I’ve spent countless hours riding in the dark to create my guide to the best bike lights, and I stand by the fact that the Exposure Strada is the best bike light on earth. It is, coincidentally, on sale for Black Friday too, amongst the barrage of Black Friday Bike Deals, but despite how good it is, it isn’t the one I use most often. That particular accolade goes to the dependable little CatEye AMPP 900, which has now got a healthy chunk slashed off its price for the biggest sale event of the year.
USA: Cateye AMPP 900 - $69.95 $59.95
UK: Cateye AMPP 900 - £64.99 £41.49
Why so good? There are three reasons, the first of which is that it’s simple. Exposure lights are great, but when I’m in a rush, I can’t be dealing with menu selections. The AMPP 900, like the majority of the AMPP range, has a very easy 5-mode system. Three intensities of full beam, up to a maximum of 900 lumens, and two flashing modes. One button cycles through them all. There are no smart features to worry about, nothing to connect, and it remembers your last used option when you switch it off.
Finally, it’s dependable. I am basing this on my old CatEye Volt 800 to some extent, but I’m pretty sure this will last just as long. My Volt is about 12 years old now, and I still use it as a backup as it uses the same mount. I think I probably use mine on average 3x a week in the winter, and it just keeps on truckin’ week after week.
Personally, I think the 900 is the goldilocks in terms of brightness and size, but if you need more lumens, then a lot of the other AMPP models are also reduced. If you are only commuting in an urban, well lit landscape, you could opt for the cheaper AMPP 500S, but it’s only a small amount more for the 900, which will handle proper road riding in more unlit places.
Is there anything wrong with it? Yes. It doesn’t auto-dim when the battery gets low, and the button only turns red very close to the end of its life, so you have to be on it with your charging, but other than that, it’s pretty great all around.
- All deals
- 🚴 Black Friday bike deals: Our overarching hub, with deals on everything from bikes to clothing, tech and more
- ⚡️ Amazon Black Friday: Deals specifically for cyclists, with Amazon's next-day delivery
- Brand-specific Black Friday roundups
- 🚲 Black Friday Trek bikes: Deals on all of Trek's bikes, clothing, helmets, shoes, accessories and more, found at Trek and beyond
- 🚲 Black Friday Canyon bikes: Our pick of the top deals on Canyon's bikes, sold direct to consumer from Canyon's website
- 🚲 Black Friday Specialized: Our pick of the best deals on Specialized's bikes, including Tarmac and Aethos, plus shoes, helmets, kit, tyres and so on, from Specialized's own website and beyond.
- 👕 Black Friday Castelli: A roundup of our favourite Castelli kit deals, found across the various Black Friday sales.
- 👕 Black Friday Rapha: With 25% off sitewide, we've rounded up our favourite items from the British brand.
- 💾 Black Friday Garmin: A live, ever-changing roundup of our favourite deals on Garmin's bike computers, smartwatches, heart rate monitors and more, from Garmin's own site and beyond.
- 💾 Black Friday Wahoo: A roundup of our favourite deals on Wahoo tech, such as smart trainers and bike computers, from Wahoo's own website and beyond.
- Category-specific Black Friday hubs
- 💻 Black Friday indoor bike trainers: A collection of deals related to cycling indoors, with bike trainers, software, fans, and perhaps even the odd laptop or TV.
- 👟 Black Friday cycling shoes: A roundup of cycling shoe deals from around the world, with everything from budget options to high-end carbon race shoes.
- 👕 Black Friday cycling clothing: A handpicked roundup of deals on cycling apparel, with everything from socks to speedsuits.
- 🚸 Black Friday kids' bikes: Our pick of the best deals on kids' bikes from the US and UK, with options for all ages.
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