January 10th, 2008 by 
thien
RoadBikeReview Lights Shootout Main Page
Light and Motion Stella 180L $300.00
Light and Motion Stella 180N $200.00
| Light | Price | Claimed Lumens | Runtime | Battery Type | Light head weight | Battery Weight | Installed Weight | Lumens per gram | Lumens per dollar |
| Light and Motion Vega | $175 | 75 | 2hrs | NiMh | 221g | n/a | 241g | 0.31 | 0.43 |
| Light and Motion Stella 180L | $300 | 180 | 5hrs | Lithium Ion | 92g | 193g | 305g | 0.59 | 0.60 |
Description:
Light Head Close ups:
Mounting options:
This Stella can be mounted on the handlebar or the helmet. This light can be aimed left to right easily.
Light Meter Measurements:
The Stella measured 12 lux in our ambient light meter test. This compares to 21 lux for the Cateye Tripleshot and 12 lux for the Niterider Trinewt.x2.
Strengths:
- Very Light
- Run time at full power is an impressive 5 hours
- Wide halo on the beam pattern helps peripheral visibility
- Very light head unit makes this ideal for helmet mounting
Weaknesses:
- Beam pattern has a pronounced hotspot
- Installing the helmet mount is pretty difficult compared to all the other lights
Bottom Line:
This is almost the perfect helmet light. It lasts forever and is pretty bright. The only knock on it is the beam pattern has a pronounced hotspot. Also, it’s unfortunate that Light and Motion doesn’t have an LED bar light that would match up with this light. But give it a nice wide bar mount light and the Stella as a helmet light will complement it very well.
Beam Pattern Photos:
Stella, Stella
Value Rating:
4 out of 5 Stars
Overall Rating:
4.5 out of 5 Stars
Read or write reviews:
(Stella L) http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/Lights/product_130037.shtml
(Stella N) http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/Lights/product_130038.shtml
Light and Motion Vega $175.00
Description:
Light Head Close ups:
Strengths:
- First of the self-contained light systems
- Light is handy around the house and serves as an awesome flashlight
- Good for commuting with flash mode
Weaknesses:
- Not bright for trail riding
- Beam is too narrow for a bar mount
Bottom Line:
The self-contained pioneer is showing its age. It’s still good as a commuter light and it doubles as a very bright utility flashlight.
Beam Pattern Photos:
Vega, Vega
Value Rating:
3 out of 5 Stars
Overall Rating:
3 out of 5 Stars
Read or write reviews:
http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/Lights/product_124612.shtml
RoadBikeReview Lights Shootout Main Page
January 11th, 2008 at 8:20 am
I have one and agree with your analysis 100%. This light would be interesting if they installed a new Cree LED.
January 11th, 2008 at 8:22 am
I have a Vega and have tested a Stella and agree with your analysis of both. The Vega would be interesting if they installed a newer, brighter and more efficient LED and offered an upgrade on the old version.
July 25th, 2008 at 5:58 pm
I hacked my L&M Vega to use a 100 lm/W Cree star (dealextreme.com) — as simple as unscrew the bezel (reverse threaded), unscrew and unsolder the Lumileds LED, screw and solder in the Cree. The beam pattern is totally changed but the brightness is vastly more. I have probably 50-100 hours use on it and can’t figure out why L&M is still selling them with the 35 lm/W emitters.