Here’s a completely unscientific review of my B&M lights based solely on some night rides and my 55 year old eyes, and having someone else ride the bike so I could observe the lights from a distance.
The lights:
IQ Cyo. Unsure of exact model as it was bought used. It’s the one with the built in reflector in the lens and the four Daytime Running Lights
Ixon IQ Premium
Toplight Line Plus and Secula taillights
The Cyo does a good job. It lights the road from directly in front of the bike to about 4m then gets much brighter and fades out gradually with distance. I don’t know if this is what people describe as the dreaded hot spot. I would describe it more as an abrupt transition in the light pattern. To me a hot spot is just that, a spot.
The width of the brightest portion of the beam lights up the full width of a lane, about 4 or 5m.
Before getting the Cyo I had only used cheap North American style battery lights that were good for being seen but definitely inadequate for night riding at speed.
I thought the Cyo was great.........until I tried the Premium.
B&M really did make a noticeable improvement with this model.
The beam starts at the front wheel, transitions smoothly to a slightly brighter beam at about 4m, then another smooth transition to the main beam in another 4m. The main beam is probably three times the width of the old model. My night ride takes me on a road that is 2 lanes with bike lanes both sides. It is at least 10m wide. No street lighting. If I ride down the centre of the road the light beam covers the entire road. I really like this light.
The taillights:
In a nutshell, they both work equally well. The Secula looks brighter when close, but, at any meaningful distance, I thought they were equally conspicuous at night. In daylight I could see the Toplight better when my daughter rode about 200m in front of me. Neither were as attention getting as my PB Superflash in daylight.
The standlight works longer on the Secula. My Secula is a year newer than my Toplight. This may be a factor. Both stay on adequately long.
The Secula does not have an off switch, so it stays on until the capacitor drains.
So, If you are in the market for lights, here’s my opinion. Remember how much you paid for this advice and take it for what it’s worth.
The Premium models from B&M are vastly superior to the ones they replace and are only a few $/£/€ more than the standard models, so If you are buying new, definitely go Premium.
If you have limited funds and are looking at a used light, the older models still do a good job. I would have been perfectly happy with mine had I not had a new one to make a direct comparison with.
Pick a taillight based on the mounting location. Secula for seatstay or mudguard, Toplight for rack.
Another consideration is the Secula is dynamo powered only. The Toplight comes in a battery version.
I’ll end with a short anecdote.
I was driving at night and saw a light, presumably on a bike, about half a km ahead. This was on a well lit highway with a separated bike lane. ( Dave, if you are reading this, it was the Knight St bridge)
What caught my eye was that the taillight was amazingly visible even at that distance, and with overhead lighting. As I approached I slowed as I much as I could in my 25m long 18 wheeler. Passing the cyclist I could tell by the shape that the light was a Phillips Lumiring. I was truly impressed by this light. I would probably recommend this light over the B&M.
