Oxford UltraTorch Headlight CL200

The Oxford UltraTorch Headlight CL200 has the potential to be an excellent light to have on your bike at all times, but the choice of modes means it isn't as useful as it could be. The mounting solution also leaves a lot to be desired. On the plus side, the display is a great way to know how long is left in the battery. Have a look at our guide to the best bike lights for better options.

I was excited by the premise of a well-priced, decently powerful light, with a nice form factor – and Steve was impressed with the CL500 – but I've been left slightly disappointed with the modes on offer from Oxford.

A light like this, with a maximum output of 200 lumens, isn't going to be a first choice for seeing where you're going in the dark, it's more likely to be used for being seen with. I was therefore surprised that the flashing modes don't offer a short blast-high output daytime flash, and instead the advertised 'day flash' is a 5-lumen blast. When riding during the day, I struggled to tell that the light was on when I had it in this mode, and don't think it really adds much over having no light at all. (Though it will give you a claimed 140 hours of battery life.)

The rest of the light modes are pretty standard, with the brightest output being 200 lumens, lasting for a claimed 3 hours, then 160, 100 and 35 lumens being the other solid outputs, with battery life from 5 up to 20 hours.

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It also has the previously mentioned 5-lumen flash, along with a 20-lumen pulse which lasts for 30 hours, and a 15-lumen flash which lasts for 80 hours.

The output from this light is very circular, which is concentrated in the centre. When I used it in the dark to get around the city, I struggled quite a lot as I couldn't see anything other than the circular beam. A wider beam would make more sense for a light to be seen, as it gives other road users a higher chance of seeing you from a side street.

As a positive, I absolutely love the display on the top of the light. It shows a number, which is the predicted life left in the mode it is currently in, and it has bars to show the output level it is currently on. This is the best implementation of battery monitoring I have seen on a light to date.

The display only shows up to 9, though, so if it's in one of the super-long-life modes, then it will say 9 for a very long time (up to 131 hours).

Mount

The mounting solution is a crosshead screw through the bottom of the light. The issue with using a crosshead over a conventional hex is that it's a lot harder to get the required torque to sufficiently tighten the light. It is also a lot easier to round than a hex. I found that I wasn't able to get the screw tight enough to stop the light from spinning if I touched it, which was frustrating if I accidentally hit it when reaching for my Garmin.

Mounting the light itself was a super simple affair, with a silicone band just needing to be wrapped around the bars. I could fit it in about five seconds if needed, which is a positive and means it's easy to take off at the café or suchlike.

Operation & charging

Using the light is easy enough, with two buttons on top. A long press of either will turn the light on or off, then you use the relevant button to cycle forwards or backwards through the modes.

Charging the light is also simple, though it's super frustrating that companies still use micro-USB even though USB-C has been the standard for years. A rubber bung covers the port, and it appears to hold out water really well. It's rated to IPX4.

Value & conclusion

Coming in at £26.99, it's not an expensive option, but when compared with a light such as the Moon Meteor, which has gone up in price since Shaun tested it, to £29.99, but gives double the lumens, it isn't the best value.

Overall, the CL200 has the potential to be a great daytime running light, but poor output mode choices have led to a disappointing product that isn't all that useful. It's not bright enough to see by, and the daytime flash is hardly better than no light. The display on top of the light is the best thing about it, with the ability to show how long the battery will last, and displaying which mode the light is in. If Oxford gave the day flash mode a blast of 100-200 lumens instead of 5, it would be so much better.

Verdict

A light with a great display, but disappointing output