Review: Pedalite Pedals
February 26th, 2008 by Tim Grahl 
The Pedalite pedals are an innovative safety device that has three LED lights in each pedal. A rear red, middle yellow and front white. The lights are powered by a generator within the pedal body itself and, once you’ve been riding a bit, the lights will stay on through stops.
When I originally heard of the Pedalite pedals they were only available in the UK and I didn’t have a way to get my hands on a set. They’ve now made the jump across the pond and are available online at Pedalite North America and I was able to snag a pair to review.
Installation of the pedals was a snap as they go on and off like any other pedals. Since the generator is completely contained within the pedal, the installation involves a standard pedal wrench.
The first thing I noticed was the size of the pedals. They feel more like a freeride pedal than a road or commuter. And while it doesn’t effect my comfort or pedaling in any way, it doesn’t do much in terms of looks for the bike. I’m riding this simple, streamlined, 1-gear SE Lager and now have these big, bulky pedals attached to it.
If you can get past the looks of the pedal, you’ll dig the safety upgrades the Pedalites provides. I’m a fan, in general, of lights that don’t require batteries as it’s one less thing to worry about and creates less waste. So the Pedalites score big points with me there. Add in the fact that the lights are moving with your pedal stroke and stay on through stop lights and I would say these are one of the best safety upgrades you can do to your commuter bike.
It’s hard to put into words how the flashing lights work, so I took this small video of them. In the first half you can see the pedals and how the flashing works. In the second half, it’s hard to see but it shows another feature that Pedalites have. As the battery runs out after you stop riding the lights will eventually stop blinking. The cool part is the first light to stop blinking is the white light, then the yellow light and finally the red light. This means your red safety light will stay blinking the longest at stops.
The Pedalites also come with optional toe clips that are built specifically for these pedals which means an easy installation of two small bolts. It’s a nice addon if you’re into that sort of thing.
Over the last month I’ve put these pedals through the paces. I’ve banged them around some and ridden them through snow and ice, and I give the Pedalites two big thumbs up.
You can pick up a pair at Pedalite North America for $59.99 and the optional toe clips for an additional $10.
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Cool lights.
Do they also flash in daylight? If so, is it noticeable?
The lights run off the generator so they flash whenever you are pedaling. However, just like most lights, they aren’t very noticeable during the day.
Wow…those are cool as hell!
Do the pedals stay in the proper orientation when you take your feet off them? In other words, are they weighted or something to keep the red light at the back, or are the pedals double-sided?
I rather like platform-style pedals — and while they ARE chunky on a sleek bike, it gives you the freedom to wear regular shoes instead of something special. Flexibility is king for bike commuters!
How visible are they when you are peddaling? Does you heal block a direct view for most of the time?
Also, What about rain and Grime? Seems like this area gets hammered on dark wet days and would also obsquire the lights.
For $70, I think I would add an additional lights for the rear saddle level, rear helmet level and front bar and still have money left over for reflective tape and an beer to drown my sorrows at being such a safety geek.
2cents
A friend of mine has a bike with these on them and we’ve ridden a fair bit together. They obviously aren’t as bright as a planet bike superflash, but they’re a pretty good little set of single LED lights.
@ Ghost- they don’t always stay in the same orientation. They do, however, have a slightly larger chunk look to one side, so you can tell if they’re flipped or not if you bother to check.
@ Spencer- your heel doesn’t block the view from the back. I don’t know about grime. We rode in the rain on a tour together and I never had problems seeing his lights.
My friend ended up pairing these with Reelights (magnet-driven rear and front lights) and he never needs a battery-powered light for his bike, although he does sometimes use one more headlight.
Hope that answers some questions. I’ll try to get him to come over and take a look at the post.
That’s a good idea. More lighting is always better, and lighting that takes no extra thought is better yet. Shame they’re so clunky at this point, but I would imagine the next version will be slimmer.
The Pedalites are an amazing product. I was doing a little mountain biking and they were put through rigorous outdoor elements. When I was finished, I washed them off and they looked brand new. When peddling at night, I was shocked how bright the LED lights were. Also, you can see the lights during the day but how bright do you actually need the lights for daytime. I do agree with one of the bloggers up top; I like how they fit any shoe and the product doesn’t force you to by special footware to use them.
In all I have no complaints at all about the product and will recommend them to anyone.
Good job pedalite on a great product.
I’m the friend of post #5.
I have Pedalites on my bike and they are great. They are quite visible, charge up easily, keep blinking for a long time, and are tough — I wiped out on some ice recently and the pedal that struck the ground has only cosmetic damage.
I would not recommend that these lights be your *only* means of visibility; they are pretty small and not terribly bright — but they are an excellent addition and the ease of use (put them on your bike and go) is unbeatable.
Also check out Reelights — those mount on your axles and are powered by magnets in your spokes. With Reelights, Pedalites, and reflective tape, your visibility to others is excellent and you never ever need batteries.
Hey
My wife found me a different brand of Pedals called Glowspek Safety Pedals from http://www.lightabike.com/Welcome.html. They are quite similar to the ones from Pedalite but They were 25$ in Brooklyn. They only light up when pedaling though.