Review: Lazer Monaco flip-front helmet

IT'S one of those ideas that makes you wonder why it hasn't been done already.

Take this helmet out of the box and behold a completely non-tinted visor. Go out into some sunshine and the same visor goes black, as shown on the left.

You wouldn't know it was anything other than a normal black visor. So why have I spent years carrying two visors around?

The only drawback is that it becomes slightly tinted even when it's cloudy. You can see perfectly well, but on grey days you may just want an untinted view.

Sunlight-reactive visors have been available for a while as £85-plus accessories, but Lazer's Monaco flip-front helmet now comes with one out of the box.

Flip-fronts tend to be heavier than full-face helmets but this is fairly light, at 1,350g, thanks to a carbon shell. I've got a full-face Arai that weighs 1,680g.

The chin bar is easily raised by pressing a button inside it, and wiring is in place inside the helmet for Lazer's Bluetooth intercom and music player systems.

I find some helmets a little too round for my head, putting pressure on my forehead and at the back. This one seems to fit well.

It also scores four out of a possible five stars in the government's Sharp helmet safety tests.

And it comes with a highly affective Pinlock anti-fog visor insert. Take a deep breath, blow out and not a trace of mist. If you haven't used one before, it's a revelation.

I'd like the helmet to be a little more stylish. I feel a bit like a pizza deliverer in it, especially with the chin bar flipped up.

But overall it's a very convincing package.  

Price: £399.99

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