Newbie Lantern Question

[Conroe]

Greetings! First time poster who stumbled upon your forums quite by accident.

Our power went off the other night, in the middle of a large thunderstorm. If we would have had a lantern or something, we could have played a game of cards. A trip to Walmart the next day (I will be prepared next time.

) only to discover the myriad of different options. Options that I didn't know even existed! I'd never heard of LED lights.

So, what is better: bulb or LED? And is a Nichia LED different from a normal LED?

Basically I'm looking for a lantern that will light up a small room well enough to actually do something. Preferably without straining their eyes.

Thanks!

 

[fishx65]

Fluorescent lanterns have a lot less glare than Leds and put out more and smoother light. Any of the Coleman fluorescent lanterns will work very well. I've got one that takes 6 Ds that I really like. The little Energizer 4AA folding led lanterns from Target are also great to have during a power outage. Another nice fluorescent lantern is the Energizer 4D folding available at Home Depot for around 14 bucks.

 

[CLHC]

Greetings and Welcome to CPF!

Same with what fisx65 stated above. The Coleman MicroPacker LED Lantern is a decent sized little one that isn't too expensive but does the job nicely enough. Though may be suitable for the upclose and personal lighting.

I have two (2) of the Bayco Rechargeable 2 Hour 13w Professional Series Fluorescent Work Light - SLR-9000CPDQ that works great for my uses. So far I'm very satisfied with it and these do put out a lot of light for its size. I have a dozen spare replacement CCFL to go along with it too.

Hope you find what you're looking for and Enjoy!

 

[Ken_McE]

>So, what is better: bulb or LED?

If by "bulb" you mean incandescent bulb, the the LED should give you more lumens per watt than an incan.

>And is a Nichia LED different from a normal LED?

It should cost more and perform better.

>Basically I'm looking for a lantern that will light up a small room well >enough to actually do something. Preferably without straining their eyes.

I agree with fishx65 that those little battery powered fluorescent lanterns should be a good deal.

 

[Conroe]

Thanks for all of the great replies!

The Coleman MicroPacker LED Lantern is a decent sized little one that isn't too expensive but does the job nicely enough. Though may be suitable for the upclose and personal lighting.

Funny that you mention that one. I picked up a couple of those at Walmart. I liked the size more than anything.

When I got them home, though, it didn't seem that they were all that bright. I figure we'll keep them. They should make good night lights for the kids and just avoid tripping over the furniture.

I guess I am looking for something a bit more brighter. Something that will light up the room. And if I'm hearing you folks correctly, it sounds like I'm going to have to go with a flourescent to do that. I guess an LED lantern is not up to that task?

The little Energizer 4AA folding led lanterns from Target are also great to have during a power outage.

I was at Target over the weekend and saw a folding LED that took D cell batteries. I didn't see one that took AA, though. I prefer the AA since they are such a common battery.

>And is a Nichia LED different from a normal LED?

It should cost more and perform better.

Perform better? Does the Nichia put out more light? Or do you mean that it uses less energy for the same amount of light?

 

[fishx65]

Conroe, You can get a lot of good info before a purchase by using the search function. Good example is searching for Energizer 4aa folding lantern. The members on this site put up some really good info. That Energizer 4d Led folding lantern that you saw at Target is available at Home Depot in a flouresenct Version ($14.00).