In the world of competitive night riding, it seems that theses days if you’re running less than 1200 lumens, you’re already behind. Companies are squeezing out insane amounts of light from the smallest packages, and the new Podda Mk3 from Radical Lights is no exception.
Weighing in at only 110g for the light and mount, with another 210 grams for the battery, you’re talking about a 1375+ lumen light that is under 350g! I think there are batteries that weigh more than that. Even more ridiculous is the fact that at Worlds, Radical Light’s riders were reportedly getting up to 6 hours battery run time meaning they only needed one stop to change batteries.
So, it’s light, powerful, and keeps a charge for quite a while, what more is there to want? What’s that? How much does it cost? If you really want to know, find out the cost along with all the specs after the break!
As you might expect, an extremely light, 1375+ lumen light with all the accessories probably won’t be cheap – and it’s not. At $949.90 AUS, it works out to roughly $1017 USD, which is a lot for a light, but on par with other mega lights like the Lupine Betty 14. Now you might be thinking “but the Lupine Betty 14 offers 1850 lumens,” and you would be right. What’s interesting about the Radical Lights Podda Mk3 is a claimed theoretical lumen reading of 1800+ at the LED. Being that I’m not a lighting expert, I can’t exactly compare the two fairly, but it’s safe to say they’re both really bright.
So just what does a grand get you, if you buy a Podda Mk3?
Includes:
- Light head unit
- Carbon fibre helmet mount kit *While supplies last*
- Quick mounting system with spacer, micro adjust
- Lightweight lithium-Ion battery
- Fast Smart charger, global charger
- User guide and safety documentation
- Molded EVA case to store and transport the kit
Specifications:
- Available in radical RED, BLUE and SILVER with BLACK, GOLD, GREEN, ORANGE, PURPLE, PINK, and team colors, available as special order items.
- 1375+ lumens (theoretical at leds is 1800+ lumens)
- 110g with carbon mount
- 210g battery
- Run times in standard mode is from 3hrs on level 5 right out to 25+ hrs on level 1. Flashing mode is up to 40hrs+.
And just in case you are wondering what has changed since the Mk2 Podda, here is a list of the new features:
- Increased efficiency
- Increased output upto 1375+ lumens (theoretical at leds is 1800+ lumens)
- Upgraded electronics, software so you now can get exact battery reading when you plug it in.
- Reduced wt (7 grams which doesn’t sound like much, but every bit on the helmet counts)
- Improved runtimes, your battery will give you 3 to 4.5hrs in real life use
- Improved temperature monitoring
- Improved neoprene battery casing with continous velcro
- Improved guide, credit card sized cheat sheet
- Smaller intelligent global charger unit so less traveling wt.