Magicshine Seemee 50 MAG Smart Magnetic Taillight

The Magicshine Seemee 50 MAG Smart Magnetic Taillight is a neat little unit that can be used as a front or rear light, although it's set up better for use at the rear. With a tidy magnetic attachment, a solid output, and decent run-times, all for a very competitive price, this is a really good option for being seen throughout the darker months.

> Buy now: Magicshine Seemee 50 MAG Smart Magnetic Taillight for £26.99 from Magicshine

For more options, check out our guide to the best rear bike lights, and if you need a new front light, we have a buyer's guide for those too.

Magicshine seems to consistently bring out impressive lights at reasonable prices, and the Seemee 50 MAG is no exception. At £26.99 it's well priced, and though it's meant to be used as a rear light, being able to have it output white light if you need a front light in a pinch is a real bonus.

It also has an IPX6 waterproofing rating, and though I've used the light in some very unpleasant weather I've had no issues.

Mounts

In the box alongside the light you get a USB-C cable for charging, a saddle rail mount, and a rubber strap seatpost mount. I didn't use the saddle rail mount as I tend to always use a saddle bag, but it looks a sleek way to mount the light.

The rubber strap mount attaches easily to your seatpost: you just wrap it around your post and then hook it into place. There's plenty of adjustment for keeping it tight, and it even worked on my deep aero post.

Once it's all attached to your bike, you can take the light off the mount by giving it a quarter-turn, like a Garmin. This releases the light and its magnetic housing, so to charge the light you'll then need to squeeze two tabs to release it from the housing.

You can also do this without removing it from the quarter-turn mount, so it doesn't have to be a two-step method to release it every time, if you're happy to leave the rest of the mount on the bike, at home or somewhere else safe.

Attaching it to the magnetic housing is then really easy – it just snaps back into place as you hold the light near the mount.

If you want to swap the light onto the saddle mount, you just need to do the quarter-turn and move it across.

Charging, modes & battery life

Charging the light is easy, via USB-C, and I've found it charges from empty in just around an hour.

To check the status of the battery, you can tap the button while it's off and it will light up the centre green, red or flashing red depending on the remaining level. Green is above 20%, red is 10-19%, and then flashing red is anything below 10%. This doesn't provide enough accuracy to my mind – green could mean you have an almost full battery, or less than a quarter. I'd much rather have a few indicators, or for red to come on at a higher level than 20%.

Once you get down to 10%, the output of the light reduces to a dull flash.

To turn the light on, you just press and hold the single button, then cycle through the modes with a single tap of the button. A double tap lets you swap the output between a red and a white light.

Although it has 'Smart' in the name, this simply refers to the memory function of the light, so it turns back on in the last mode used. Unlike some of Magicshine's front lights, you can't tweak the settings on its app.

With a 260-degree viewing angle, visibility is really good; other road users can see you from quite far to the side, making for a safer experience while out riding.

The 50-lumen daytime flash is my favourite mode, with a claimed 12.5-hour life. You also get low (6lm) and high (15lm) solid outputs, a duller flash (1-15lm) and an eco flash (3-3-15lm). The claimed battery life for these modes is 9, 5, 9.5, and 26.5 hours when outputting red light.

Although Magicshine quotes a battery life of 5 hours for the solid high, I got just over 4 hours before it dropped to below 10%, whereupon the output is a slow flash. The light then died at just around 5 hours – so it matched the claim, but you should only expect 4 hours of solid output.

Likewise, on the dayflash mode I got almost exactly the claimed 12.5 hours, but again the final hour is a dull and slow flash.

Value & conclusion

Coming in at £26.99, this is quite a cheap rear light, if not necessarily outright best bang for your buck. The Giant Recon TL 200, for example, is only £8 more at RRP and boasts a 200-lumen mode.

You can get cheaper, such as the Knog Plus Rear Light that Nick rated highly when he reviewed it back in 2020. It's only £18.99, but it doesn't work perfectly with aero seatposts.

Overall, the Magicshine is a good, solid light for riding at night or during the day, and comes in at a reasonable price. The mounts are versatile and work well, and the ability to use it as a front light in a pinch could be very useful. It isn't the brightest option, but it does its job well.

> Buy now: Magicshine Seemee 50 MAG Smart Magnetic Taillight for £26.99 from Magicshine

Verdict

Solid, reliable and decently bright rear light that can output white light in a pinch