The Outbound Lighting Detour light is the best in one key way

Outbound Lighting packs a ton of innovative features into their Detour light but is it bright enough?

Outbound Lighting Detour light
(Image: © Josh Ross)

Cyclingnews Verdict

The Outbound Lighting Detour light has an elegant mount, a sharp beam cutoff, an interesting adaptive mode, and reasonable battery life all for a good price. It’s excellent on its own but the untouchable feature is the included waterproof USB-C cable and pass-through charging.

Pros

  • +

    Mount system keeps the light upright both above and below the bars

  • +

    Watertight USB-C charging cable and pass-through charging

  • +

    Sharp beam cutoff

  • +

    No need for cycling through flashing modes

Cons

  • -

    No lock out for the power button

  • -

    Could use one additional constant power mode

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When you look through our list of the best bike lights there are two distinct styles. Many people need lighting for getting to and from work in the winter as well as something for the start, or finish, of a long ride. There's no need, or desire, for the kind of light that packs a lot of power, and cost, into the package. A couple of hours at most is all that's needed and it's just very simple to make a quality option for a good price. Then there are those who want to try and ride through the night and need to figure out how to make it work. 

If you fall into the second group there are options out there but they tend to cut it pretty close at best. Not wanting to leave myself unexpectedly in the dark, I've festooned my bars, and bags, with multiple lights in the past. I've also added high-end lights with proprietary battery packs but that's an expensive option. What if a brand did away with some of the proprietary connections?

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Testing scorecard and notes
Design and aestheticsConceptually Outbound has the best mount on the market. It could use a few small finesses to make it smoother to get the light in and out and a little more distance from the mount when using the action cam accessory. 9/10
Light QualityThe whole ecosystem of needs has been considered and you get both far out light and visibility close to the wheel. This is an ideal light pattern.10/10
Control SchemeIf only there was a lockout option this would be perfect. 9/10
Battery life and chargingDecent burn times and reasonable power along with fast charging and a weather sealed USB-C charging cable. 10/10
ValueYou can get more power paired with a bigger battery for about the same money but it will require a sacrifice in quality. The USB-C connection also brings the price of the whole system down if extended runtimes are what you’ve got in mind. 9/10
OverallRow 5 - Cell 1 94%
Josh Ross

Josh hails from the Pacific Northwest of the United States but would prefer riding through the desert than the rain. He will happily talk for hours about the minutiae of cycling tech but also has an understanding that most people just want things to work. He is a road cyclist at heart and doesn't care much if those roads are paved, dirt, or digital. Although he rarely races, if you ask him to ride from sunrise to sunset the answer will be yes. Height: 5'9" Weight: 140 lb. Rides: Salsa Warbird, Cannondale CAAD9, Enve Melee, Look 795 Blade RS, Priority Continuum Onyx