Gemini Xera 800 LED Light
7 April 2012 | By gregberryWe have been testing the Gemini Xera 800 LED light for the past few months now and as we slowly come out of the night riding season here is our thoughts.
The Xera makes a tidy set up on the handlebars.
For the past five years I have been relying on my Light and Motion Arc which is now standing on its last legs, in five years a lot has come in the light game. Higher lumens, smaller lamps and batteries are the key thing. The Xera hits the spot on these key things, the small headlamp is hardly noticeable wherever you mount it and the battery is much smaller than my near bottle sized old one. I found mounting it on the bars my favourite with the battery attached to the stem. This provided a very tidy and hardly noticeable setup which is very effective until you go round corners!
Light trails, at my local trails.
Which is were the simple headstrap comes into play, now you can either use the shorter cable and attach the battery to the back of your helmet or using the extension cable and carry in your back pocket or backpack. I preferred running it into my Camelbak, as on the back of your helmet it does feel like a bit of a counter weight. Having it mounted on your head enables you to look around corners better and look further up the trail ahead. An ideal set up would be two of these lights.
Because the Xera 800 only uses one bulb the path of the light is a bit of a dot where as something like a Light and Motion Seca has 3 bulbs. So the light is a lot better distributed not just focused in one area. But maybe this could be a key use for the Xera, being an ideal spot light on your head while having a better distribution light on your bars.
Now onto the important bit, burn time. The Xera has a nifty power warning light system on the back of the unit, when green you have 100-20% battery left. Orange 20-10% and red 10-0% battery life left. Gemini claim that the Xera will run for 2 hours on high. Unfortunately on the first time trying the light after about 20 minutes on high, the light had already gone to orange which was a bit concerning. I then dropped down to the mid setting and after about another 20 minutes or so it had also turned orange. I was then forced to do the rest of the ride in low setting, which was not particularly enjoyable but it did last. Now maybe it was the baltic British weather or that it was the smaller 2-cell battery, either way I would not be trusting this light on its own again.
Lighting up the way...
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Brightness: | 800 Lumens |
| Weight: | 52g (Light head) |
| Beam Angle: | 16° |
| Run Time on Absolute Maximum: | 2 hours (2-cell), 4 hours (4-cell) |
| 4 Modes: | High, Med, Low, Flash |
| LED Model: | CREE XM-L |
| Casing: | Hard Anodised T6 Aluminum |
| Battery: | Battery Overcharge and Overheat Protection |
| LED: | LED Overheat Protection |
| Weatherproof: | IP65 Weatherproof |
| What's in the Box | |
|---|---|
| - | Gemini XERA LED Light |
| - | High-Capacity 2-Cell Battery Pack (Hard case) |
| - | Lithium Ion Smart Charger |
| - | Helmet Mount and Bar Mount |
| - | Pro Head Belt |
| - | Silicone O-Rings |
| - | Extension Cable |
The Green light indicates 100-20% battery life, when its gone red you need to worry.
RRP: £129.99
More Information: gemini-lights.com
A great compact lightweight system with some tidy mounting features. Would use as a helmet light and not solely rely on one. 4 cell battery would be a good upgrade.
Photography Credit: Angus McIntosh
