Good LED camping lantern?

[JJohn]

I went with a small 11W folding coleman flourescent. It worked great last weekend. The kids loved it. It is bright enough to see your dinner but not so bright that it lights up the entire site. I too hate it when it looks like Las Vegas in a campground. For backpacking, I will still use the small globe diffuser that I made that snaps unto my HDS U60. It is perfect in a small tent when set at a level just below the primary setting. Thanks all for the feedback.

John

 

[riffraff]

And then there's this one:
http://www.amondotech.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=870

...reviewed on quickbeam's site.

http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/lantern_ck-220.htm

 

[OttaMattaPia]

It's 2022 - Time for an update......

LUMINAR OUTDOOR

1250 Lumen Portable Lantern

Cast bright light over a wide area with this 1250 lumen portable lantern
$​20.00

 

[holygeez03]

I got the Sofirn BLF LT1 for Christmas and it's really awesome!

Still haven't figured out how to change the color temp, but the default appears to be 2700k, which is what I want anyway.

 

[jabe1]

I believe it's 2022

It's 2021 - Time for an update......

View attachment 22093
View attachment 22094
View attachment 22095
View attachment 22096

LUMINAR OUTDOOR

1250 Lumen Portable Lantern

Cast bright light over a wide area with this 1250 lumen portable lantern
$​20.00

 

[xxo]

Currently, I use 3D printed diffusers/stands to turn my flashlights into lanterns,

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

For short trips, I like the Litezall 50-2000 lumen 4D lantern (Big 5, $20-$30). For longer trips, I still like the 8D 800 lumen Enbrighten lantern from Costco (got it for $10). I also take my Milwaukee 12 and 18 volt lanterns (400 and 700 lumens, both warm white l.e.d.s). For compact, Luci Lux Pro solar lantern and Nitecore 80 lumen high c.r.i. magnetic lantern with 21700 battery.

 

[OttaMattaPia]

I believe it's 2022

oops
Fixed it

 

[DenBarrettSAR]

I got the Sofirn BLF LT1 for Christmas and it's really awesome!

Still haven't figured out how to change the color temp, but the default appears to be 2700k, which is what I want anyway.

with both versions of the BLF LT1, the new released LT1M-Mini and the LT1S, (using Andruil-LT1 or Andruil-LT1-REV-2) turn the lantern on, then click the button quickly 3 times and HOLD it down on the third press to ramp/change the color tint. - DBSARlight

 

[Derek Dean]

I recently purchased this Coleman 1000 Lumen LED Lantern and must say I'm extremely happy with it. It's a bit more expensive, but its quality construction and nice features make it feel like a premium product. I use 4 rechargeable D cells and get great runtime, even on high, which I rarely use because it's simply not needed most of the time.

The quality of the light is very even and probably in the 5000k range. I especially like the PowerGuard feature, as it completely disconnects the batteries when not in use, letting me store my rechargeable cells in the light.

The only thing I found odd was that some folks who left reviews found it difficult to operate the lid on the battery compartment. I guess some folks either don't read the instructions (which aren't really necessary for this light but ARE included), or they weren't able to figure out the very simple way the battery lid attaches, which because you need the polarity points to match up, requires that you line the lid up properly. Anyway, it's very very simple, and unless you try to force it on, goes on and off quite easily and provides a watertight seal for the 4 D cell batteries.

 

[SubLGT]

...The quality of the light is very even and probably in the 5000k range.....

No LEE Zircon installed on your lantern?

 

[Derek Dean]

No LEE Zircon installed on your lantern?

Ha, well, to be honest, I was pleasantly surprised that the tint was very usable right out of the box, but of course that didn't stop me, so I did add a regular -1/8 green filter (not a Zircon), and that is just about perfect with only a very minor drop in output.

The Zircon filter sheets I have were just a bit too much correction, so I may have to change the regular filter occasionally because of fading, but that's really no big deal.

I would have preferred to place the filter inside, but the light is very well sealed against water intrusion, so I just taped it around the outside. It ain't pretty, but it sure puts out nice light : )

And let me tell you, this little guy will fill a room with light. This is max output.

And not only will it fill the room with light, it will do it for quite a while. Here are the numbers, which is why I like having 4 D cells. Those puppies pack a lot of power and are easy to find in a pinch.

 

[xxo]

Ha, well, to be honest, I was pleasantly surprised that the tint was very usable right out of the box, but of course that didn't stop me, so I did add a regular -1/8 green filter (not a Zircon), and that is just about perfect with only a very minor drop in output.

The Zircon filter sheets I have were just a bit too much correction, so I may have to change the regular filter occasionally because of fading, but that's really no big deal.

I would have preferred to place the filter inside, but the light is very well sealed against water intrusion, so I just taped it around the outside. It ain't pretty, but it sure puts out nice light : )
View attachment 25567

And let me tell you, this little guy will fill a room with light. This is max output.
View attachment 25568
And not only will it fill the room with light, it will do it for quite a while. Here are the numbers, which is why I like having 4 D cells. Those puppies pack a lot of power and are easy to find in a pinch.
View attachment 25569

Does it put off much glare?

 

[Derek Dean]

Does it put off much glare?

Well, I included that photo of the light in action to kind of give an idea of how it looks in real life. It's pretty much like any bright light source, you don't really want to look directly at it, but rather hang it high up and let it illuminate the area, which it does quite nicely.

In my own personal space, I prefer indirect lighting, so I wouldn't be using this unless the lights go out, and then I would probably place it so that the light was more indirect. I got it more for camping, where I'll hang it up higher.

Ha, a long way to answer your question, but yes, it does put off glare, but no more than any other bright source of light.

 

[xxo]

Well, I included that photo of the light in action to kind of give an idea of how it looks in real life. It's pretty much like any bright light source, you don't really want to look directly at it, but rather hang it high up and let it illuminate the area, which it does quite nicely.

In my own personal space, I prefer indirect lighting, so I wouldn't be using this unless the lights go out, and then I would probably place it so that the light was more indirect. I got it more for camping, where I'll hang it up higher.

Ha, a long way to answer your question, but yes, it does put off glare, but no more than any other bright source of light.

Cool, thanks.

I like lanterns, but unfortunately many have too much glare and noticeable PWM, which I find annoying.

 

[Derek Dean]

Cool, thanks.

I like lanterns, but unfortunately many have too much glare and noticeable PWM, which I find annoying.

Yep, I get that. I think this lantern does use PWM on the lower two levels, but at a fairly high frequency. It's there if you test for it (wave fingers really fast), but not noticeable or bothersome to me in the slightest.