Great emergency light find!

[thermal guy]

So I picked up some of those cheap USB led chip lights. You know they have 6 small leds on a board and they plug straight into a USB port Power: 5V 200mA (1W) well been playing around with them and there really not bad. They are touch activated and you can dim them way dow or crank them up to a respectable level. Well it Dawned on me to try them in one of my power banks 5000 Mah I think. I got to say you could do a whole lot worse if this was all you had. It's a portable very compact little unit and won't cost you and arm and a leg to buy. The LEDS were a buck a piece and the battery bank was like 8 bucks.Runtime just depends on how big your power bank is. And if you wanted to take it to the next level you could get a solar charging power bank and you would be set for weeks.sorry got excited I'm assuming some already use this type of setup.

 

[lumen aeternum]

Not familiar with these lights. Point me to something? What's their intended use if they just stick out of a USB port? Kind of hard to use your laptop as a flashlight.
And if you want brighter, do those power banks have more than one USB port?
Might be a useful thing to put into the usb bank's carrying case.

 

[Dave D]

Point me to something?

Something like this?

 

[thermal guy]

A buck a piece. Can go on your keychain, comes in warm,is touch activated,and Dimmable. It's honestly not bad. Tape one to a small power bank and you can have a emergency light in every room. All flood of corse

 

[Lynx_Arc]

There was a thread in which these dimming USB lights were talked about. On the lowest dimmest level most power banks won't stay on at all they will shut off. I measured the current at the lowest output level and it was less than 1ma and on single cell power banks it will run for I think about 2 weeks constantly. I have 3-3 chip USB LED lights connected to a 2x18650 power bank with a dimmer inline that I have lighting my room in 3 spots that runs for close to a month. I turn it on when I'm in my room and leave it on till I go to bed.
They make all sorts of SMD (chip) based LED USB lights with current draw of less than 1ma to 1A or so depending on the design. There is 2 colors most come in a warm white (yellow) and cool white.

 

[dealgrabber2002]

I remember someone dipped it in epoxy so it became very durable and water resistance. Of course, you don't cover the contact, just the LED and it's components.

 

[thermal guy]

Ya they will run for weeks. Depending on battery size. I just thought it was a cool idea. I keep one plugged into my wall outlets int the bathroom.

 

[dealgrabber2002]

I think I have 5-6 of this. 1 has a sensor, great for bathroom lights. The others are touch activation.

 

[bykfixer]

I use one to light the keyboard on my laptop TG. Sometimes I need to write reports when doing the night shift thing and my hands cause shadows when using a headlamp.

Hadn't thought of the power bank idea. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
I have a couple of older ones that would be considered under powered these days so they just collect dust. One of those and one of the lamps would fit in a zip lock sandwich bag and make a great emergency light while being very portable.
Edit: just realized it was guy not xxo who started this. Doh!! :fail: End edit.

 

[thermal guy]

Ya my thinking as well. Cheap power banks are 10-15 bucks? 5000Mah. Touch led chip is like a buck. Real cheap emergency kit.

 

[Tachead]

There was a thread in which these dimming USB lights were talked about. On the lowest dimmest level most power banks won't stay on at all they will shut off. I measured the current at the lowest output level and it was less than 1ma and on single cell power banks it will run for I think about 2 weeks constantly. I have 3-3 chip USB LED lights connected to a 2x18650 power bank with a dimmer inline that I have lighting my room in 3 spots that runs for close to a month. I turn it on when I'm in my room and leave it on till I go to bed.
They make all sorts of SMD (chip) based LED USB lights with current draw of less than 1ma to 1A or so depending on the design. There is 2 colors most come in a warm white (yellow) and cool white.

Many of the newer, high quality, powerbanks these days have a low current setting for charging Bluetooth headphones, etc. They should run these fine on that setting.

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[Tachead]

Good idea TG[emoji106]. And yes, definitely a great, low cost, backup option. Thanks for posting[emoji106].

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[Lynx_Arc]

Many of the newer, high quality, powerbanks these days have a low current setting for charging Bluetooth headphones, etc. They should run these fine on that setting.

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Most devices have charging currents a LOT more than 1ma. Some of my power banks that shut off at that low of current will operate at around 100ma or more to stay on. I have several Anker power banks in several models some that are newer and none stay on at very low currents. You could probably get some to work if you ramped up the current used to 50ma but very very few stay on below 15ma.
My first favorite go to power bank for using these dimmed LED lights is a single cell walmart one that I don't think they make any more it was $4.88 called Pocket Juice in neon pink and black. I've found almost no power banks with ON switches will operate at very low current.
I have a dozen different styles/models of cheap Ebay power bank kits and haven't bought any lately that support very low current but when I was buying them the cheap plastic square ones for awhile supported it and the round 2 piece white/colored slide together ones did and the metallic colored lipstick looking power banks all did. I spent a lot of time trying to find power banks that would support these low dimmable 6 LED boards and as time went on the manufacturers changed board designs several times which made it so finding one that works is tough the odds are about 10 to 1 against finding one that works (if not lower). Store bought power banks only the one I already mentioned worked no other ones work.
Simply put these dimmable boards are nice but operating them off a power bank will almost certainly finding them shutting off when you ramp down the light output you can't run them on low on most power banks. I suggest considering buying the 3 LED non dimmable USB light modules there are several different models that run from 15-30ma or so. I know if I put 2 of them on an anker power bank it stays on but only one of them it shuts off. There are other USB lighting options also. I sort of like the corded light bulbs that you can plug in and hang up somewhere. I have all sorts of USB cabling, on/off switches, splitters, extension cables, right angle adapters. I like the right angle adapters as you can put a module in one that has double sided contact and stand it on end and have a small table lamp. With a decent hub plugged into a power bank and a handful of USB lights you can set up an emergency lighting system.

 

[Tachead]

Most devices have charging currents a LOT more than 1ma. Some of my power banks that shut off at that low of current will operate at around 100ma or more to stay on. I have several Anker power banks in several models some that are newer and none stay on at very low currents. You could probably get some to work if you ramped up the current used to 50ma but very very few stay on below 15ma.
My first favorite go to power bank for using these dimmed LED lights is a single cell walmart one that I don't think they make any more it was $4.88 called Pocket Juice in neon pink and black. I've found almost no power banks with ON switches will operate at very low current.
I have a dozen different styles/models of cheap Ebay power bank kits and haven't bought any lately that support very low current but when I was buying them the cheap plastic square ones for awhile supported it and the round 2 piece white/colored slide together ones did and the metallic colored lipstick looking power banks all did. I spent a lot of time trying to find power banks that would support these low dimmable 6 LED boards and as time went on the manufacturers changed board designs several times which made it so finding one that works is tough the odds are about 10 to 1 against finding one that works (if not lower). Store bought power banks only the one I already mentioned worked no other ones work.
Simply put these dimmable boards are nice but operating them off a power bank will almost certainly finding them shutting off when you ramp down the light output you can't run them on low on most power banks. I suggest considering buying the 3 LED non dimmable USB light modules there are several different models that run from 15-30ma or so. I know if I put 2 of them on an anker power bank it stays on but only one of them it shuts off. There are other USB lighting options also. I sort of like the corded light bulbs that you can plug in and hang up somewhere. I have all sorts of USB cabling, on/off switches, splitters, extension cables, right angle adapters. I like the right angle adapters as you can put a module in one that has double sided contact and stand it on end and have a small table lamp. With a decent hub plugged into a power bank and a handful of USB lights you can set up an emergency lighting system.

Well, first off, you sound like you may have a powerbank addiction. Do you belong to a powerbank forum as well? Lol.

On a serious note, I have no idea what the minimum current is on some of the new powerbanks are but, I do know my old banks(Ravpower & Anker)would shut off when charging small/low draw items like my Jaybird X3's. My new Anker(PowerCore 10000 PD Redux)has a low power setting(you hold the button and it turns green) and it no longer shuts off on any low current items I have tried.

Note: I have not tested one of these sticks as I don't own one so, I have no idea if they are below the threshold but, it is definitely possible(especially on the lowest output settings on the dimmable ones).

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[Lynx_Arc]

Well, first off, you sound like you may have a powerbank addiction. Do you belong to a powerbank forum as well? Lol.

On a serious note, I have no idea what the minimum current is on some of the new powerbanks are but, I do know my old banks(Ravpower & Anker)would shut off when charging small/low draw items like my Jaybird X3's. My new Anker(PowerCore 10000 PD Redux)has a low power setting(you hold the button and it turns green) and it no longer shuts off on any low current items I have tried.

Note: I have not tested one of these sticks as I don't own one so, I have no idea if they are below the threshold but, it is definitely possible(especially on the lowest output settings on the dimmable ones).

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Yeah I sort of got into power banks when I started rescuing 18650s from recycling and when I got about 90 cells from a recycler for scrap prices (about $8 total) and got about 50-60 good cells I started looking for something to use them for and got into DIY power bank kits and a few cheap 18650 lights and lanterns etc and later 2 headlamps. I probably have about 30 or so chinese power bank kits ranging from $1 to $5 in cost and recently bought another one for $1.49 to use by my bed that is 2 cells and has a single 5mm LED. These 2x18650 cheap power banks with a single 5mm LED are very useful in an emergency as they tailstand and the 5mm LED can run for a long long time and not have to deal with USB LED boards. I also like the clear plastic armored LED boards as they are more protected and can be tossed in a bag without worrying about damage. To be honest I recommend buying a 5 pack of the 3 LED boards instead of a dimmable one as even though they use a lot more current from 15-30ma it still is so low that it will last for a long time especially on a larger power bank in the 10kmah+ range. I figure a 10kmah power bank will run a 15ma LED module for about 500 hours if it doesn't shut off automatically.
I've seen 1 chip USB LED modules and picked up a funky 5 RGB LED plastic armored module that is pretty cool for about $2.
I've found myself at times grabbing a small power bank an USB LED light to work on something instead of a headlamp as sometimes you need to move around an object to work on it and keeping the light in one spot sometimes is better than the light moving on your head.
I strongly recommend grabbing a USB extension cable. I have several of them in several lengths one of which I clipped on to a plastic stand tying a right angle adapter and dimmable board about 13 inches high perfect as a table lamp.
I recommend getting the 5 pcs of 3 LED USB boards for around $1 on Ebay even if you get the Dimmable ones as they are a bargain. I have the short board version which I think is 30ma and the long board version which is 15ma. The short board ones are the cheapest and easily found in the 5/$1 range.

 

[LedTed]

I agree, these are cool and useful little lights. I keep one (and a 1 X 18650 power bank) as my convenient closet light. I also keep one in my car's center console. The bright wide (mule) beam is great for temporarily lighting these places.

A friend of mine uses my closet set up, through every overnight, to light his stairway. Both of our lights last for a couple of weeks before needing to be recharged.