« Telewest Shiny Awards: Green Gadget | Main | TRAID recycled fashion goes online »

Battery-free, magnetism-powered cycle lights

GoodbyebatteriesNow call me harsh. Not straightaway. But cyclists who ride without lights in the middle of winter almost deserve to get bumped like the smug one-way-flouting rider in Alexei Sayle's The Dog Catcher. I justify this as a fellow cyclist and an occasional driver who knows unlit bikes are invisible 'til the last second. Anyhow, enough ranting - you want to know about these literally brilliant 'Reelight bikelights' that work without batteries. Nope, we're not talking about hard-to-fit dynamo lights. These LED newbies work using electromagnetic induction  - GCSE science reminder for me and others here - and are a cinch to install. The lights attach to each wheel's axle and the magnets go on the spokes. Net result: green transport, green lighting, less battery dosh and less bumping by buses. In the UK they're on sale from Goodbye Batteries at £25 a pair. More info over at Reelight.

November 26, 2005 in Green gadgets, Transport & travel | Permalink

TrackBack

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d8341c5ac253ef00e5506a06cd8834

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Battery-free, magnetism-powered cycle lights :

Comments

I have a set of these. The front lights are not bright enough to be your only light (plus there's the unavoidable strobe effect), so you still have to fork over for a battery- or dynamo-powered headlamp. They're also mounted too low for most auto drivers to notice, so you really still want a tail light that rides just under the seat for safety.

They make good cloudy-day "running lights" though, and they don't affect the amount of force needed for the wheels to turn in any noticeable way.

Posted by: Scott | 14 Nov 2006 02:57:45

Post a comment