Dinotte 200L opinions

[tele]

In the market for a light for communting in the morning. Seen some good reviews of the Dinotte 200L and the price wont break the bank.
Any other lights to be looking at?

[cp43]

I bought the set that included two 200L head lights and a taillight a couple years ago. I use them every day on my commute, and I've been very happy with them . Also, if they stop working at all Dinotte customer service is great.

Chris

[Geoff]

great light. I use it to ride on teh road a 5am no issues. not enough for mtb at night but road is good. tail light rocks!

[Likes2ridefar]

Great light, I did a ton of research before settling on the Dinotte and glad I did. The customer service is top notch.

I've used a few other brands before and they aren't nearly as nice, imo.

The Dinotte 200L is very easy to take on and off the bar and fits both 26 and 32 sized bars easily. It doesn't move when riding even over bumpy terrain. The helmet mount works fine too and is easy to set up.

I have one 200L and one 400L for different purposes. The 200L is great for commuting and has a really long burn time with the larger battery - the claimed run times I've found to be very accurate. I have two of the large batteries - still really small and light - and it's great not having to thinking about charging the battery every few days.

The 400L with the 200L is great for trail riding or high speed night riding.

[znfdl]

Have been using Dinotte for years. Customer service is the best I have ssen for any of the light manufacturers.

The 200 head and tail lights are quite good. I have run the 200, 400 and 600 lights. My old setup was 2 X 200 lights, switched over to a 400 head or a 600 head. I do intervals early in the morning and need to see quite a bit ahead. One 200 light is adequate up to 20mph, while the 400 is good for 25-30 mph. The 600 makes me comfortable going 35+ mph downhill.

The 200 taillight is quite strong, while the 400 is simply stunning. The 400 is so bright that cars give me a 6 foot berth.

[paulrad9]

I'm a light nut and had a 200 but then bought the 600. I also have a Lupine Wilma, but that's another story.

A couple of years ago I took those lights and couple of others and did some tests in a city environment. The first was to put each on a handlebar then cycle away about a tenth of a mile. My friend then fired up each light to see what it looked like and among all the lights, they were each equally noticeable. The results were confirmed to me the other day when I was supposed to meet my wife for dinner - she was coming from the west and I from the east. From more than 1/2 mile away I could spot her 600L as it was a bright, white dot. There were cars to her left and their headlights were a dull orange/yellow and not nearly as obvious as her light. When she arrived, I noted that her 600L was on low (which is ~equivalent to high for 200L), so even at that low setting, she stood out in the night.

The Dinotte people are great to talk to the on phone and seem to always be willing to configure a set to your liking. I hear their customer service is also superb

Oh, so why did I sell the 200l? I didn't think it was bright enough. It was a great 'be-seen' light, but I felt it wasn't strong enough as a 'to see' light when traveling at a faster pace on dark roads.

[gdw]

the technology has taken a major step beyond the leds used in the 200. The new Cree XPG is being released this month and should generate about twice the light, 345 lum, as the ones currently used by Dinotte. The new XPG's require less voltage to operate which equals longer run times with the same batteries supplied with the 200. Dinotte is a great company so expect to see some new lights from them in the near future and major discounts on their current models. They will probably offer factory upgrades to their existing models so call them before purchasing a new light.

http://www.cutter.com.au/proddetail.php?prod=cut937

[Ahneida Ride]

I run a DiNotte tail light and a Dinotte amber front daytime light ...
Love both ...

Customer Service is top notch. :banana:

[BengeBoy]

I was the same 200L headlight + Dinotte tail light combo that is mentioned above.

In the winter, I do 5 miles of my commute in complete darkness both ways (rural road, no streetlights).

I have been very happy - I especially like the ability to *quickly* move lights and battery from bike to bike. As noted, their service is great. I needed an O-ring one time last year and Rob sent me a whole envelope of various size O-rings.

I'm considering their current trade-in program - I can get a 400L light for $130 if I send in one of my two 200L headlights. I like the fact that my batteries still fit their new lights and so now to upgrade all I need to do is upgrade the light engines.

[EddieBirdsell]

the technology has taken a major step beyond the leds used in the 200. The new Cree XPG is being released this month and should generate about twice the light, 345 lum, as the ones currently used by Dinotte. The new XPG's require less voltage to operate which equals longer run times with the same batteries supplied with the 200. Dinotte is a great company so expect to see some new lights from them in the near future and major discounts on their current models. They will probably offer factory upgrades to their existing models so call them before purchasing a new light.

http://www.cutter.com.au/proddetail.php?prod=cut937

I've been torn between getting the 200L and the 400L and put off the purchase longer than I should have by now. The 200L looks to be a bit easier to move bike-to-bike, but I think I'd appreciate the extra power of the 400L.

Does what you've said above mean that my procrastination might pay off if I wait another few weeks, in that I can get nearly the power of the 400L in the package of the 200L? Perhaps I should call up Dinotte and see how long before they implement this new technology in their lineup?

[54ny77]

Does the 200L bounce around at all on rough road and/or pavement?

How does it mount on the bars? I can't find any detailed pics of the mounting. Looks like a cylinder that's strapped on with a thick o-ring, but there's got to be more to it than that, yes?

[Likes2ridefar]

Does the 200L bounce around at all on rough road and/or pavement?

How does it mount on the bars? I can't find any detailed pics of the mounting. Looks like a cylinder that's strapped on with a thick o-ring, but there's got to be more to it than that, yes?


I use it on both a 26.0 and a 31.8 and not once has it ever slipped and that includes rigid mountain biking.

The underside of the light, in the middle, has a rubber half moon shape. that's the part that sticks to the bar. various rubber O rings come with the light when you buy it and that's what holds the light to the bar or helmet. On the top of the light is where the O rings attach on either end of the light. they are snug but not so terribly snug that they are difficult to take on and off. Of all the lights I've used, it's the easiest and most secure.

For the battery it has a very strong velcro strap that you can use if mounting to your bike. I usually just attach it under the stem or on the TT right behind the stem.

[gdw]

"Does what you've said above mean that my procrastination might pay off if I wait another few weeks, in that I can get nearly the power of the 400L in the package of the 200L? Perhaps I should call up Dinotte and see how long before they implement this new technology in their lineup?"

Your timing could be good. Contact Dinotte and ask them if they plan to introduce new models this fall and if so, will they allow trade-ins or factory upgrades. Dinotte is an excellent company and their customer service department is topnotch. They have a well earned reputation for honesty.

I would expect that they will offer upgrades as soon as they have a supply of quality optics which will fit into their current light bodies. The driver -internal workings- of the current light should work perfectly with the new XPG if the released data is accurate. That said, current light systems should be on sale this fall/winter since they're soon to be surpassed in performance.

It's tough to be a manufacturer in the high end sport light industry. The technology is constantly evolving and new LEDS reach the hobby market often before companies like Dinotte have a chance to evaluate them. If you're comfortable with a soldering iron, I'd advise you to check out the DIY Lights forum at MTBR.
http://forums.mtbr.com/forumdisplay.php?f=124

[wasfast]

Also, check out the lights review section on mtr review. I spent LOTS of time looking at all the models, considering output and price. There's no slam dunk for bright/cheap besides DIY.

I did use the pond scum light setup for the last year and it's not bad. Around $100. I got the least expensive battery system which means a waterbottle with a 5A battery that's rather clunky.

Dinotte has an excellent reputation and I think their products are decent. I ended getting a Exposure MaxxD. Around $400 but no wires, 975 lumens output and 3 hour run time on HIGH. Very well made.

[54ny77]

Any chance of posting a picture of how that light looks on your bike? I'm inclined to get the same light, but it's tough to see good pics of how it looks when mounted. Company website pix kinda look like a coffee can on top of the stem, would like to see a pic that's taken a few feet away from the bike (as well as one up close).

I ended getting a Exposure MaxxD. Around $400 but no wires, 975 lumens output and 3 hour run time on HIGH. Very well made.

[xjoex]

I have been using a Light and Motion Vega 200 to commute with. No battery pack, charges in 2 hours, very bright and has a blinky mode.

I actually will use two when it gets really crappy, one on blink and one on full.

The only improvement I could think of would be a regular screw on mount instead of the rubber strap, no problems yet though...

-Joe

[wasfast]

Any chance of posting a picture of how that light looks on your bike? I'm inclined to get the same light, but it's tough to see good pics of how it looks when mounted. Company website pix kinda look like a coffee can on top of the stem, would like to see a pic that's taken a few feet away from the bike (as well as one up close).

Well, it's not "elegant" or blended in since it's basically a cylinder. You can mount it upside down under the bar but the angle to the road is too shallow I suspect based on other experiments. The quick release mount is very nice and quick. I bought an extra mount for the rain bike also.

All that said, I'm not very concerned about appearance in the dark. Here's a couple pictures I ran out and took in the garage...quick and dirty but you get the idea.

[54ny77]

perfect pic, exactly what i was looking for. thank you!

Well, it's not "elegant" or blended in since it's basically a cylinder. You can mount it upside down under the bar but the angle to the road is too shallow I suspect based on other experiments. The quick release mount is very nice and quick. I bought an extra mount for the rain bike also.

All that said, I'm not very concerned about appearance in the dark. Here's a couple pictures I ran out and took in the garage...quick and dirty but you get the idea.

[dawgie]

I've got a Dinotte 140 tail-light, and agree with others that their quality and service is top-notch. However, after shopping for a new headlight recently, I settled on another brand. Some of the new LEDs put out incredible amounts of light for less money, and I ended up buying a Magicshine LED that claims to put out 900 lumens on high and only costs $90. I believe that Magicshine exaggerates its lumen outputs, but it is still undoubtedly much brighter than the Dinotte 200. I've been using the MS about two weeks and I'm very impressed so far. For less than $100, it puts out as much or more light than other lights costing 2-4X more money. If you're interested, check out this thread in the electronics forum at Bikeforums.net.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=576697