Review of Bell Night Shield Multi-Use Safety Light

Bell Night Shield Multi-Use Safety Light
By: Bell Average Rating: 4.5 Total Reviews: 19
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Great light.

On: 2009-12-18

This light is very VERY bright. Lots of settings. Simple. Good battery life (AAA). Had it for years and never had a problem.

Not for Runners

On: 2009-09-02

This product comes with a hookup for a bicycle. The light has a built-in clip that allows you to attach the light to the bike hookup and easily remove the light from the bike hookup without having to remove the hookup. Great product for visibility on a bicycle. But I would not recommend this product for runners because the light is too bulky and heavy (takes 3 AAA batteries) to wear on clothing while running. Also, the clip is not adjustable so it is not meant to stay on clothing.

Works great for bikes. However, if you are a runner looking for a safety light, i would not recommend this product.

Awesome light for the price

On: 2009-05-29

I have been using this taillight for two months now and I think it is great. Very bright, very noticeable at night. You can definitely see it at least 3/4 of a mile away in the dark. It is not quite as bright as a PlanetBike SuperFlash, but I think its pretty close, and costs 1/3 the price. I also tried to get the red reflector part to come off (since there are reviews here that say it falls off easily) and mine seems to be on there pretty tightly, so Id say Bell has worked on that issue.

If you need some bright blinkies, you cant go wrong with this light.

Best in its class

On: 2009-04-05

Want a good, cheap taillight? This is it. At this price you dont need to bother taking it off when parking. Ive been using these on multiple bikes for about 3 years in Chicago. I ride year-round almost everywhere I go. I have never had one stolen, and I have never had one fail.

Just like all good products on the market, theyll probably stop making these. So buy a few and youll have a good quality replacement should yours break, get stolen, etc.

Shortcomings:

**The lens can come undone from the backing in very rough conditions. (I only had this happen once when rear-rack cargo shifted) This is easily fixed with a piece of tape.

**Mounting bracket fits fine on most newer bikes with included shims. Older bikes may require a wrap of cloth tape or old tube for a good fit.

**Quick release doesnt seem to want to let go easily. (but why bother?)

Advantages:

**Very visible. Put on the strobe mode and approaching motorists will see you clearly from blocks away.

**Sealed well- does not short-circuit or corrode in wet conditions like Ive seen with other lights.

**Thumb screw- moving the lights between bikes a breeze. Tool-less installation.

**Batteries. Kicks out bright light for 2-4 months of typical usage even when using cheap batteries. (Dont gamble your safety. Once the light starts to dim, replace the batteries.)

BTW, If youre looking for a good headlight for city use I recommend the Tri-LED by Sigma Sport. Its also tool-less, durable, and a good price.

Compact, bright, absolutely great!

On: 2008-11-08

This works great on a bike, with several alternative flash patterns as well as continuous on. It also is great for walkers, being light and easy to clip to clothing. I also clipped one to my dogs collar so I can see her when walking at night.

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!

On: 2008-09-28

I saw the Bell Night Shield bicycle light, read the reviews, ordered it. When I received the light I looked it over, saw that the way it was put together that there would be a good chance of it coming apart as the reviews stated so I taped it together with duct tape as the way to keep it from coming apart as stated in the reviews. Then I mounted it on my bicycle and as soon as it got dark enough took it for a test ride. The light is definitely probably the brightest light of its type I have ever seen, making it a very good piece of safety equipment.

Bright Sweet looking light

On: 2008-04-29

Very Bright and can be seen from the side. Has a nice old school look for a Cruiser.

Cheap and bright, what more can you ask for?

On: 2008-04-05

I bought this for my wifes new bike, she commutes at night. The reflector (with the lights off) is of questionable function, but turn it on and its very bright and very visible.

Weve yet to run into the problem others face, the lens falling off, so I havent yet wrapped tape around it.

Its bright enough that considerate drivers give us a nice wide berth, which makes night riding a lot less stressful.

A good light at a low price

On: 2008-03-22

I frequently ride at night in open country. What auto traffic comes up from behind always gives me a wide berth, which means they see me. A friend who lives in the area where I ride has come upon me a couple of times. He has told me he sees me from half of a mile away with this light. The batteries seem to last nearly forever, too!

Very bright and can be clipped to belt or attached to seat post

On: 2008-03-15

This very bright light offers multiple blinking patterns including the option to stay constantly on. Its lightweight and can be attached to a belt/waist line or on a seat post. Battery life with the 2 AAAs (not included) is yet to be determined. Excellent value!

Bright, but fragile.

On: 2007-12-27

The mount sheared from normal commuting duty after a couple of weeks, and the battery compartment is prone to separation (just use some tape to keep it together.)

The light is extremely bright, and really gets drivers attention.

Bright, but fragile.

On: 2007-12-26

The mount sheared from normal commuting duty after a couple of weeks, and the battery compartment is prone to separation (just use some tape to keep it together.)

The light is extremely bright, and really gets drivers attention.

a good blinkie

On: 2007-11-21

I took the advice of previous posters and from the beginning I wrapped some duck take around the seam to make sure it wont pop off, but so far it works well.
I commute a lot on rough roads and in the rain and it does what its supposed to do. I actually leave it on "on" (not blink) and have another one I put on blink; have not had to change batteries yet.

Only gave it 4 stars because its a cheap model and does not compare to the high end blinkies.

Good for strollers too!

On: 2007-11-02

I bought this light to mount on my sons jogging stroller. We were taking him out for trick or treating this past halloween and I knew we would be out at dusk. The light mounts easily and is very bright. Definitely an attention getter!

Good for strollers too!

On: 2007-11-01

I bought this light to mount on my sons jogging stroller. We were taking him out for trick or treating this past halloween and I knew we would be out at dusk. The light mounts easily and is very bright. Definitely an attention getter!

Great value for money ......and still not comprimising on quality

On: 2007-10-22

Bought this product after reading all the reviews on amzon .....and am definately not disspointed .

Installation was simple ---as show in the box , was able to open the unit up and install the batteries , requires 2 AAA , so keep them handy .

Then installed it on the bike ...was simple again .

Tested it on a golf course trail closby , was 8 pm , dark and no street lights , a good time and place to test it out

Comes in 6 flashing modes

LED"s are bright and can be seen a far far distance away . I would say ....we were able to spot the bike half a mile away . And with the flashing modes , it does the job of warning drivers of your presence . I wouuld recommend getting 2 , one for back and one for front .....cannot go wrong . great value for money .

ps: I did go with recommendation of one of the reviewers and taped up the unit , in case it popped open . It seemed like a sturdy light to me , but when enjoying the ride and concentrating on the road ahead , its difficult to see whats fallen off and specially something small .....read the other reviews , they do have good tips

great, bright bike light, no probs

On: 2007-09-24

Not much to say really, these lights work great, theyre very bright, have multiple display modes and have great battery life.

Works great, until it falls off and breaks

On: 2007-08-19

I had the same problem as Jane Healy referred to in her review - the faceplate falls off far too easily. My friend and I each installed these on our bikes, and by five minutes into the ride neither of us had a functioning rear light any longer. We werent riding on any extremely bumpy trails, just a regular road.

If you know about this problem beforehand and take care to tape the light up, it probably wont be a problem. Still, these things should have been built a lot more sturdily.

Aside from this, the light is visible for a very long distance and has several blink modes. If not for the sturdiness issue Id give it five stars.

extremely bright

On: 2007-06-26

Pros:

This tail light is very bright. It has lots of modes, eg steady, fast blinking, slow blinking, rotating etc. Operating with AAA type batteries is another advantage. You can also unmount it easily if you do not want to leave it on your bike.

Con: Single switch and need to press couple of times to turn off.

Trying Not to Get Run Over

On: 2007-01-11

I like to take exercise walks but on many occasions, the only time I have to do that is after dark. Some of our streets do not have sidewalks or good lighting, so it concerns me that I could be hit by a car whose driver didnt see me. As a driver, I also know it can be very difficult to see pedestrians at night, especially if they wear darker clothes.

Ive used reflecting safety belts but I wanted something that more surely grabbed driver attention so I attached a Bell Night Shield Light to a reflective belt [using a short length of the universal guy tool -- duct tape!].

The Bell Light gives intense red light flashes from about 7 LEDs, 1 in each "ear" and 5 in the mid-section. A single control button combines both the on/off function and the choice of six or seven flashing patterns [some faster or slower, some repeating and other "rotating"]. The result is much improved driver awareness of my presence... I notice cars staying wide of my position. [My wife says they veer away because they think Im nuts... but that works for me too. :=)]

In addition to the belt clip built into the lights plastic body, the product also comes with hardware to mount it to a bicycle tube. This mounting has a quick-disconnect so you can take the Bell Light with you if theft is a possibility.

I highly recommend this low-cost Bell Light for night walking or riding safety. After several months of usage that span dozens of hours use, its working flawlessly and I have not needed to change the 2 AAA alkaline batteries.

The one design change that would make this Light better for my purposes would be if it had two control buttons: one solely for on/off and the other to select the flash pattern. Then I wouldnt have to cycle through all the flash patterns every time I wanted to turn it on and off. But this is a minor annoyance.

Light Bright!

On: 2007-01-05

These little babys light up the night to ward off those pesky SUVs. Good stuff. The red shield does need to be taped on as hard landings can jolt it loose. I use on front(handlebar) and back. Will buy again.

Unbeatable for the price!

On: 2006-12-30

I am a year-round bicycle commuter in Chicago who teaches classes on bike safety
and riding with children. I ride all the time at night, often with my kids
in tow. We bought this as part of a set for my sons bike
two years ago. It is absolutely phenomenal in its visibility, durability,
and ease of use! I cannot recommend it enough. I have something of a fetish
about visibility when we ride our bikes at night. I have bought just about
every blinkie light out there. This is my favorite, along with the Blackburn
Mars tailight (with 7 LEDs including two amber side lights). Mind you, the Mars
is more than 3x the cost of this Bell light.

Pros--
*extremely visible
*multiple flasher modes
*easy on/off feature for when you are locking up in a public place
*long battery life

Cons--
*the red shield can fall off when the bike is dropped or hits a hard bump.
We solved this problem by putting a small piece of electric tape on the
top edge.