Garmin launches new ‘radar’ bike lights that can see if someone is behind you

Riders leave light trails on a full-moon lit night during the Mont 24 Hour MTB Race held at Majura Pines forest (Mark Nolan/Getty Images)

Garmin has launched new bike lights that can tell if someone is following you.

The lights use radar to spot approaching vehicles from afar and alert riders that they could be unsafe.

They improve on Garmin's previous versions of the lights by being able to connect to a phone rather than only a bike computer, as well as adding a new mode that is intended to stop the lights from shining in other cyclists' eyes.

The company is also offering a version without lights, and only the radar, for the first time.

The Varia RVR315, which does not have the lights, is out now and costs £129.99. The version with lights, known as the RTL515, costs £169.99.

The radar is intended to connect to a bike computer, or now a phone, and shows a display that indicates how far away any passing cars or other cyclists could be. It also indicates how fast they are travelling, showing a glowing red if a fast car is coming up behind, for instance.

Garmin claims the radar can see other vehicles from 140 metres away and that the battery will last six or seven hours depending on the model.

As well as improved battery life and the option to connect to a phone and see that information on an app lights now have a "peloton mode", which is intended to ensure that they do not flash brightly into the eyes of anyone riding behind.

The lights have been released as group rides of that kind are banned in large parts of the world because of lockdowns. But numerous official bodies have suggested they will look to encourage cycling when cities start to open up again, in an attempt to stop diseases spreading through public transport.