Garmin

First BTD is the 'Place' to shop for all your bike related items, especially specialty items like this rear radar tail light! It does its job so well you quit glancing at your mirror every 5 seconds to now only looking at your head unit when you receive a notification. The RTL515 is priced right, integrated perfectly and gives a peace of mind & safety when riding. If you don't have one and you have vehicles sneaking up on you you need one!

Garmin could definitely do better with their rear camera/radar/light device. The radar and light match the quality of the RTL515, which is great. The camera is quite low quality, though. There's no image stabilization, and the resolution is low, and the clips are cut into 30 second files, which is really annoying to review later. On top of that, the mount is unique (no standard quarter-turn mount), and the battery life is not very good when the light and camera are both running. I do like the USB-C charging and the fact that my Garmin Edge computer can control all the functions.

I've equipped all my bikes with front and rear camera lights after I got hit by a distracted driver. The camera on this one is pretty good, including image stabilization. The light is also plenty bright. Runtime is not so great, particularly when the light is on. I also wish the mounting options were better. The built-in mount is GoPro style, and that's what I use, but then there's no quick release for charging off the bike or swapping between bikes. It comes with an adapter for attaching to the out-front Garmin mount. That adds bulk (both in the adapter and the out-front mount), and it isn't compatible with non-round handlebars. I appreciate that all the functions can be operated by my Garmin Edge computer.

I bought the Garmin Varia from Bikes Direct for 25-30% off just prior to a cycling trip to Europe and it was worth every penny. What a wonderful product and it syncs to every other product I have. I used mirrors for years (and still do at this point), but I can say without hesitation that the Varia radar notified me with 100% accuracy of approaching vehicles. It was most handy when I needed to quickly pass a cyclist or pedestrian ahead of me. It was spot on providing me assurance about what was behind me when making a pass. This has become a road-riding must have for me.