When it comes to bike taillights, there are two approaches: using focused optics or brighter is better. RAVEMEN TR350 and TR500 taillights combine both approaches with impressive 350 and 500 lumen outputs. Both lights are nearly identical visually but have different price points and internal programming. Retail prices for lights are $49.95 for the TR350 and $59.95 for the TR500. As the product names imply, the TR350 has 350 lumen max output while the TR500 has 500 lumen max output. The taillights feature modern USB-C charging ports and large 1600 mAh Lithium-ion batteries. There is also an integrated brake sensor to warn people behind you when you’re slowing down and automatically put the taillight to sleep when no motion is detected.
The RAVEMEN TR350 and TR500 combine impressive output and large batteries to achieve long runtimes and daytime visibility.
| Retail Price | $49.95 / $59.95 |
| Rating | 9.1 / 10 |
| Measured Weight (in g) | 78 (TR350) / 77 (TR500) / 5 (short strap) |
| Likes | + Absurdly bright + Multi LED design and extended lens + Well calibrated brake sensor |
| Dislikes | – Bulky form factor – Lacks a multi-level battery status indicator |
| Where to Buy (US) | Amazon (TR350), Amazon (TR500) |
UNBOXING
The RAVEMEN TR350 and TR500 both come in bright orange cardboard boxes with cutouts that expose the taillights and allow you to interact with them. Inside the box you’ll find:
- TR350 / TR500 taillight
- Aero seatpost rubber pad
- Short + long rubber strap
- USB-C charging cable
- Instruction manual
The longer strap and curved aero rubber padding can be used to mount the taillights onto aero seatposts, while the standard thin pad works well on traditional round seatposts.
MOUNTING
The RAVEMEN taillights use a simple rubber hook style mount which you wrap around your seatpost and secure on the hooks. RAVEMEN also boasts that the side straps improve side visibility as the straps reflect the light of the taillight. The TR350 and TR500 can be mounted onto standard round seatposts or aero seat posts by using the provided rubber pads. Each rubber pad simply pushes into place onto the rear of the taillights. A highly sculpted aero pad has a thin inner cutout that holds the taillight securely against thin aero seatposts while the standard rounded pad works well on traditional seatposts. Although we would have preferred miniaturized Garmin style mounts, like those found on the Magicshine Seemee taillights, the elastic straps feel robust and are easy to use.
FIT & FINISH
Visually, both the TR350 and TR500 have the same form factor and design with the only tell being the TR350 or TR500 printed on the side. These are fairly large taillight with a rectangular profile and bulky thickness that conceals the large 1600 mAh internal Li-ion battery. The main lens housing is metal while the rear is a separate plastic piece. Both TR taillights have a three LED design with an extruded lens and internal grooves that help dissipate the light. Each of the LEDs has a round lens that helps focus the light with the center one being more magnified for long distance visibility. The lens design looks quite similar to a stop light with its equally sized LEDs and domed design around each LED.
There is a single power button on top and a rubber gasket covering the USB-C port on the bottom. Basic RAVEMEN and model branding is printed along the sides next to the integrating mounting hooks. The taillights have a simple one button user interface that uses a long hold to turn the lights on and off and a short press to cycle through modes. There are 6 output modes with 3 constant modes and 3 flash options. The maximum 350 and 500 lumen output is only available in the warning flashing mode while all the other modes max out at a reasonable 100 lumen. You can also enable or disable the brake sensor and motion sensor capability by holding the power button with the light off until the light flashes. With the brake sensing feature on, the light automatically switches to a bright constant mode for 2 seconds when braking is detected.
The brake sensor also enables an auto on-off mode that turns the light off if no motion is detected for two minutes. This is a convenient feature for commuting and puts the light in a sleep mode until motion is detected again. One feature you’ll notice that is missing is any sort of multi-level battery status indicator. Instead, the light will simply switch to an eco mode once the battery level becomes critical which means you’ll need to remember to regularly charge the taillight. Otherwise, the power button color does change to indicate the charging status when you have the taillight plugged into a power source.
LIGHT OUTPUT
Both RAVEMEN taillights have six output modes with three constant modes and three flash options. All the modes illuminate the three LEDs in unison with the biggest output difference between the TR350 and TR500 being the warning flash mode. For the TR500 the constant modes are: high (100 lumen / 4.5 hr), medium (50 lumen / 7.5 hr) and low (20 lumen / 17 hr). With the TR350 the constant modes are lower output: high (50 lumen / 7.5 hr), medium (20 lumen / 17 hr) and low (10 lumen / 39 hr). The more interesting modes are the flash options which for the TR350 are: warning flash (350 lumen / 23 hr), rapid flash (100 lumen / 21 hr) and slow flash (100 lumen / 10 hr). The higher output TR500 has the same modes except for warning flash which hits the full 500 lumen and has an 18 hour runtime.
On the road, it’s hard to tell the difference between the TR350 and TR500 even in the maximum output warning flash mode as they are both blindingly bright. As you can see in the video, even placed side by side you can’t easily distinguish between the lights. We found the warning flash mode to be ideal for daytime riding as it provides visibility from a mile or more away. The centered focused LED does an excellent job with long distance visibility while the other LEDs help distribute the light and illuminate the lens for side visibility. In our opinion, the tailight could be simplified down to three modes as there is no advantage to having multiple constant options. The brake sensor also works well and even though it has occasional false positives seems to be calibrated well.
THE VERDICT
Overall, we found the RAVEMEN TR350 and TR500 tailights to have impressive output and runtimes. Both taillights use well designed three LED configurations with large Li-ion internal batteries. We were impressed with the 350 and 500 lumen outputs as they have excellent daytime visibility in the warning flash mode. RAVEMEN has kept the user interface simple while using modern USB-C charging port and mode memory. The main downsides of the taillights is that they are fairly bulky and they lack a multi-level battery status indicator. That said, if you’re looking for bright taillights with high-output and long runtimes the RAVEMEN TR350 and TR500 are great options.
Disclaimer: The product for this review was provided by RAVEMEN. 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.