Moon Nebula Rechargeable Rear Bike Light

The Moon Nebula Rechargeable Rear Bike Light is large, sturdy, highly visible, and comes well-equipped with a variety of mounts. Not a huge amount has changed since we reviewed the last version, though it's lighter and has gone up 10% in price. While the mounts are incredibly secure, the locking system can become a little stiff when dirt dries into the mechanism – and the micro-USB charging port isn't the latest version.

Check out our rear light buyer's guide for the best alternatives you can currently buy.

The plastic square jutting out of the back slides into any of the three included mounts: a rubber strap for tubes, a saddle-rail clamp (adjustable for angle), and a backpack clip. It's great to have these options included, and they all work well.

Once slotted in, the light is going nowhere – it's very secure, and as it's square it works with the lamp either in portrait or landscape orientation. However, to remove it again you must pull down on a short plastic lever while pushing on the opposite side of the light. Almost without fail, the light suddenly moves and bashes into my thumb. I've used Moon lights before, and it's always been a bit of a bugbear, as dirt ingress only makes the mount stiffer.

You cycle through the different modes using the front button, and the unit will remember your last setting. A double tap switches between flashing and solid modes. There are four solid modes and four flashing modes, with the max output being 200 lumens.

Even the lowest flashing setting (20 lumens) provides decent visibility in the daytime, while at night the light was visible hundreds of metres away. Up close, the highest setting is frankly dazzling, and I found myself prefering the Steady Flash mode, which provides a constant 100 lumen with a brighter pulse over the top.

I was also pleased that I was able to charge the light while using it. Charging is pretty quick, despite this lacking the more up-to-date USB-C connection. Run times were from just over an hour on the brighest full setting, through to 25 hours on the lowest flash. This kept me going for over a week on normal commuting duties, though it is less than some lights at a similar price.

There are 'low battery', 'charging' and 'fully charged' light indicators, though obviously the light is behind you so you can easily not notice the low battery light when riding.

Value

At £44.99 this is pretty mid-market, and reasonably priced for its quality and performance.

When Steve Williams reviewed the Lezyne Zecto Drive Max 250 in 2021, he wondered whether anyone even needed 250 lumens throbbing out of their rear end... though it's safe to say he didn't phrase it like that at all. The throbbing rear end is all mine. These days the Zecto Drive Max is even more throbby at a pummeling 400 lumens, and £52.

Its slight premium over this Moon gets you 70 hours of runtime in a 5-lumen flash mode, USB-C charging, and IPX7 waterproofing. It's a little heavier, though.

The Magicshine Seemee 200 Version 2 costs £39.99 and Shaun Audane scored it highly. It's a third lighter at 40g, can create a floodlight effect on the road around you, provides 200 lumens and has a smart-braking mode. It will kick out 50 hours on its group ride setting.

Stu Kerton was impressed with the Knog Blinder Link – Saddle's ability to withstand road filth, and while it costs more at £56.99 it includes a super-versatile seat mount and puts out 100 lumens; that's plenty for most riders.

If you just want cheap, something like the Prime 360 Super Bright Rear Light is just £19.99 and only 25g, though don't go expecting actualy super-brightness – it's actually only 50 lumens. Despite this, reviewer Shaun was happy with the range of options.

Overall

Apart from minor gripes with the locking system, I thoroughly enjoyed using the Moon Nebula. The brightness is more than sufficient, the included mounts mean you don't have to instantly spend more money on extra bits, and it can put up with being dropped and bashed around. It has a good selection of modes, too. It's a solidly good light.

Verdict

Sturdy, bright rear light with multiple mounts included – a really solid option