Bollé Halo React MIPS helmet review - high quality commuter lid with integrated lights

The famous French manufacturer’s top-of-the-range commuter helmet blends classic styling with a host of contemporary features that tick all the right boxes for today’s eco-conscious rider

Male cyclist holding the Bollé Halo React MIPS helmet
(Image credit: Future)
Cycling Weekly Verdict

As commuter helmets go, the Bollé Halo React MIPS is good-looking. Hunky even. It packs a range of extra features, from integrated lights and a fabric peak to the inclusion of the MIPS safety system. It is expensive, but not out of line with other similarly well-equipped commuter helmets. Just be warned if you live at more northerly latitudes - the large vents do let in more wind and rain that you might appreciate.

Reasons to buy
  • +

    Feels robust with conventional styling

  • +

    Integrated peak is handy

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    Rechargeable front and rear LED lights increase rider’s visibility

  • +

    Environmental sustainability credentials

  • +

    Large vents will keep you cool on hot summer days

Reasons to avoid
  • -

    Expensive

  • -

    Relatively heavy

  • -

    Large vents make it more spring/summer than year-round

  • -

    Size needs carefully checking for best fit

  • -

    Just two choices of colour

You can trust Cycling Weekly. Our team of experts put in hard miles testing cycling tech and will always share honest, unbiased advice to help you choose. Find out more about how we test.

Taking its design cues from more conventional road helmets - featuring no less than twelve air vents - Bollé’ has given the Halo React MIPS a cool twist with the inclusion of a fabric peak, integrated front and rear LED lights and recycled materials throughout.

It's certainly fighting in the 'bells and whistles' category of the best commuter helmets - but how well does it stack up in this increasingly crowded market? We took it out in all weathers, day and night, to find out.

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Adam Jones

I first got into cycling by watching Channel 4’s coverage of the Tour de France in the mid-80s. Those hour-long updates over three weeks were like a gateway drug to the teenage me, along with poring over the race reports in Cycling Weekly.

I cycled as a student, revelling in the freedom riding a bike gave me, but after moving to London in the early 90s, a string of near misses convinced me to park the bike and follow other interests. After falling off a horse in 2014, I took up cycling again as part of my physical rehab and that was it.

Hooked again. Since then, I’ve taken part in events like the Roubaix Challenge and DeeJay 100 Gran Fondo in Milan and become a regular competitor in local time trials. A (pro) kit obsessive, I have an entire wardrobe on my landing devoted to clothing, shoes and helmets, while drawers and shelves elsewhere in the house are stuffed with other cycling paraphernalia; sunglasses, sportive medals, a replica cobble and books galore.