Schmidt Ladelux dynamo lighting system with USB power output

I've uploaded a video about the Ladelux, with some comparisons with the Igaro C1 which is the nearest competitor. I will add a link later to the video. Here is the summary, with some extra details:

The announcement is from 16 May 2025 but strangely they state on the Ladelux page (https://nabendynamo.de/en/products/headlights/ladelux/) that it has been available since November/December 2024... :

Ab Dezember 2024 kann der Ladelux-Scheinwerfer exklusiv in unseren Ladelux Partner Stores vor Ort gekauft werden. Ab November sind bereits Vorführmodelle in den Läden zu sehen. Wir werden das Ladelux-Netzwerk nach und nach weiter ausbauen.

Some of my thoughts:

• I like the button/display on the handlebar (wired, which means it always works without an extra battery)
• I like and dislike at the same time the magnetic connector for a USB cable (good because the cable will get pulled off instead off possibly damaging something if there is force on the cable, bad because it is proprietary and expensive and if you lose one on a long ride, you won't be able to pop into a shop and buy a new one). The contacts would have been better placed at the bottom to prevent water contact.
• In a video on youtube, SON Ladelux dynamo headlight with USB charging - first impressions, I saw the beam and I dislike what I saw there: The beam looks bad with similar artefacts and unevenness as the IQ-X in the low beam. The high beam is not really interesting for me, you don't need that on a bicycle. I didn't feel the high beam on the Supernova M99 dynamo light that I tested was at all useful.
• I don't like that you can only buy it at 'Ladelux partner stores'.
• The price is 480 euros, about 100 euros more than the Igaro C1 (330 gbp as of 21 June 2025, which is currently about EUR 386), well, the difference will be slightly less taking into account customs duties if you are not in the UK (where Igaro resides), 85 euros or so.
• The battery won't charge below zero Celsius as mentioned in the video on youtube, this is because charging Lithium ion batteries at low temperatures is dangerous, and thus not done. This means the high beam doesn't work at such temperatures.
• The internal battery is 1.2Ah which is not much and it will be ok for ca. 500 charge/discharge cycles with decreasing capacity after that. This is a number that a cyclist who rides a lot in the dark will get to quickly if the battery is used a lot, which means for the high beam in particular (stand light may also be powered from that). This may be a reason for the 2 year warranty, but in any case, it would have been better to have an external box with battery, of which the battery can be easily replaced. [ A few people said to me that then a bicycle light won't sell, maybe, but it would be better ]

The beam is most important, that looks like a total fail...

Question: What would the cost be to replace the battery? You will need to send the light to Schmidt or one of those 'Ladelux stores'...

I sent Schmidt an email about this issue on 2025-6-24: How long do they expect the battery to last and what will it cost to get it replaced?

More thoughts to come, but I will probably not do a proper review with USB output measurements etc. as I don't want to spend that much money if the beam isn't great, which it isn't from what I saw on youtube.

Last modified: 2025-6-21