Re: [RBW] Re: WTB Sinewave Cycles Beacon 2 Dynamo Light, or reviews

[Brian Turner]

My experience is only with the V.1 Beacon, and I must admit it has been a bit disappointing to me, so I’m hoping some of the shortcomings have been improved in this new version. Like Jeff mentioned, it just kinda blasts a lot of light out, unfocused, so it’s best for off-road riding. Personally, I’d prefer a focused beam for both paved and off-road. I’ve found the USB charging feature to be practically useless for my needs. I could ride all day with a smartphone plugged in, and I’d be lucky if my battery percentage went up more than 3-4%. When I tried to charge my Garmin Edge Explore, it made my device freak out so bad, I thought I’d damaged it. When I contacted the owner of Sinewave about this, he said he was aware that certain Garmin devices didn’t work well with the Beacon’s charger. So, the two devices I bought the light to work with won’t work with it. I’ve heard it’s best to use it to trickle charge a separate battery bank, but those are so powerful these days, I can practically go 3-4 days on a bike trip, charging my devices as needed on a full charged bank. So I basically have a really expensive, gorgeous, very well-constructed dyno light that only really does one thing well, and that’s blast out a lot of light. I really wanted to love it, but I’m way happier with my Edelux II on my other bike. I know it’s a popular light and works great for a lot of people in certain situations. I’m curious to know if the V.2 Beacon is a significant improvement over the issues I had with it, but it would probably take a lot to convince me to try another one. -B On Apr 18, 2023, at 8:49 PM, Jeffrey Arita <jeffreyar...@gmail.com> wrote: We've got two (his/her) Beacon V.1's.  Purchased 1st quarter 2017.  Both worked okay until one of them has issues with all of the LEDs firing up upon faster speeds.  Worked with the Owner and he stands behind his products.  Around that same time I asked him if he were going to consider making a focused lens option (StVZO).  At that time he (unfortunately) said 'no.'  IMHO, if he were to do so, he could sell a lot of these units to randonneurs and cyclotourists alike. The Version 1 works quite well.  At low speeds only 1 or 2 of the LEDs light up.  As speed increases, the third LED lights up.  The lens is unfocused, so it is pretty decent if you are off-road on dirt roads.  The USB output is integrated into the chassis (obviously power limited via the dynamo).  There is a second way to power up the light - you simply plug in a USB power source - excellent when you get to a campground after dark and you need to light up your camping spot (or if you want to power the light without the dynamo).  Well thought-out.  If only there was a StVZO lens option, I think it would be perfect. Note: the USB power output is power limited by the dynamo (not the device itself).  We have had trouble trying to charge late-model smartphones since they are quite power-hungry.  It is probably better to try and charge a battery bank (pass-thru or not) vs. the smartphone itself (in  our experience).  The dynamo + Beacon does re-charge small-ish GPS devices quite well such as Wahoo BOLTs and ROAMs.  Best regards, Jeff Claremont, CA On Tuesday, April 18, 2023 at 3:41:05 PM UTC-7 brizbarn wrote: Anyone have a Sinewave Cycles Beacon 2 Dynamo Light they want to sell?  Or has anyone used it, and care to share their thoughts?  My dynamo light broke and can't be fixed, and I have a Sinewave Reactor dynamo charger that I use to charge my iPhone or other USB things.  I figured I'd combine the two to declutter things a bit with the Beacon Light. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/26e34dd1-ad97-4fe0-b152-3e90f5d0fc66n%40googlegroups.com. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/873307DD-FBCF-4B8A-92FF-3AB486B1D7BC%40gmail.com.