2015 Lights Shootout, Bike Light, Lezyne, Lights, Lights Shootout, Mega Drive - November 7, 2014

Review: Lezyne Mega Drive 1400 Lumen

What haven’t we said about the Lezyne Mega Drive? It’s an overbuilt, self-contained unit designed to withstand all heat and moisture conditions. As the LEDs advance each year and get brighter and hotter, this design is able to handle the load with ease.

Where last year’s light had two LEDs, this year it has three. The result is a brighter light with a smoother beam pattern. It has great throw and a wide beam with very smooth transitions.

Mounting

The mount is shared across the line and it is a robust piece that swivels left to right. A separate mount is used for the the smaller 26.8 handlebars. Consequently, the two mounts shipped will not accommodate the new 35mm bars. The mount is robust enough to hold the Mega Drive securely. This, after all is a 265 gram light and it packs a bit of inertia on those big hits, which can knock the light out of place.

Infinite run time

This has the ‘infinite’ battery which is field replaceable, so the rider can keep replacing the battery to extend run time. But we are just not comfortable with this setup, as the battery is a powerful incendiary device with the positive and negative leads millimeters from each other. It’s just not that easy to transport and handle the spare battery safely in all conditions, so we’ll just keep the stock battery in place at all times.

Big light head

Weight is heavy and size is unwieldy, so this is not really appropriate as a helmet light or a flashlight. That is an unfortunate issue since this light will perform admirably in either role. At 305 grams mounted, this is the heaviest self-contained light in our test.

Not as bright as claimed

The first problem is, you don’t have access to the full claimed power of the light, out of the box. You have to go through a special sequence (pressing the button for 6 seconds) to go into the special overdrive mode. This is unfortunate since most buyers will never realize that they are not in the 1400 Lumen mode by default.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=-60bnQ_gRyQ

Video: Test loop with the Lezyne Mega Drive. Camera is on a locked ISO setting and is set to Wide Angle mode

The good news is the light beam pattern is bright and beautiful. It is very easy to ride with as it throws far and wide as shown in the video. The beam has a nice spot in the middle that has a far throw. Under that, is a very wide beam that illuminates the periphery.

Beam Pattern Photo

We photographed the lights in the same location setting with the same camera settings. The photos were taken in the back yard that is approximately 25 yards long. These photos feature many objects and a distinct background to analyze detail and beam pattern. Compare all Beam Patterns here »

Integrating Sphere Measured Lumens

This light measured 1407 Lumens in an integrating sphere. Claimed Lumens by the manufacturer is 1400 Lumens. The Lumen-hour graph below shows how the light performs over the first three minutes of its battery cycle. Compare all Lumen Tests here »

But in the end, this is a great light that is deadly stable. The light output Lumen graph is flat as a pancake throughout its battery cycle. That is what it’s designed for, so if you want a light that will deliver its promised output throughout the battery run time in all kinds of inclement conditions and hot weather, the Lezyne Mega Drive will not let you down.

Strengths

Bright, wide and useable
Incredible machining and craftsmanship
Water Resistant so capable of all weather use
Field replaceable battery so run time is flexible
Light output is very stable and constant throughout the whole cycle as it manages heat very well
Battery charge indicator and available race mode

Weaknesses

Too big now to be used as a flashlight
Lots of sharp edges with all the heatsinking
Charging on a typical USB port can take up to 10 hours
Not practical now for use on the helmet
High powered lithium cell has two adjacent leads and is easy to short out specially when transported in a pocket or hydration pack