused, but that is a good thing. I found my entire lane illuminated, plus some. I was only able to get out for a half hour, but the light didn't get really hot. I'm sure it would after a couple of hours, but I don't intend to take it out that long. The mounting setup is pretty ingenious, and very simple. The light itself is machined from a piece of aluminum, and it's about the size of a roll of Life Savers, except a bit fatter. There's a scalloped cutout on the bottom of the light that matches up with your bar, and the light is held in place with a big O-ring. It doesn't look like a proprietary part, it kind of looks like a vacuum cleaner belt. Should be easy to find another if/when it breaks. The battery pack velcroes under the stem, and a separate strap is included to secure the power cord. Total installation time is less than a minute. Simple and elegant. I will have more time to ride with the light and will post a followup once I commute a few times with it. So far, it seems like a winner. If you're considering one, Performance has them on sale, and their price is better than Nashbar(but I think Nashbar will price match). Mike |
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#22
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
Mike: Thanks for the review, your comments are very helpful. From
what I understand from David Johnson's earlier post, the batteries are just conventional AAs in some kind of holder. So it would be easy to carry spares and swap them out if needed. Is that correct? The Dinotte website doesn't describe the battery pack. Bruce |
#23
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
On Wed, 23 Nov 2005 19:01:16 -0800, kayrideout wrote:
Mike: Thanks for the review, your comments are very helpful. From what I understand from David Johnson's earlier post, the batteries are just conventional AAs in some kind of holder. So it would be easy to carry spares and swap them out if needed. Is that correct? No, that is not correct. It comes supplied with AA-sized rechargeable 1.3V NiMH batteries, along with the charger. They say you can use standard AAs in a pinch, but these NiMH batteries are available cheaply. I'd get more of them, and keep them charged. The holder is also pretty standard; I'd bet there are some at Radio Shack. A spare holder full of freshly-charged batteries would be the best bet for spares, and I plan to do that as soon as I get around to it. -- David L. Johnson __o | I believe that the motion picture is destined to revolutionize _`\(,_ | our educational system and that in a few years it will supplant (_)/ (_) | largely, if not entirely, the use of textbooks -- Thomas Edison, 1922 |
#24
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
David L. Johnson wrote:
On Wed, 23 Nov 2005 19:01:16 -0800, kayrideout wrote: Mike: Thanks for the review, your comments are very helpful. From what I understand from David Johnson's earlier post, the batteries are just conventional AAs in some kind of holder. So it would be easy to carry spares and swap them out if needed. Is that correct? No, that is not correct. It comes supplied with AA-sized rechargeable 1.3V NiMH batteries, along with the charger. They say you can use standard AAs in a pinch, but these NiMH batteries are available cheaply. I'd get more of them, and keep them charged. The holder is also pretty standard; I'd bet there are some at Radio Shack. A spare holder full of freshly-charged batteries would be the best bet for spares, and I plan to do that as soon as I get around to it. Be aware that NiMH batterys are 1.2 volts whilst conventional dry cells are 1.5 volts. Power increases with the square of the voltage so you should see a difference in brightness between the two types of batterys. If the light is designed with NiMH batterys in mind then you may risk burning out the bulb with dry cells. Marty |
#25
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
wrote in message oups.com... Mike: Thanks for the review, your comments are very helpful. From what I understand from David Johnson's earlier post, the batteries are just conventional AAs in some kind of holder. So it would be easy to carry spares and swap them out if needed. Is that correct? The Dinotte website doesn't describe the battery pack. Bruce Yep. The batter holder is just a plastic rectangle that holds the 4 batteries and fits inside the nylon case. DiNotte even includes a plastic clamshell type case for spare batteries. Very considerate of them. |
#26
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
wrote in message oups.com... Mike: Thanks for the review, your comments are very helpful. From what I understand from David Johnson's earlier post, the batteries are just conventional AAs in some kind of holder. So it would be easy to carry spares and swap them out if needed. Is that correct? The Dinotte website doesn't describe the battery pack. Bruce Second reply. :-) The batteries are rechargeable AAs, but those are readily available. The ideal plan would be to have two sets of batteries or more, and always carry spares. The manufacturer gives a three hour run time on the low setting, and their idea of low is very bright. Running out of juice shouldn't be a problem. |
#27
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
On Thu, 24 Nov 2005 11:47:39 +0800, Marty wrote:
David L. Johnson wrote: Be aware that NiMH batterys are 1.2 volts whilst conventional dry cells are 1.5 volts. Power increases with the square of the voltage so you should see a difference in brightness between the two types of batterys. If the light is designed with NiMH batterys in mind then you may risk burning out the bulb with dry cells. If they say you can use alkalines in a pinch, presumably the light includes a regulator. If it's a led light, that's doubly likely. Jasper |
#28
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
Jasper Janssen wrote:
On Thu, 24 Nov 2005 11:47:39 +0800, Marty wrote: David L. Johnson wrote: Be aware that NiMH batterys are 1.2 volts whilst conventional dry cells are 1.5 volts. Power increases with the square of the voltage so you should see a difference in brightness between the two types of batterys. If the light is designed with NiMH batterys in mind then you may risk burning out the bulb with dry cells. If they say you can use alkalines in a pinch, presumably the light includes a regulator. If it's a led light, that's doubly likely. If the light draws very much current, then alkalines will suffer a voltage drop (relatively high internal resistance), even when new. Can't say if the DiNotte's 1-3 hour burn time would constitute a high enough current for AA alkalines to drop the voltage to ~1.2 volts, but it's a possibility. Maybe somebody with a DiNotte wants to put some alkalines in and put a voltmeter across them while the light is turned on. Mark |
#29
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
A couple notes on the DiNotte Lighing systems that I learned. (my
background/experience is both as a user and as a formere buyer for the bike side of a small specialty shop) I have been using this light for about 1 month now. First off, I concur that the lights work great. very bright. the other night while on an evening ride here in Seattle with my girlfriend we decided to let hers run down and see how long it would put out light beyond the low battery warning. (after low battery indication) we ran it for the better part of an hour--with diminishing brightness, but still if I rode ahead and looked back at here it was very visible which for driver visibilty/safety standpoint is awesome--although it was too dim to count as a legit headlight after that much time it was still visible as a safety light. the snap in battery pack holders are easy to find at radioshack, so carrying two or more for a longer jaunt is cheap and accesssible. also, there is the option to get a C cell battery pack which will extend the burntime significantly (not sure on how long), or you could make your own. when researching these for our store, I learned a couple things about the voltage, etc that has been previously discussed. first, the light is protected from over voltage, so using 1.5V AA's will not burn out the LED. secondly, the internal circutry in the housing to regulate voltage also maintains the correct output so that the light does not gradually lose brightness right from the get-go (like you would see in an old halogen flashlight), but will only reduce in light output when the batteries are signifcantly drained. I have used/tested several other systems including the Cygolite 3W LED systems, Planet Bike Insight and Alias, Vistalight, Nite Rider, and probably a couple others. I really like this system and would encourage you to try it out if you get the chance. If you have an established Local Bike Shop, they can get these for you also. DiNotte is very friendly with small dealers. my 2 cents on possible improvements/additions are perhaps a way to house the batteries in a more watertight housing...I have not had any problems here in rainy old seattle, but it could be possible for rain to penetrate and short the battries (not the light housing, only the battery pack) and create problems. not an issue for fair weather riders, but a nice idea for 24 hour racers or the "hard core" or those that get cought in a massive downpour. like I said, I have not had a moisture problem yet, but it is a pretty open battery system and it could happen. secondly, I think it would be cool it if it had a lower output flashing mode (like planet bike) so that if you were riding in enough light you could flip it to blinky headlight mode on the way to work so you don't get run over and still have almost your entire battery charge for a full on lit up ride home. KC |
#30
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Anybody using the DiNotte Ultralight?
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