The Magtenlight is a lighting system for your bike that uses a contact-less dynamo to generate the energy to illuminate your way at night. The system works by mounting a ring of 28 magnets on the spokes of your bike, which move past the dynamo generating an electric current. Since the dynamo is not in physical contact with the magnet, the system is frictionless, which means you don’t feel any resistance when cycling.
Since there are many magnets on the magnet ring, the result is a decent amount of electric current, which is enough to power the bright lights. There are two lights in the kit, one for the front, and one for the rear of the bike. Magtenlight has rated the front headlight at 15 Lux when cycling at at 15km/h.
As an additional safety function, the bike will light up for an additional 4 minutes when you stop. This is great if you have to stop at traffic lights, as drivers and pedestrians will still be able to see you. The design looks great and is practical – safer, illuminated cycling without batteries!
Thanks for the tip Magtenlight!
To say that this is frictionless may be misleading. It is a better design than the sidewall dynamos of yore but energy is never free: with each wheel revolution, you are overcoming the magnetic attraction and your power is derived
I agree with Bikeman Dan however the friction created would be minimal in comparison to the sidewall dynamos currently in use.
The interesting question is how does the Magtenlight compare in price and performance to hub generators which are also frictionless in the same sense that the Magtenlight is.
Technically, it’s not a dynamo, and it is indeed frictionless.
While there’s no friction force, however, there is still resistance, as has been stated.
Hub generators produce far more power than these devices (which, of course, isn’t free either: it’s your own power). Enough to power incandescent lights. This Magtenlight (which is very similar to the Reelight) doesn’t need that extra power, since it uses LEDs, so a direct comparison between this and a hub generator is nuanced.
One thing to note is that these axle-mounted devices tend to be kind of finicky to install…
Hi. I came across the thread ans signed up specifically to comment on this.
I bought one of these. I’m in Europe.
Price: little bit cheaper than a hub dynamo.
Delivery: couple of weeks
Product: bulky, ugly, kind of flimsy, exposed wire connections
Installation: a bit tricky, but easy enough
Looks: definitely very “my mum insists”. It is not sleek.
Performance: Don’t know, it didn’t work
Service: Confirmed correct assembly, grudgingly sent a part replacement, did not replace whole unit.
Replacement parts: Also did not work
Refund Policy: You have to post it back to china with registered post, which is nearly the same cost as the unit. If they say they can get it to work at the factory, no fefund. Refund is only for the unit, postage is not reimbursed.
Comment: A waste of time and money.