German company LED Lenser make a vast array of high powered lights and the Duplex is their bike-specific torch. The sturdy aluminium case houses a 1.25 watt LED and three AAA batteries.
Replace the supplied cheapies with some Duracells or rechargeables (better for pocket and environment) and you’ll make the most of the huge 50-hour run time. That’s enough to keep most people going for half the winter – we lost count at about 21 hours, when power was still at top whack.
The clever part of the Duplex is the lens, which houses a swish crystal-lined reflector, giving two beam options. The impressively bright ‘long’ setting projects a deep but concentrated spot, which would be fine for a helmet mounted light but not so good on the bars in tight trails because there’s no overspill to light the peripherals. ‘Short’ scatters light over a much broader area, with a noticeable dim patch in the middle. It lights the trail reasonably well but the eye-zapping power of the spot is lost.
The bracket supplied is quick and tool-free, but doesn’t fit oversize bars unless you’ve got space to spare beside the grips. What’s missing is a helmet mount, which would make the most of the powerful spot mode.