Review: Niterider Sentry Aero 260 rear light

The Sentry Aero 260 from Niterider manages to look sleek and cool despite its size, which is much larger than other rear lights. But that unique size and shape comes in handy, since it blasts out a ton of bright light in all directions. It’s among the best rear lights you can buy.

Basics: 260 lumens; 64 grams; USB rechargeable; 4.5- to 30-hour run time
Pros: Bright LEDs cast behind and to the sides of the rider
Cons: Larger and heavier than much of its competition

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To be honest, I wasn’t looking forward to slapping this big boy on my seatpost. At first glance, it looks antithetical to an aero weenie’s proclivities, but upon closer inspection, the light isn’t really bulky at all. The Sentry Aero 260 appears that way because it has two large faces on either side, and it extends outward away from your seatpost quite far. That in turn creates a large platform for blasting out a ton of light in all directions.

And blast light it does. How much light, you ask? I’ll just say, don’t look directly at the Sentry Aero 260 when you turn it on! But if you want to get technical about it, it’s 260 lumens.

Dual LED strips provide all that brightness, and with six modes on the Sentry Aero 260 to choose from, you can make sure you’re visible in just about any conditions. The Daylight Visibility Flash (DVF), for example, is specifically designed to ensure you’re seen even in bright daylight. You can quickly choose your mode by pressing the single button on top of the unit until you find one that suits your needs. To turn it off, just press and hold. Easy peasy.

The Sentry Aero 260 is also dust and water-resistant, so you can toss it on any bike in your stable, even the ones that frequently leave the pavement. The silicone strap makes it easy to mount the light on any seatpost, and it’s even compatible with aero seatposts.

What I like most about the Sentry Aero 260, however, is the side visibility. It’s easier to make a light that creates visibility behind the rider; it’s more difficult to get that light to cast off the rear and the sides of the bike. The Sentry Aero 260 does just that. And while that necessitates a fairly large platform, the light doesn’t look or feel overly bulky. The aero shape makes it look sleek enough to fit right in with your bike’s fast aesthetic.

So while the Sentry Aero 260 may not be the lightest or smallest option in rear lights, it is certainly among the easiest to use, and it can create an awful lot of visibility both behind the rider and to the sides. It’s worthwhile for that alone. If you’ll be spending a significant amount of time riding the streets at night, the Sentry Aero 260 is a solid investment.