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Versatile device in that it has a seat post mount or you can unclip from the seat post mount and clip to the back of your shirt or rear rack/rack pack. If you are buying it online without having seen it in person, the second mounting option is not apparent. The mounting system appears stable, though I read some complaints about the seat post mount screw being small. It appears to be correct size for the job.
The variety of flashing (or constant on) light options are beneficial in that it can be tailored to day, or night riding. In addition to the factory programmed options you also have the option of programming your own.
At this point my longest ride has been two hours and the battery showed no sign of diminishing. Also, the rechargable battery is great(provided it lasts).
Overall I am satisfied and would buy it again. If time changes my mind, I will edit.
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This is the most powerful tail light available at the time of this review in late 2011. The light is powerful, you can't miss it if viewed directly and thanks to the rounded design it appears lit even when viewed from the sides. I feel confident that I'll be noticed when I ride in heavy traffic and cross busy intersection.Having said that, the seat post mount is really, really flaky and it will worn out very soon. How can a top-notch light be paired to such a badly designed piece of plastic?
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This video shows a friend holding my bike equipped with the Hotshot 2-watt taillight probably half a mile down the road during the evening. I am riding a scooter towards the bike to give you an idea of the light's brightness.
Overall, this is the brightest taillight for the money you are going to find, I got mine on Amazon for $25. I previously had a 1 watt Cherry Bomb taillight and I thought that was super bright...until I bought this. It is easily twice the brightness compared to the Cherry Bomb. The adjustable flash speeds are nice and there are a variety of flash patterns to suit anyone's needs. The USB recharging is also great as you don't have to worry about changing batteries. Just plug it in every once once and a while and you are good to go.
Honest reviews on Cygolite Hotshot 2-Watt USB Rechargeable Taillight with USB Cable
Wondering which of the many red flashers on Amazon is most likely to be seen during daylight hours? It's the Cygolite Hotshot. There's a good comparative review of the fifteen most popular flashers on the Australian edition of Gizmodo, dated 3/17/2012.I think a lot of customer reviews make the mistake of judging the brightness of a front or rear flasher from up close. Everything seems bright by that standard. What you really need to do is park the bike, then walk the length of an American football field away. Three hundred feet only provides a five second warning to a car closing at 40 miles per hour. Anything less doesn't leave time for the driver to react.
In my opinion, the Hotshot's most attention grabbing mode is constant flash set to about two flashes per second. This setting is almost blinding out to 300 feet or more beginning one-half hour before sunset. It's actually too bright beginning one-half hour after sunset, and you'll need to switch to a less intense mode such as triple flash or random flash.
Of course, you shouldn't feel invincible given that no flasher is effective against a drunk or distracted driver. You'll find that out quickly enough.
The Cygolite is bright enough to be better than nothing even during full daylight. At the least, it is still the best available flasher for that purpose.
The version with the 120V charging accessory is worth considering. The AC charger is good quality and allows me to charge the Hotshot out in the garage with the bike. It's only an extra three dollars, so well worth the convenience.
The all plastic construction is reasonably robust.
The cons:
(1) Limited mounting options. Basically, you can't use this flasher if you don't have enough exposed seat post to clamp around. I had to improvise a seat stay mount because my hybrid bike has a shock post that's about four inches tall when lowered fully. A shock post is way too big in diameter to accept the Cygolite's mounting strap. Cygolite's customer service offered zero help, although they at least responded to my email. You're also out of luck if you use a seat bag. If Cygolite wants the Hotshot to qualify as insanely great, then it should design and manufacture a mount to fit on the seat stays and include it with the Hotshot as standard equipment.
Cygolite will tell you that you can always use the option to clip the Hotshot to your clothing. The clothing clip is integrated into the Hotshot. However, this really isn't an effective solution to universal mounting. The problem is that Cygolite has achieved the outstanding brightness of the Hotshot by confining most of the light to a tightly focused cone. Brightness falls off very rapidly beyond +/20 degrees of center. The Hotshot needs to be used with a rigid mount that accurately points its beam directly to rear, both horizontally and vertically. Letting the Hotshot bounce around on clothing means that its effective brightness will be unpredictable from moment to moment.
(2) As others have noted, the elastomeric cover for the USB charging port pops open frequently.
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