The Quick Release Light 1000 is one of KOM Cycling’s first bike lights and offers a unique dual-side mount and pivoting lens design to differentiate it. As with other KOM Cycling products, the Quick Release is a clever twist on existing products that is designed to improve usability and versatility. The light retails for $119.99 and offers 1000 lumen output from a single LED. What sets the light apart is the dual sided mounting which has Garmin and Wahoo adapters for both the top and bottom. This allows the light to be mounted under or above an out front mount. The LED head is also hinged to allow for 30 degrees and downward adjustment to optimize the beam angle.
The KOM Cycling Quick Release Light 1000 offers dual sided mounting with a unique hinged LED for angle adjustment.
| Rating | 8.8 / 10 |
| Retail Price | $119.99 |
| Measured Weight (in g) | 164 |
| Likes | + Flexible dual-sided mounting with Garmin and Wahoo mounts + Bright 1000 lumen output with daytime flash mode + Strong and solid feeling hinge design |
| Dislikes | – Lacks anti-glare lens – No mode memory to remember last mode – Blue indicator light for good battery status can be confusing |
| Where to Buy (US) | KOM Cycling |
UNBOXING
The KOM Cycling Quick Release Light 1000 comes in a compact cardboard box with red and black accents printed directly onto it. Inside the box you’ll find:
- Quick Release Light 1000 w/ Garmin adapters preinstalled
- Wahoo bottom disc
- Garmin top plate 2 (i.e. Wahoo style 90 degree rotated vs Garmin plate)
- Garmin to Wahoo Adapter
- Allen key
- USB-C charging cable
- Safety tether
Note, KOM Cycling does not include an out front mount with the light so you’ll need to purchase one separately if you do not own one already before you can use the light.
MOUNTING
KOM Cycling has incorporated a dual mounting design into the Quick Release Light 1000. That means you can mount the light above or below out-front mounts without having to flip the light itself. You can even sandwich the light between a cycling computer and a mount thanks to the two sided mounts. Both of the mounts are also removable with bolt on designs which lets you swap them out for the Wahoo versions. The top mount has two plate options with different orientations that ensures you can point the light forward. Unlike thinner be-seen only style sandwich lights like the Ravemen FR300 with slim profiles, the Quick Release Light 1000 is quite thick and looks a bit awkward with a computer on top of it. Both mounts feel well built and hold the heavy light in place without rattling or any play.
FIT & FINISH
While the product name “Quick Release Light 1000” isn’t particularly creative, it does a good job describing the light. This is a 1000 lumen light with dual Garmin or Wahoo mounts built into the bottom and top of the light. The Quick Release Light 1000 is fairly large with an almost square profile at 1 ⅜ x 1 ⅛ x 4.5” (i.e. 35 x 25 x 114 mm) and elongated length. Part of the size is due to the 3000 mAh internal battery which gives the light longer runtimes. The body of the light has an aluminum construction with a semi-gloss black finish and only one KOM Cycling logo near the base. There is a USB-C charging port under a rubber cover on the bottom of the light which can only be used for charging and not as a power bank to charge other devices. Note, you can use the light while charging but you’ll be limited to the 300 lumen low constant mode.
The front of the light has a simple single LED with basic lens and dimpled texture along the outer edges to help distribute the light. From the side you can see the lens has a slight side divot to help with side visibility. One of the big selling points of the light is the adjustable design which places the entire front LED portion on a hinge. That allows the light to pivot 30 degrees in three fixed 10 degree steps to optimize the beam angle. The hinge feels strong and overbuilt for long term use and to eliminate any possible vibrations while riding. On the right side of the hinge there is an illuminated power button with the KOM Cycling logo on it.
KOM Cycling used a single LED design with simple lens for the Quick Release Light 1000. The results in a simple non-directional spot beam with brighter center region and diffused square shape around it. There is no anti-glare or beam cutoff here so you’ll want to make sure to angle the light downward to avoid blinding oncoming cyclists or pedestrians. Although the light itself is non-directional, the angle adjustment is so you’ll want to use the dual sided mounts instead of flipping the light over to mount it on top of an out-front mount. In terms of optics, the lens creates a spot beam with a brighter center section and diffused rectangle around it to illuminate the road.
USER INTERFACE
The Quick Release Light 1000 is controlled using the single illuminated power button on the side of the light. A short press of the button turns on the backlight to blue (61-100%), yellow (21-60%) or red (<21%) depending on the battery status. Although we’re happy to see a multi-level battery status indicator, the choice of blue as the good color is an odd one. KOM Cycling branding isn’t blue, it’s actually red, so it’s not clear why they wouldn’t have gone with a more common green color for the “good” battery status. A long press of the button turns the light on and off while a short press cycles through the six available modes. Double pressing the button actually reverse cycles through the modes which is a clever idea. Unfortunately, the light does not have mode memory which means it always turns on in the low steady mode. That’s probably why there is a reverse cycle option as you can do a double press to get to daytime flash instead of five single presses.
LIGHT OUTPUT
KOM Cycling has programmed the light with three constant modes and three flash modes. The constant modes are low (300 lumen / 7 hr runtime), medium (600 lumen / 3.5 hr) and high (1000 lumen / 2 hr). With the large jumps between the constant modes they are easy to visually differentiate. As far as flash, there is a night flash that alternates between 300 and 600 lumen with 10 hour runtime. SOS flash has a SOS Morse code on/off pattern with 600 lumen output and 14 hr runtime. Finally, there is a bright daytime flash with 600 lumen and 24 hour that flashes on and off and then double flashes. The large side button makes it easy to cycle through modes while riding, but you’ll need to be careful to avoid the flash modes while riding at night if you just want to change between constant modes.
The optics of the light are fairly basic with a cone shape and surprisingly no anti-glare feature. With many newer lights like the Trek Commuter Pro and Magicshine EVO 1700 offering beam cutoffs, we would have liked to see at least basic vertical diffusers to reduce the glare. Aside from that, the light is bright with 1000 lumen output and a spot beam that helps illuminate the road. The hinged design is also helpful as it allows you to adjust the beam angle without rotating the entire out-front mount. It’s also quite robust as the light stays stable even over rough roads even while angled downward.
THE VERDICT
Overall, we found the KOM Cycling Quick Release 1000 to be a well made and bright headlight. KOM Cycling has utilized a unique hinged design that allows the light to be mounted flush against out-front mounts while still allowing the beam angle to be adjusted. Although the lens lacks anti-glare features, the spot beam illuminates the road well and has bright flash modes. We were impressed with the build quality of the light as the hinge and dual sided mounts feel premium and robust. The dual sided mount also allows the Quick Release 1000 to be mounted flush against out front mounts for a sleek appearance. As far as negatives, we were surprised that the light lacked mode memory and would have liked to see an anti-glare lens. That said, the KOM Cycling Quick Release 1000 is a unique bike headlight that combines a dual-side mount with hinged LED.
Disclaimer: The product for this review was provided by KOM Cycling. The views expressed on this website are solely those of the authors and are here to help people make an informed choice before a purchase. The authors or the blog itself does not get any monetary compensation from the product manufacturer or third-party websites/vendor links that are posted here.