Cateye Viz450 rear light review

The CatEye Viz450 rear light isn’t new for 2023, but it turns in impressive performance, even against the latest competition.

Easy operation from four modes leaves nothing redundant, and the ability to mount it horizontally is useful if you don’t have much seatpost real estate to spare.

The ‘HyperFlash’ mode is the standout setting. While I think it’s striking and disruptive enough to potentially be a distraction to drivers at night, it’s very effective in use during winter’s dim daylight hours.

Cateye Viz450 rear light details and specifications

The Cateye Viz450 rear light has been, on paper, one of the most powerful rear bike lights on the market for a couple of years.

Although it’s outstripped on paper by the Ravemen TR500 among our 2023 test group, it’s worth noting from the outset that the Viz450 only puts out 450 lumens for a briefly repeating strobe.

This is part of the so-called ‘HyperFlash’ mode, which is the star of the show here, activating all five of its LEDs (which live behind three focus and two pyramidal lenses, plus some surrounding light-refracting lenses) in a scatty, but repeating pattern.

The other modes are easy to get to grips with because there are only four of them: constant (40 lumens), flashing (40 lumens), ‘Group Ride’ (up to 130 lumens, via a rolling application of all the LEDs) and the aforementioned HyperFlash setting.

The single function button is on top of the light and the covered micro-USB charge port on the bottom, assuming a vertical orientation (you can also arrange it horizontally, should you wish).

The bracket clips onto the light body, which is angled, with a further rubber insert that fits over it. This, too, is slanted.

Together, the assembly enables the light to be fitted in line with the seatpost, with a compensating angle so it points (near enough) directly backward, or horizontally, with the angled bracket and rubber insert turned 90 degrees.

Once the bracket and insert are installed on the light, the assembly is clamped to the seatpost via a rubber ladder strap.

Cateye says you should get five hours of burn time from the constant mode and up to 65 when using the standard flash mode. Group Ride and HyperFlash are said to achieve 10 and 14 hours, respectively.

The Cateye Viz450 costs £49.99 / $49.95.

Cateye Viz450 rear light performance

The Cateye Viz450 is competitive among other high-powered rear lights with so-called ‘day flash’ settings.

By happenstance, my eye has been drawn to both this and the Viz300, on fellow riders' bikes in the past two years, thanks to their incredibly striking HyperFlash modes.

One could certainly argue it’s a little overpowered in this 450-lumen variant, but if sheer attention-grabbing is what you want from a rear light, it’s hard to look past the Viz450.

As autumn has arrived in the UK, and morning light has become gloomy and affected by varying levels of fog, the sheer punch of the strobes has been something of a confidence booster.

The downside is when things clear up. During an overcast but otherwise clear day, the HyperFlash mode can be disarming to the point of distraction.

In an urban environment, where heavy traffic means cars often follow more closely, I became acutely aware that I was sending these strobes almost directly at the driver immediately behind.

Of course, it’s great to feel you won’t be missed in practically any setting, but it's less ideal if you’re also concerned about the effect the light will have on fellow road users.

I preferred to stick to the Group Ride mode, which offered enough light and dynamism to stand out on anything other than bright sunny days (for which I’d use HyperFlash).

The two-way fit is useful and easy to set up, although it’s unlikely many people will need to use one orientation on one bike, and a second on another.

The Viz450 stands prouder than most other lights of its type thanks to the bracket – an aesthetic quality which, albeit hardly the most important thing, could be a factor when push comes to shove and money must be parted with.

Battery life broadly matches Cateye’s claims – I got 5 hours 6 minutes from the 40-lumen constant mode. This doesn’t compare favourably to the Lezyne Strip Drive Pro 400 Rear light, which managed 5 hours 18 minutes for its 80-lumen output.

It’s reasonable to conclude that battery efficiency and power management have moved on in the few years that the Cateye Viz450 has been around – nevertheless, the Viz450 lags behind a little here.

The same applies to the micro-USB charge port. This is hardly a deal-breaker in itself, but any update to the Viz line of rear lights would bear a charge and battery/power management upgrade.

Cateye Viz450 rear light bottom line

The Cateye Viz450 rear bike light remains impressive, despite a couple of flaws that have emerged with time.

If you want its HyperFlash mode for ultimate shock-and-awe, then I can confirm it’s the most disruptive rear light mode I’ve ever come across. Naturally, I’d encourage anyone to use it judiciously.

Battery life isn’t on a par with competitors, though – it would bear an overhaul sooner than later to include USB-C charging and improved power management.

That said, I could happily run the easy-to-use Viz450 all winter long if I needed to, because its weaker points don’t overtly ruin the overall user experience.