Hope Vision 1 or Magicshine MJ-808E

[The Eighth Man]

I am looking for a light to help me see on part of my commute that has no street lighting, I have short listed the Hope Vision 1 and the Magicshine MJ -808. Has anybody got any real life experience of these two lights?

 

[Hacienda71]

I have an MJ808 (last years model) It certainly lights up my unlit country commute. It has a wider spread of light than a hope which imho is a big plus point it was also cheaper. Downside you are on a frame mounted seperate rechargeable battery pack, where as the Hope uses batteries bought over the counter. The MJ808 has a tendancy to blind oncoming drivers due to lightspill. There are some comparative pics in the forum posted I think by Gaz. What I would say is there are some P7 Magicshine clones available on line for very low prices as the cost of LED technology is dropping day by day so shop around.

 

[Stephenite]

Just bought a "Magicshine mj 808" clone from the shop for (500kr) about £45. It lights up the spare room, and balkony, quite well.

First thing i did was see if the battery pack can attach to the headband. It does, but you notice the weight - 950g on the website, but not weighed by my good self yet. You could attach the battery to an arm, or place it in a pocket.

I see they're £40 on Amazon, but shop around.

 

[Paul_T]

I have recently purchased the Hope Vision 1, and can say it's a fantastic light. On the highest setting it's extremely bright, but you just may not find it enough to lighten up a totally black country lane at high speed, so I would suggest trying to compare the 2 side by side if you can. The Hope feels solid, although rather quirky looking! Have yet to use the batteries after a good 3 hours or so use on the low setting.

 

[Baggy]

I haven't tried one, but from reviews I've read, and as Hacienda 71 has said, the Magicshine is really designed for offroad use and the beam-spill apparently dazzles oncoming drivers. My OH tested the Hope Vision 1 last year for road.cc and overall liked it - though it does cut out without warning when the batteries run down (as opposed to fading out), and it's just been reviewed again by them (by mistake!) here.

 

[PpPete]

You can get a lot more light for your £ than the Hope... but not with AA batteries. I've recently bought (from this ebay seller) a torch with an XML-T6 emitter for £15, + another £20 for a charger and 2 x good quality 18650 batteries. Similar battery life on max to the Hope, but very significantly brighter. You can get similar packages from Chinese sellers for less, but batteries & chargers may not be as good.

Much as I like the Hope Vision 1, which is a very robust package, the pace of change in LED technology has left it looking outdated and expensive. For the £90 or so that it costs now, Hope really ought to put a better emitter in it and change the complete cut-out to low power/flash mode reversion.

 

[mattsr]

I've been using the Hope Vision 1 for the last couple of years, and I think it's a great light. It's plenty bright enough- I rarely use the highest setting, even though part of my commute is on unlit country lanes- and I use Uniross 2700mAh rechargeables, which usually last me a full week; I then simply recharge them on the Sunday. It's also built like a tank- I've dropped mine a few times and it's solid as a rock.

On the point about the light cutting out- this has only happened to me a couple of times, but when it has, I've always been able to get home with the light on the lowest brightness setting. There seems to be a good 20-30 minutes left on that level when it happens. I have never been left completely in the dark.

 

[cyberknight]

You can get a lot more light for your £ than the Hope... but not with AA batteries. I've recently bought (from this ebay seller) a torch with an XML-T6 emitter for £15, + another £20 for a charger and 2 x good quality 18650 batteries. Similar battery life on max to the Hope, but very significantly brighter. You can get similar packages from Chinese sellers for less, but batteries & chargers may not be as good.

Much as I like the Hope Vision 1, which is a very robust package, the pace of change in LED technology has left it looking outdated and expensive. For the £90 or so that it costs now, Hope really ought to put a better emitter in it and change the complete cut-out to low power/flash mode reversion.

+1 on the price of a hope , overpriced for the amount of light you get .I use the MS for commuting on unlit roads and i actually find the side spill helpful as i can see the whole road properly and the hotspot is set at a distance where et lights up the road so i can see potholes etc and have enough time to react.As for dazzling other drivers it certainly makes them dip their lights so they do not dazzle you !I was a bit concerned about dazzling other drives so i put a bit of electrical tape across the top of the lens to restrict the beam pattern, you can also buy replacement lenses from ebay that do a similar job...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Wide-Angl...isure_Cycling_Bike_Lights&hash=item3cbfc196b5

You have to remember a car dipped light is still around twice as bright as a MS actual lumen output if they want to give you any hassle.

 

[avsd]

I use a Magicshine on my daily commute (1hr 20m 4 times per week) hroughout last winter and this winter. I am very pleased with it. Battery needs recharged twice a week (Sunday night & Wednesday evening). It has been reliable and works well on an unlit towpath for spotting dogs/people/etc.

The charger that comes with the lamp is not the most impressive - hums but it works and overal it was good value. I bought a second one for my MTB last Oct.

 

[daz999]

Hi, I know you asked for real life experience but this site may be of use.

http://www.torchythebatteryboy.com/p/bike-light-database.html

Hope the linky works

 

[gaz]

Magicshine Full Power

Hope Vision 1 Full Power

 

[fossyant]

I've got two Hope 1's and a MJ-808E. Two hopes on max are about the same power as the magicshine (in real world comparison on top of a hill off road in the pitch black.

The Hopes are great for the AA's and build quality. The magicshines are good, cheap and fairly well made, but be warned, there is a lot of light spill, so not ideal for commuting, unless pointed at the road. I use a strip of electrical tape over the top edge of the beam when on road.

 

[al-fresco]

I find that a single Hope 1 is all I need and the ability to slip a packet of spare AAs in my saddlebag is re-assuring. The AAs seem to last for ever on level one, which is adequate for unlit lanes that I know pretty well. Level 2 is great for, say, the Dunwich Dynamo - all night on strange roads. I've never bothered with Level 3.

 

[gaz]

I find that a single Hope 1 is all I need and the ability to slip a packet of spare AAs in my saddlebag is re-assuring. The AAs seem to last for ever on level one, which is adequate for unlit lanes that I know pretty well. Level 2 is great for, say, the Dunwich Dynamo - all night on strange roads. I've never bothered with Level 3.

Only level 1 on unlit roads? How many carrots do you eat?

 

[The Eighth Man]

This looks like a cracking torch and I already have Twofish lockblock to mount it, I really like the look of the Hope Vision 1 but it does not look as if it will be bright enough for what I need.