Lumos is best known for their cycling helmets which combine sleek designs with integrated LEDs for improved visibility. With their multi-LED setups, Lumos helmets not only ensure people see you but can also communicate if you are braking or turning. In this review, we’ll be looking at the new Lumos Firefly light system which extends the same features as their helmet lights to individual magnetic lights to light up your bike. The Firefly lights are available individually for $49.95 per light but make the most sense as bundles like the $179.95 four light bundle we have here. Each Firefly light is a compact multi-LED design that can illuminate white as a front light, orange when signaling or red as a rear light. Using the Lumos app you can seamlessly configure up to six lights in any position and sync it to your Lumos helmet and a wireless remote.
The Lumos Firefly are compact magnetic lights that can function as taillights, turn signals or front lights by using the Lumos app.
| Rating | 8.4 / 10 |
| Retail Price | $49.95 / $179.95 (four light combo) |
| Measured Weight (in g) | 30 (light only), 29 (mount + seatpost pad) |
| Likes | + Magnetic mounting + Slick app to configure light system + Syncs with helmets or optional remote |
| Dislikes | – Premium price for the output – Requires app for switching color modes – Lacks multi-level battery status indicator on lights |
| Where to Buy (US) | Lumos |
UNBOXING
The Lumos Firefly light bundle set comes in minimal cardboard boxes with black and white labels attached to them. Inside the Firefly four light bundle box you’ll find:
- 4x Firefly lights with magnetic bases
- 4x Rounded seatpost rubber bases
- 4x Velcro straps
- 4x Silicone straps
- 8x Press-To-Release clips (2 per light)
- Instruction manual
- Stickers set (with labels such as front/rear and other fun graphics)
With the bundle, Lumos also includes wireless charging cradle in a separate cardboard box. Inside that box you’ll find:
- Wireless charging cradle
- Rubber legs with adhesive base
- USB-C charging cable
Note, the lights are all Qi wireless charger compatible so you can use other wireless charging pads to change the lights instead of the charging cradle. Note, you may want to consider the quad charging mat which allows you to charge all four lights at the same time rather than doing them individually.
MOUNTING
Lumos has designed the Firefly lights to have flexible mounting options to allow them to be mounted on the bike or clothing. The lights magnetically attach to plastic bases which have slots for the included silicone straps as well as plastic hooks that attach to the rubber straps. There are also two options for the rubber pads behind the bases, one that is rounded and a flatter option that allows the Firefly lights to be mounted on round seat posts as well as flatter surfaces such as racks. The magnetic design works surprisingly well and holds the lights securely even over rough terrain. Lumos also includes plastic locking tabs which provide an even more secure fit and require pushing down on the clips to release the lights from the mounts. We’d recommend being careful with the press-to-release clips as they are easy to install but very difficult to remove.
FIT & FINISH
The Lumos Firefly lights are lightweight and easy to mount smart lights that can wireless communicate with the Lumos app or remote. What’s so clever about the Firefly lights is that they have a multi-LED design that allows them to be illuminated white, yellow or red based on the set role. That means you can use each Firefly light as a headlight, taillight or turn signals based on their assigned role in the Lumos app. You also don’t need to own a Lumos helmet to take advantage of the lights as there is an optional remote which includes an integrated brake sensor or turn signal functionality. Each light is fairly compact with a square shape and simple curved lens.
To allow the lights to illuminate in different colors, Lumos has integrated multiple sets of COB and surface mounted LEDs. There are two outer rings of 20 COB LEDs, with the outer ring reserved for the red light and the inner ring for turn signals. For improved visibility there are multiple focused LEDs in the center of each Firefly light. The center lights have focused optics that ensure you’re visible from further distances. The braking functionality highlights the outer two, while the center one is for the headlight. Although the design isn’t as slick as RGB lights like the Shanren Raz Pro, the light is still compact and gives you the flexibility to adjust the role with just a few presses on the app.
The only control on the light is a power button which is a surprisingly thin rubber button that isn’t very comfortable to use. A single press turns the light on and cycles through three output modes for each role. You can also double press the button to sync the output mode with other firefly lights setup on the same grid. A long press shuts the light off and enters pairing mode with the light off. That’s about all you can do with the device itself, changing modes and assigning roles is all done through the app. It’s an app-centric approach which works but requires Lumos to maintain and update the app to maintain the functionality of the lights. To help identify which light goes where, you can also use the app to flash individual lights or put the included stickers on the light or mount as a visual clue.
LUMOS APP
The Lumos Firefly lights use an app-centric design and require pairing with the Lumos app to configure and customize the lights. The app is well designed with a simple four tab design that lets you switch between device (i.e. view the paired devices), sync (i.e. configure light roles), riding (i.e. a “coming soon” ride computer mode) and discover tabs (i.e. view other Lumos products and news). Once you paired all the lights to the app you can move to the sync tab to configure the light roles. Lumos has designed the page with a simple 3×3 grid that lets you set the lights as front / rear or signal only modes as well as combination modes such as front left and rear right. It’s a very intuitive design that lets you drag and drop paired lights into a chosen position.
To help avoid confusion you can also click on any light and press “identify” which flashes the light orange. Once you’ve arranged the lights to match your bike’s setup the lights retain that mode and you can use the lights without the app. Within the app you also have some sync grid settings: team sync (the lights will automatically sync to other Firefly lights nearby), automatic brake light and all power off. Expanding the settings shows explanations for each mode as well as helpful illustrations. The automatic brake light mode also has an adjustable sensitivity to fine tune how the brake mode works. We found the brake mode to be inconsistent and left it in the default off mode.
LIHT OUTPUT
Lumos has designed each Firefly light to have three modes from the factory: constant, flash and high visibility. The behavior of the modes depends on whether the Firefly light is configured as a white front light or a red rear light. As a front light the white light is supplied only by a single LED in the center of the light. Constant mode lights the LED at 100% power for 2.5 hours while the flash mode extends the runtime to 15 hours. In the high visibility mode the center LED has a quad flash pattern which reduces runtime to 10 hours. Configured as a red rear light, the Firefly illuminates a 20 COB LED ring along with two center LEDs. Constant mode illuminates the ring at 100% for 3 hours while flash mode extends the runtime to 22 hours. The additional high visibility mode uses a 20% constant illumination on the ring and flashes the two LEDs for a 3 hour runtime.
Using the app you can additionally customize each mode to change the flash pattern and COB LED rings to reduce or increase the run times. We found the factory defaults to be sufficient as the three modes cover daytime riding and night time riding. Given all the tech on the lights we were disappointed by the lack of a smart mode, something like the Magicshine Seemee taillights, which could automatically switch between daytime or nighttime modes. However, the large size of the lights and the easy syncing feature makes them great for commuting or adding visibility. The Firefly lights are great for bikes with racks or commuter bikes like our Troxus Lynx as they give the bike a larger appearance at night.
With the four Firefly setup, the turn signals are also very effective as both the front and rear light illuminate to ensure people in front or behind you are aware of your intentions. The convenient remote makes it easy to indicate when you are turning and it even switches the non indicating lights to a constant mode to make the turn signals more prominent. While the lights are fairly bright in all configurations, these are all “be-seen” style lights and should be paired with brighter headlights for night time riding. We are also a bit hesitant to call these day-time bright as the lenses aren’t as focused as other lights like the Bontrager Flare RT or Light & Motion Vya which reduces their long distance visibility.
THE VERDICT
Overall, we found the Lumos Firefly to be clever and easy to configure lights. With their combo LED design, each Firefly can be configured as a dedicated front, rear or turn signal or as a combination front / rear with turn signal modes. Lumos provides a simple drag-and-drop style app that lets you quickly identify each light and assign them the role based on your bike’s setup. With the four light combo that means you can light up your bike and use turn signals to help traffic or other cyclists know where you are going. It’s a slick design that utilizes easy to use magnetic mounts for a highly flexible setup. The main downsides of the Lumos Firefly lights is that they are quite expensive, lack multi-level battery status indicators on the lights and it’s highly app-centric. That said, if you’re looking for compact light sets then the Lumos Firefly are good way to improve your visibility.
Disclaimer: The product for this review was provided by Lumos. 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.