Dinotte Lighting Daytime Red 400R Taillight

Once in a great while I find a product that becomes a game changer for me as a bike commuter.  The Dinotte Lighting Daytime Red 400R taillight  is one of those products that makes riding much more fun due to the increased safety and visibility it offers.  Dinotte Lighting products are well known to endurance cyclists, but not often seen on the streets for casual or commuter cyclists.  This is a shame because a product like the Daytime Red 400R taillight is a great benefit to those of us that depend on being seen on a daily basis.

In the box are the light engine itself (the light), a two cell battery (a 4-cell battery is an option), a smart charger that works around the world (just swap out the plug for the locally used plug), a velcro strap to secure the battery, a one meter extension cable, and many mounts in a range sizes for different tubes on your bike (seat post, rear rack, seat stay, etc), and two instruction sheets – one on how to operate the light and another set on how to mount the light and battery. (Insert photo here)

Dinotte Lighting suggests fully charging the Daytime Red 400R taillight, which took exactly two hours; charging is easy as a red light on the charger indicates charging, a green light tells you when the battery is fully charged.  Attaching the light engine to the mounting clamps is a joy because you are offered several options.  You can have the light engine attach as a quick release or bolted to the mounting bracket.  I chose the quick release option to reduce the chances of theft.  As a side note, there are extra mounting brackets and posts included so you have the option to move the light from multiple bikes.

Mounting the Dinotte Daytime Red 400R taillight is just as easy. A velcro strap mounts the battery to the frame (usually the top tube in front of the seat post) and the light engine slides on to the bracket.  Gone are the days of having an external battery take up an entire bottle cage or needing a separate bracket to mount to your bike.  The battery itself is about the size of a deck of cards or a Clif Bar (insert photo).  There is a curved side that is also rubber coated and padded to prevent frame marring.  While some people prefer having an integral battery, I prefer external batteries as it allows for longer run times, and once the battery has reached the end of its lifespan, you do not need to buy a new light.

Operating the Dinotte Daytime Red 400R taillight utilizes a single button where the number of presses/duration of holding the button down operates different functions.  The operation is intuitive and the Dinotte Daytime Red 400R utilizes three different constant-on modes (high, medium, low) and three different flash settings.  For most of my use I use the “strobe and pause” setting as it allows for a steady light on followed by a brighter burst of light.  I feel it allows for easier tracking of my location by motorists (the constant on) as well as a “WAKE UP!” with the bursts of brighter light.

I‘m often skeptical of the efficiency of products, but the Dinotte Daytime Red 400R taillight created a complete change in motorists around me.  I was not buzzed once, no close call passes.  Vehicles gave me a very wide berth and I noticed that they were slowing down long before they were close to me.  I had a few people comment on how easy it was to see me and had one gentleman teaching his daughter to drive thank me for being so visible.  I have used this light during the morning rush hour, the afternoon rush hour and mid-day.

I find that my afternoon commute has always been the most dangerous time for me to ride.  I have to ride in to the setting sun and coupled with people in a rush to get home, I‘m often passed too close for comfort and have had cars bump me with their mirrors.  With the Dinotte Daytime Red 400R I had zero close calls, often having cars staying at least 100 feet back and waiting until it was safe to pass.

The Dinotte Lighting Daytime Red 400R taillight is for daytime use only, and as such, you must check a box acknowledging that it is not for use in the dark.  This light eclipses any other taillight I have seen and am glad to have it in my arsenal of safety devices when riding.   For more information on the Dinotte Daytime Red 400R and other Dinotte Lighting products, please visit dinottelighting.com.

– Alex (Dos)