Gemini Titan Review
There are two kits on offer, the base kit (which sells for $110 USD) includes a light, battery, charger, two 0-rings for mounting on your handlebar, and a "protective travel kit". The larger kit for $130 USD adds a helmet mount ($15 if purchased separately), an extension cable. and a head band for affixing your light directly to your head or a hard hat/caving helmet (good if you like to go spelunking). Shipping within Canada is $15, or free if you pick it up in Victoria, BC. There are no instructions included in the box, but a manual is available for download on the Gemini site. The manual is brief and written in plain English, but the addition of some images would help to clarify some of instructions, especially the use of the helmet mount. There is a one year warranty that comes with the lights. There is no indication as to whether this product has been approved by the Canadian Safety Association (CSA), Canadian Electrical (CE) Code certification on or inside the box.
The Gemini Titan's Protective Travel Kit. The extension cable fits inside on top of everything else, but the helmet mount and head band will not fit.
The light is a Seoul Semiconductor P7 with a claimed lumen rating of 900, and a run time of four-plus hours. In testing the Titan appeared as bright as any Magicshine, or about as bright as the Cygolite Mitycross 400, but less bright than the Light & Motion Seca 400. Actual run times on a fully charged battery averaged between 3h 40min to 3h 50min. The light weighs in at 120g, and is water tight (as discovered when dunked into a muddy pool by accident during a rainy night ride). The front lens is removable, and the reflector may be lifted out. The cable exiting the light measures 13cm (14.5cm on a second light), the 1m extension cable 98cm, and the battery cable is 19cm for 1.3m of potential cable routing. A small Philips screw holds the light to a mounting bracket, there is some give in the mount, and you might want to add a dab of loctite to prevent the light from loosening over time (the second light was much more secure with no wobble). The light housing is aluminum and acts as a heat sink for the light, and becomes warm to the touch with prolonged use.
The light is a Seoul Semiconductor P7 with a claimed lumen rating of 900, and a run time of four-plus hours. In testing the Titan appeared as bright as any Magicshine, or about as bright as the Cygolite Mitycross 400, but less bright than the Light & Motion Seca 400. Actual run times on a fully charged battery averaged between 3h 40min to 3h 50min. The light weighs in at 120g, and is water tight (as discovered when dunked into a muddy pool by accident during a rainy night ride). The front lens is removable, and the reflector may be lifted out. The cable exiting the light measures 13cm (14.5cm on a second light), the 1m extension cable 98cm, and the battery cable is 19cm for 1.3m of potential cable routing. A small Philips screw holds the light to a mounting bracket, there is some give in the mount, and you might want to add a dab of loctite to prevent the light from loosening over time (the second light was much more secure with no wobble). The light housing is aluminum and acts as a heat sink for the light, and becomes warm to the touch with prolonged use.
Gemini Titan light details:
- Brightness: 900 Lumens
- Run Time: 4+ Hours on High Mode
- 3 Modes: High, Low, Flash
- LED Model: SSC P7
- Light Housing: Anodized, Anti-abrasive, T6 Aircraft Aluminum
- Battery Overcharge Protection
- Low Battery Warning
- IP65 Water Resistant
- MSRP $130.00 USD
A set of 4 Li-ion 18650 5000mAh 7.4V batteries wrapped in a blue plastic covering, that does not appear to be totally waterproof, but does include a Velcro-ed wrapping case. Without the case the batteries weighed 197g, and with the case 215g. The battery pack charge maxed out at 8.27V, usually charging within 3h 15min to 3h 20min.
- Brightness: 900 Lumens
- Run Time: 4+ Hours on High Mode
- 3 Modes: High, Low, Flash
- LED Model: SSC P7
- Light Housing: Anodized, Anti-abrasive, T6 Aircraft Aluminum
- Battery Overcharge Protection
- Low Battery Warning
- IP65 Water Resistant
- MSRP $130.00 USD
A set of 4 Li-ion 18650 5000mAh 7.4V batteries wrapped in a blue plastic covering, that does not appear to be totally waterproof, but does include a Velcro-ed wrapping case. Without the case the batteries weighed 197g, and with the case 215g. The battery pack charge maxed out at 8.27V, usually charging within 3h 15min to 3h 20min.
When you plug the charger in a small light glows green, plug in your depleted battery and it glows red, when fully charged it turns green again. Unplugged it will continue to glow green as it draws charge from the battery.
Low beam and high beam comparison, looking up slope (helmet mount), trees at about 5m. 1600 iso
Maximum temperature after three hours (without a fan running to simulate air movement) reached 79C (39C for the battery pack) in a stationary test, but under real riding conditions with air flowing over the lamp temperatures averaged 38-40C (22C for the battery) during a 2h ride (this included the mode button). The mode button offers three click options, low beam, high beam, and blink, holding the button down turns off the light. Officially the mode button glows green (100-20%), turns amber (20-10%), then red (10-0%) before the light shuts off. In testing, based on duration of burn time, the mode button glows green (100-5%), amber (5-1%), red (1-0%). Once the mode light turns amber there is at most 10 minutes before it turns red, and the lamp switches off about 2 minutes later. The light has a strong hot spot, making this more a spotlight than a floodlight. At one meter the light cone measures1.85m across, with a hot spot of 40cm (the inner 8cm being blindly bright). At two meters the light radius is 3.7m, with a visible hot spot of 80cm.
Maximum temperature after three hours (without a fan running to simulate air movement) reached 79C (39C for the battery pack) in a stationary test, but under real riding conditions with air flowing over the lamp temperatures averaged 38-40C (22C for the battery) during a 2h ride (this included the mode button). The mode button offers three click options, low beam, high beam, and blink, holding the button down turns off the light. Officially the mode button glows green (100-20%), turns amber (20-10%), then red (10-0%) before the light shuts off. In testing, based on duration of burn time, the mode button glows green (100-5%), amber (5-1%), red (1-0%). Once the mode light turns amber there is at most 10 minutes before it turns red, and the lamp switches off about 2 minutes later. The light has a strong hot spot, making this more a spotlight than a floodlight. At one meter the light cone measures1.85m across, with a hot spot of 40cm (the inner 8cm being blindly bright). At two meters the light radius is 3.7m, with a visible hot spot of 80cm.
Looking up trail (helmet mount), high beam, first marker at 5m, second at 10m, third at 15m. 1600 iso.
Out of the box the batteries came charged at 7.6V, and the light burnt for 3h 11min in a stationary test. The mode button turned amber at 3h 4min, red at 3h 9min, and the light shut off at 3h 11min. The battery was recharged (taking approximately 3h 15min), an indicator light on the charger shifts from red to green to indicate a full charge, measuring fully charged at 8.27V. The light was used off and on over two days at full beam while riding and lasted 3h 37min. The mode button turned amber at 3h 25min, red at 3h 35min, and the light shut off at 3h 37min. Originally, the plan was to get some pictures comparing the light with a Magicshine, a Light & Motion Seca 400, and a Cygolite Mittycross 400 during a night ride in the snow on Burke. Alas, the first light failed to work, the button light flashing red-green, which offered the chance to do a service test.Service does seem prompt, an e-mail to Gemini that evening resulted in a reply and a promise to send out a replacement the next day - The sample we sent you was from our first production batch. The light is not configured for cold weather yet. There is a setting on the driver board that needs to be reconfigured - a simple job for us. We apologize for the inconvenience. We've replaced all our driver boards with the new settings. I will arrange to send a new light head out to you today from one of our dealers in Victoria BC. The light was mailed out of Victoria, BC and arrived within 3 working days. A second stationary test was performed using the second, replacement light, the battery recharged (taking approximately 3h 15min again), maxing out at 8.27V, and left to run non-stop (with a fan to simulate constant airflow over the lamp). The mode button turned amber at 3h 42min, red at 3h 49 min, and the light shut off at 3h 50min.
Out of the box the batteries came charged at 7.6V, and the light burnt for 3h 11min in a stationary test. The mode button turned amber at 3h 4min, red at 3h 9min, and the light shut off at 3h 11min. The battery was recharged (taking approximately 3h 15min), an indicator light on the charger shifts from red to green to indicate a full charge, measuring fully charged at 8.27V. The light was used off and on over two days at full beam while riding and lasted 3h 37min. The mode button turned amber at 3h 25min, red at 3h 35min, and the light shut off at 3h 37min. Originally, the plan was to get some pictures comparing the light with a Magicshine, a Light & Motion Seca 400, and a Cygolite Mittycross 400 during a night ride in the snow on Burke. Alas, the first light failed to work, the button light flashing red-green, which offered the chance to do a service test.Service does seem prompt, an e-mail to Gemini that evening resulted in a reply and a promise to send out a replacement the next day - The sample we sent you was from our first production batch. The light is not configured for cold weather yet. There is a setting on the driver board that needs to be reconfigured - a simple job for us. We apologize for the inconvenience. We've replaced all our driver boards with the new settings. I will arrange to send a new light head out to you today from one of our dealers in Victoria BC. The light was mailed out of Victoria, BC and arrived within 3 working days. A second stationary test was performed using the second, replacement light, the battery recharged (taking approximately 3h 15min again), maxing out at 8.27V, and left to run non-stop (with a fan to simulate constant airflow over the lamp). The mode button turned amber at 3h 42min, red at 3h 49 min, and the light shut off at 3h 50min.
Nice to have a Canadian distributor, somewhat more expensive than Dealxtreme (but then there are no warranties about quality, and delivering times can be a bit hit and miss with Dealxtreme products), and currently Geoman is not shipping to Canada. This lamp seems best used as a helmet spot, and as such a bundle including the helmet mount and extension cable would be a nice option - I'm not sure how practical the $20 head strap truly is, but I suspect a $110 USD or $115 USD helmet bundle would be the more popular option. At $130 USD for the full helmet bundle, the closest other competitor might be the 250 lumen Nite Rider Minewt Mini Cordless which retails for around $129 CDN. I would be curious to know if it would be possible to change out the reflector and maybe the lens to create a more flood-type light, with a wider, horizontal beam spread. You might consider running two of these on your handlebar, a Y-splitter to one battery would be most convenient, else the purchase of two $110 USD kits, for $220 USD comes awfully close to the price of a dedicated 400 lumen flood (such as Cygolite MittyCross 400 which retails for $229 CDN, or a clearance Light & Motion Seca 400 at around $250 CDN - the Seca being a personal favourite). The protective travel kit is a truly usable extra, and makes storing or carting your lamp about much safer and more convenient. Suspecting that most users would want the helmet mount and the 1m extension cable, it would be nice to be able to squeeze these in as well.
 | You probably need two lights, just in case one fails, and the Gemini Titan makes a good inexpensive spotlight, although I would still prefer to have a floodlight of some sort on my handlebar, and at the cost of two more lights for your handlebars, you might want to consider a dedicated 400 minimum lumen floodlight - Kei Lun |
Visit the Gemini Lights website for more information.
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CSA = Canadian Standards Association
CE is "Conformité Européene" which literally means "European Conformity"
UL is Underwriter Laboratory.
All of these organizations do electrical device inspections for a fee.
bright, runs long, trust worthy!!
its' wicked!!
seriously consider these guys if you are interested in bang for your buck!
Other than that it's good to see these sorts of lights getting around. Bigger companies have been getting away with charging over the odds for a little too long for my liking
@Sk8t yes, there is to be fair a bit of variation between the tinge of the lights, however the brightness does seem to remain a constant. I know I'd rather pay a small fraction of the price for a light which may be a little bluer than a friend's one.
I know that many would call to question, then, the quality of manufacturing in these products and i can certainly speak for Magicshines here in saying that the quality of their products is by far in a way comparable with if not better than other manufacturers!
In these times particularly, it's a shame that night riding still makes up only a small part of mountain biking, but fortunately with new lights like these Geminis and Magicshines, it's becoming much more affordable and convenient for the rest of us
It's unfortunate to hear about your bad experience with Magicshine. When did you purchase the light unit? I am aware that recently Magicshine have updated their lights. I've never found a problem with the mounting system, and haven't as yet had any problems with the buttons. The mounting is based on the popular Lupine system, with the addition of having different sized o-rings to suit different diameter handlebars. See the Lupine Tesla 4 for the equivalent to the Magicshine MJ-808
Just to mention that our battery cells are UL listed, please check here gemini-lights.com/products/gemini-battery-pack
And also there is already a review comparing Titan with MS900 and you can see it here (we are actually very happy with the result): forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=675372
www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.44459
and i use this aswell as my helmet light too!
www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.36356
you'll obviously neeed to get the charger for the batteries!
www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.1251
get these red ultrafire batteries as they last longer!
cgi.ebay.co.uk/2-UltraFire-3000mAh-18650-Protected-Li-ion-Battery-/110576073884?pt=UK_ConsumerElectronics_Batteries_SM&hash=item19bed8fc9c
all you need boys and girls. don't waste your money on anything else!!
Worth buying this also www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.32751 if you wish to put battery in your bag
Yeah like the price tag on some lights its just rediculous and would put me off night riding.
Nevermind the fact they are right at 5-600 lumens vs claimed 900, and as proven already at that price point they are a great introductory light to get people moving but dont rely on them as quality is not the primary or base focus... Looks and price is what they are shooting for, But to say a big Fu to the better lights that rip us off is really ignorant... Theres more than C-stock emitters and a catalog housing to a light.... But to each his own.
They are based on the similair set up that magicshine was a good intro light definently keep 2. I think theres ALOT of threads on mtbr about this or similair product.
Bang for the buck a good light and hard to beat, a good solidd battery will cost a bit as does A-stock hand picked emitters for quality and color. So theres some reasons right off the bat that the others cost more... Not saying theres not some that are a BIT TOO HIGH priced theres definently but quality is generally better with the A-stock lights... +case or housings as well is another thing if its CNCd (I dont see that as a necessity lol) but that will incur more cost.
Just so ya know
I have sold many (and ride with them myself) and have never had any problems. Quality wise they are as good as competing, much more expensive lights, without a doubt
Don't use the light in the wet unless you put the battery in a waterproof container. The light itself kicks butt, but seal that battery!!
Lithium Ion battery + water = fire!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAuiLsvSr2Q&feature=autofb