2017.05.10 See update at the bottom. I have been a fan of Planet Bike products for years, and have owned PB fenders and lights. However, there is a fatal flaw in the famous PB Superflash design that has never been addressed, and there are a few additional reasons to pick this light over that when it comes time to pick a good bike taillight. The fatal flaw in question is of two parts. The first is that the lamp is made of two pieces that are held together only by friction. The second part is that the heaviest part (the AAA batteries) are installed into the half of the light that is separate from the mounting tab (the back half). All it takes is a good bump from a pavement edge or pothole, and half your Superflash is left behind in the street. That has been the ultimate fate of both Superflash lights, and one knock-off model, that i have owned. Sadly, PB didn't take advantage of the model refresh for the "Turbo" 1W variant to fix this problem. There are cheap knock-offs available that also typically have the same problem, but if that was their only flaw they'd probably be viable (as "disposable" lights). Unfortunately, i've had several of these, and they all tend to change modes and/or turn off when you hit bumps while biking. That's a bit dangerous... There is a somewhat less expensive Sette brand model that was inspired by the Superflash and it has in fact improved upon the design and fixed the flaw: although it is of two parts held together by friction, the batteries install into the base piece that holds the mounting tab. It also has a better switch and is more compact. Unfortunately, of the two of these I have owned, both have developed intermittent problems after a short period of time. It seems the advantages of the more intelligent design are betrayed by the cheapness of the manufacturing process. So what does that leave us? Well, the Radbot 1000, of course! Not only is it cheaper than the Superflash turbo with the same 1W LED, but it is held together by a screw, and the batteries mount into the base piece, anyway. Other advantages it has are that the switch requires a sustained contact to change modes, meaning that it is not likely to suffer from the intermittent problems any lamp with a momentary contact switch can develop, and that it has a built-in reflector, meaning it will provide some benefit even when it is off or the automobile behind has very bright headlights. Furthermore, it comes with a rack mount, which is a $5 extra accessory for the Superflash. What a great bargain! It loses a star for a combination of three things: having poorer sideways visibility than most other models, having a battery compartment design that has space for the batteries to come loose, and having the mounting tab so near the top of the lamp that the bottom of the it interferes with fenders when in the rack mount. The batteries have only come loose once, and was when i dropped the light (so not really an intended use), but there's no need for the gap in there that gives them the space necessary to pop loose. In conclusion, save your money and buy the Radbot. Otherwise, plan on replacing your Superflash periodically. Update: Unfortunately, this model apparently suffers from the same problems as the Sette one mentioned above: good design, poor quality control. Mine only lasted for a few months before becoming completely flaky and ultimately dying. Also not mentioned above was a CatEye blinky that did its darndest to lose its battery cap... and ultimately succeeded. Why is it so hard to find a model of blinky with both intelligent design and decent quality? After a while of (dangerously) riding without a taillight, i'm back to try yet another one. Cross your fingers. I'll update with my findings...
