2013 Lights Shootout, Bike Light, Eagle 600, Lights, Lights Shootout, magicshine - November 28, 2013

Review: Magicshine Eagle 600

When I heard Magicshine was sending me a light, I wasn’t overly enthused since there are so many versions of their lights that copycat companies try to send me. Little did I know that they were going to send one of the more innovative lights of the shootout.

They still have the battery of powerful light models in their line-up, but they wanted to feature a small light called the Eagle 600 this year. They poured a bunch of R&D into it and came up with something pretty cool.

The secret sauce of this light is an OLED display that tells you the current battery level and current run time left. It tells you exactly how much battery charge you have left and it will calculate in real-time your runtime based on your current light level. We even noticed that when the light steps down due to high heat conditions, the runtime will increase due to the lower light level.

When charging, the OLED will also tell you how much charge you currently have and you will see the pace at which it is charging. This is actually very efficient since in almost all lights except Lupine, you have no idea how long charging will take. What happens is, you end up leaving the light in the charger for a long period just so you have the confidence that the battery will last during the ride.

With the hottest crop of flashlight lights having only about 1.5 hours of runtime on high, this OLED indicator by Magicshine is a very welcome feature.

And about the light? Oh it’s tiny and it’s dialed. It has two LEDs stacked on top of each other. One is for throw and the other one is refracted for a wider beam, so the beam is actually very useable for commuting or trail riding.

There is side lighting that can’t be turned off and the OLED can’t be turned off as well. On a trail ride, these two can be distracting in a very dark environment. It can be placed on the helmet as well, so the side and top illumination won’t be a distraction. For commuting of course, it’s dialed.

Specifications

Price: $160
Claimed Lumens: 600 Lumens
Measured Lumens: 650 Lumens
Measured MTBR Lux: 66 Lux
Lumens per $: 4.06 Lumens
Lumens per gram: 4.22 Lumens
Time on High: 1:30 claimed Hours
Charge Time: 4 Hours
Mounted Weight: 154 grams
Category: Flashlight/Commuter

Strengths

Good innovation and build quality
Great front beam pattern with two LEDs and lenses
OLED battery display is revolutionary
Mount is one of the best
Side lighting is great for commuters
Excellent heat sinking
More powerful than 600 Lumen claims

Weaknesses

$160 is near the top of the class in this category
No helmet mount included
Side lighting cannot be turned off for trail riding

Mounting and charging

This light probably has the best mount in the bike flashlight arena. It is basically a steel band with padding that can be tensioned with a screw to hold it to the bar perfectly. It’s space efficient and secure. To remove the mount, one just has to press an orange lever and tilt the light up. There is none of that sliding through a very stiff rail that is common on most lights.

Charging is done with a micro USB port and it is in the perfect location on the back. Since it is more vulnerable to the elements, Magicshine made a big rubber cap that is secure, yet easy to remove.

Mtbr Light Meter Measurements

This light measured 66 Lux on our ambient light measurement facility. The light output measurement is performed by placing a Lux light meter beside the light. Both are pointed at the ceiling (five feet above) of a dark room. This measurement uses the ambient light produced by the bike light.

Integrating Sphere Measured Lumens

This light measured 650 Lumens in an integrating sphere. Claimed Lumens by the manufacturer is 600 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 »

The video below shows the Magicshine Eagle 600 and how it is compared to other 700 lumen lights.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEX9xtFo_R0

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.