CatEye Nima Safety Light Review
CatEye are a household name when it comes to bicycle lights. The company was originally founded in Japan in 1954 and ever since has been at the forefront of cycle light technology. CatEye boast an impressive product catalog offering nearly 30 different headlights, rear lights, safety lights and reflector options. With Autumn on the doorstep and the nights getting darker earlier, we have had a play with the commuter-friendly CatEye Nima Safety Light.
Bright Idea?
The Nima (safety) light or SL-LD130-F to give it the technical name, is a neat little unit. With dimensions of 30.6 x 30.6 x 26.9 mm, and weighing in at a tiny 20 grams, it is the sort of light you will be happy to leave attached to your bike any time of the day. Although we tested the rear version of the CatEye Nima Safety Light, both front and rear lights feature a single LED which is powered by 2x CR2032 batteries. There are 4 different light modes including flashing, constant, rapid and pulse. The run times vary depending on the mode you choose and the battery life but all are impressive as shown in the table below.[table id=5 /]The single LED means this is not the brightest (rear) light on the market but the key thing to remember is that this is a safety light and not really suited as a main rear light. The light modes are eye-catching, making it an excellent auxiliary or backup light should your main rear light fail mid-ride. The semi-transparent casing on the Nima is strong and very well made yet simple and stylish, giving an elegant finish. The on/off function is well thought out too. CatEye call it ClickTec™ but essentially you can simply push and click the light at the base to switch it on, off or change modes. There are no buttons or switches so it is easy to use even when wearing full-finger gloves.The seat post/handlebar mount is a simple, thick rubber 'O' ring, allowing you to attach the tiny LED to a tube between 22.0 and 32.0mm in diameter. This means the CatEye Nima will fit the majority of bikes. Although this can be a bit fiddly to fit as the band hooks on from either side of the light bracket.
CatEye Nima Safety Light Review Conclusion
At AATR we are big fans of safety lights being used at anytime of the day. Whether it be on a sunny Sunday club ride, an early morning commute or riding home at as the streetlights are switching on. The CatEye Nima ticks most of the boxes for us. It is compact, discrete, simple and stylish. The only real draw back we found is that it isn't the brightest with only a single LED compared to some other auxiliary lights on the market but with it's good looks, ease of use and range of light modes, the CatEye Nima works very well. Since this review, CatEye have updated the Nima with the Nima 2. But that means there are some amazing deals around for this light either as a front and rear set or individually. At the time of this review, Evans Cycles have 49% off.