Review: Sparse Fixed Bike Lights

It's a problem many bike commuters face on a daily basis: What do you do with your lights once you've reached your destination? If you're like me, you either carry them around with you or forget and leave them on your bike, vulnerable to any thief.

Enter Sparse, a front and tail light pair that installs permanently on your bike's headset and seatpost.

Installing these lights is not the easiest job in the world. If you're not experienced tinkering with bikes — or don't have the proper tools — you'll need a bike shop or a properly equipped friend to help.

Designed in San Francisco, Sparse lights are sleek and subtle. They blend in with your bike, both visually (depending on the color) and functionally. And they're made with security in mind. Theft of bicycles and/or bicycle parts is common in cities like San Francisco. But rarely is it dark enough that you need a floodlight, which is not the Sparse's intended use. Though it's plenty bright at 3 watts and 220 lumens (front), it's less useful for lighting your way than it is for making you visible. Unlike with some removable lights, there is no way to adjust the tilt or brightness — the Sparse lights are either on, off, or blinking.

Since the lights don't come off the bike, you're probably wondering how to charge the lithium polymer batteries. They come with two 6-foot USB cables, which are plenty long if you park your bike inside near an outlet. This shouldn't be a problem for bike geeks who wouldn't dream of parking outside anyway. The four- or eight-hour (when blinking) runtime was long enough that we rarely had to worry about recharging anyway.

One minor peeve is that the light, when mounted on a threaded headset, tended to twist away from center a little bit, so it no longer faced directly forward. Occasionally, the movement would loosen the headset. This is not a deal-breaker, though, and easily fixed by equipping the light with a notched spacer.

Nothing you lock up outside is theft-proof, of course. And although you can buy locking seatpost clamps, the rear light is still located on one of the less secure parts of your bike. (It's one reason many city bikers only purchase cheap saddles.) Overall, the Sparse lights are an elegant answer to a problem that will probably never see a perfect solution. The drawbacks are minor compared to the convenience and savvy design.

As a bonus, the zinc casing and rubber underside open up, allowing access to the lights' guts. In fact, Sparse is already developing a DIY following of enthusiasts and hackers who are talking about replacing the controller boards and LEDs to make the lights customizable and programmable.