Review - See.Sense ACE Bike Light Set

Review - See.Sense ACE Bike Light Set
I reviewed the original SeeSense 2.0 Light Set in 2015 here on lifeinthesaddle.cc; those lights are still in almost daily use. Then I reviewed the See.Sense Icon Light Set in 2016; those too do almost daily duty. The new release from the Irish Kick-Starter funded brand is the See.Sense ACE Light Set, which shows even more incremental design improvements over its predecessors.

The original See.Sense 2.0 Lights were a bit clunky, and the power ports were a bit exposed; yet they were incredibly intelligent; responding to changes in road surface, ambient lighting, and movement, in order to regulate light output and improve both visibility and battery life over traditional blinkers. My three year old set are still in use on my winter cyclocross bike (they take a battering).

When See.Sense released the ICON lights in 2016 they had taken on board user feedback; the power ports were more concealed and waterproof, and the design came with a multitude of mounting options. The ICON was also the first model to integrate Smartphone App communication, which allowed you to modify the light's output and also use the movement detection function as a theft alert. It was refreshing to see that the Irish brand had developed the original offering, and come up with something definitely improved.

The new See.Sense ACE Light Set takes things one step further... the lights are far smaller and lighter than their predecessors, but with an increase in features and functionality.

Firstly you get a multitude of mounts as standard: including a seat-post mount, aero seat-post mount, and bag clip. The post and bar systems use a neat modular system that straps to the post/bar using an elastic ring, and then the light body clips into this; that is a significant improvement over the basic rubber band straps that can become worn from repeatedly taking it off and on; yet, it retains the ease of compatibility with different sized tubes.

The ACE lights feature the single button operation found on the ICON lights, and that continues to work well to toggle between on, off, and fixed.

The SMART aspect of the ACE lights is in the sensors and Smartphone integration. The sensors track changes in movement, g-force, and ambient lighting; tailoring the light output to the conditions and surroundings: for example, on a quiet road the light lets out just a gentle pulse, but if a car's headlights are detected then the light lets out a sudden burst to increase awareness.

The reactivity both noticeably improves road presence and battery life (around 15 hours), compared to a regular mid-power flasher. My only continued niggle with the reactive element of the See.Sense lights is that the sudden bursts of light from the front light can be a little distracting. This is because the light is designed to have good side visibility, which unfortunately includes the upper side too - upwards towards your eyes. The See.Sense ICON actually came with a shade to slip over the light to prevent this, but for the ACE I would suggest a small strip of black tape along the upper edge of the light.

The Smartphone integration allows you to tailor the output of the light to further improve battery life. It also allows you to use the movement sensor as a theft alert. Both useful features.

Overall, the See.Sense ACE Bike Lights are a great improvement over the already very high performing predecessors from the Irish brand. They perform well, look smart, and if they follow the same trend as previous models then they will stand the test of time.

>> View the See.Sense ACE Light Set here <<

Review - See.Sense ACE Bike Light Set

Review - See.Sense ACE Bike Light Set



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