Customer Reviews

Cateye HL-500 Halogen Bicycle Headlight (Black)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was my very first bicycle light. Since then, I have used three other lights, Cateye HL500II Micro Halogen, Planet Bike Super Spot 1W LED, and finally Cateye HL1500 Hyper Halogen which I currently use and love it(see my review on Cateye HL1500).
I can't believe people still buying this at $13.- (plus shipping) while you can buy HL1500 for $12.- (includes shipping in Amazon). The illuminating power between the two don't even compare.
HL500 can barely enough to be seen by other traffic, much less letting you see where you going in the dark. If you adjust it to close range like in front of the wheel, the light illuminate enough to let you see the texture of the road but totally dark beyond that. If you adjust it to further like 20 feet, the light just disappear in the darkness. You can't even see a person walking toward you or you riding into him. I would say it's ok for very slow riding to 10mph.
On the other hand, HL1500 let you see about to 50 ft. in front of you. You can't tell who's the person 50 ft. away but you can see someone is there. It's a distance that let you ride at 20mph comfortably.
From my experience, all Cateye I have used were made of cheap plastic, probably ABS, while other makers (such as Planet Bike) uses polycarbonate. I wish Cateye starts using better material even if that means the price goes up a little higher.

I do not recommend this product, get a HL1500 instead.

I bought this light because I've purchased other Cateye products I was pleased with, but this light is just a joke. It would be OK for a little kid's tricycle but that's even a stretch.

First, lites like this are not meant to see a mile down the road. They are so you can be seen.

This is a good old dependable lite. I have two of them and they have never let me down unlike some of the $300 lites I've had. But with advancements LED technology this lite is going the way of the dinosaurs.

I did put an LED replacement bulb in one of mine. It's OK but nothing casts a beam like good old halogen, at least not yet. Then I just don't like the BLUENESS of LED's.

To bad CatEye has discontinued this product that was a good seller for many years. But in this day and age of change, change, change...

I always have two lites on my bike. I've even once had both systems fail on a long dark ride at nite. A bulb burned out in one (CatEye HL-500II microhalogen) and the battery quit in the other $300 NiteRider lite after being fully charged before the ride (the NiteRider never did work right). So now I at least carry a spare halogen bulb.

I've yet to burn out a bulb in the HL-500.

I have used this light for years. My wife purchase a new bike so I picked her up one too.

I have used this style Cateye light on my bike for several years. I purchased a low cost LED Cateye light, but I liked this light better.

I have had no issues with Bike Nashbar.

Get a 1 or 2W planet bike LED light instead. Waste of money with this one. You get more features with the planet bike lights which are bright and much much lighter.

My old bike lamp broke and I replaced it with this one. Easy to fix on your bike, but batteries are not included. Works fine and even on bumpy roads there are no flickers and the position doesn't change.

I have had this light for a long time and I feel it out does the normal 3+ LED crowd once you get to the 5,6 Level you are at the same light level, with that said, a halogen will suck battery power faster than your LED set. Yet for the amount of light it puts out you can not beat a Halogen by Cateye. And on the road you really want as much light as possible on those mistimed rides.
The price is pretty good as well, not great but good.

I did buy this beautiful classic type bike light for [...]...
At the first look, i was a bit disppointed for its heavy weight...
I expected smaller and lighter than its own...
Anyhow, after changing to full charged two AA batteries, i was really
satisfied with its brightness and weight that actually has two C-type batteries...
I am not frequent night time rider so I do not need high performance light.
So, my choice was correct i think so far...
If you buy it, you will like it, i think...yes..
Don't forget to change the battery type to AA-type...
It it a lot better in terms of weight and daily use...

The product is good, it deserves 5 stars. The 2 stars was to draw your attention to Nasbar. They shipped 3 items in 1 large box, with no package stuffing. That is, no peanuts, bubble wrap, paper... nothing. The items in the package had been severely tossed around during shipment. Furthermore, Nashbar processed my order several days after I placed it, thus canceling by promotional code that expired that day. Luckily, I had printed out my receipt and harassed them by phone for a full week(3 emails were not responded to). Lastly, they added me to their mailing list and the mailing lists of their partner companies. To this day(4 months later) I still receive junk mail despite several emails. Why do they have a customer service email if they don't read it? +5 product, -3 nashbar = 2 star.