Just picked a few of these up. They are much brighter then my original River Rock 4AA's. Seems to be a lot of artifacts but not a big deal to me. They are much easier to carry and the flip-up shield is really cool for walking with this lantern in front of you. I read that these will drain batteries over time, True? Anyone have any idea how long they run?
What's your take? 3AA Coleman Micro
- Thread starter fishx65
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filibuster
Enlightened
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What drains the battery over time?
I read the runtime for the Micro was 8-14 hours but I have no personal experience.
I've been interested in this lantern but have been concerned over the non diffused light it gives off. Others who have the 4AA Exponent lantern have not been pleased with the artifacts of the lantern or the glare and I've thought this lantern may have the same problems.
What's your take on the glare or artifacts?
I read the runtime for the Micro was 8-14 hours but I have no personal experience.
I've been interested in this lantern but have been concerned over the non diffused light it gives off. Others who have the 4AA Exponent lantern have not been pleased with the artifacts of the lantern or the glare and I've thought this lantern may have the same problems.
What's your take on the glare or artifacts?
I have one of these sitting next to a Sylvania Golden Dragon in my bedroom. I often get to bed later than my wife, and have tested these for a few months as low level lights for getting ready for bed without disturbing her. For this use, I just need low light so I don't trip on stuff.
I find myself using the Coleman much more often, due to the shield (which I always leave up) and the shape, which makes it much easier to find the button in the dark. The Sylvania is round, the button is small, and I always have to fumble with it.
It's really heavy on the artifacts, and I also tested it by using it to read in bed, where the shield was great, but the artifacts are way too dramatic. The Sylvania's light is a lot smoother, but they both have a lot of glare if you can see the LED, so I turn the Coleman towards the wall. The Sylvania would probably be good if I taped part of the globe to act as a shield.
There's not a lot of light from either. The Coleman's quit changing brightness from low to high (the low isn't that much lower than high), and I haven't checked to see if it's the batteries getting low. ETA: Yep, down to 1.1v.
These are earthquake/power outage lights for me, and while I like the efficiency better than the fluorescent lanterns they replaced, the light quality isn't very good. The biggest problem is that you need to be fairly close to them because the light levels are low, and the glare and artifacts get pretty annoying.
My neighbor has a Coast TT7105CP Lenser (3 leds), and it's a pretty superior lantern, though a lot more expensive.
I find myself using the Coleman much more often, due to the shield (which I always leave up) and the shape, which makes it much easier to find the button in the dark. The Sylvania is round, the button is small, and I always have to fumble with it.
It's really heavy on the artifacts, and I also tested it by using it to read in bed, where the shield was great, but the artifacts are way too dramatic. The Sylvania's light is a lot smoother, but they both have a lot of glare if you can see the LED, so I turn the Coleman towards the wall. The Sylvania would probably be good if I taped part of the globe to act as a shield.
There's not a lot of light from either. The Coleman's quit changing brightness from low to high (the low isn't that much lower than high), and I haven't checked to see if it's the batteries getting low. ETA: Yep, down to 1.1v.
These are earthquake/power outage lights for me, and while I like the efficiency better than the fluorescent lanterns they replaced, the light quality isn't very good. The biggest problem is that you need to be fairly close to them because the light levels are low, and the glare and artifacts get pretty annoying.
My neighbor has a Coast TT7105CP Lenser (3 leds), and it's a pretty superior lantern, though a lot more expensive.
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Never had any problems with mine the flip up shield works as it should and it runs forever.
Illum
Flashaholic
if theres anything but an analog switch used the circuit will consume a little bit of power [called Quiescent current], drawn when there is no load...usually under 300uA at max, but thats in design
LEDAdd1ct
Flashlight Enthusiast
Is a rotary "dial" switch considered analog?
Illum
Flashaholic
a rotary dial is more like a potentiometer...or a rheostat. If used by itself, when the light is off there is still load applied, just very high in resistance. If used in pair with a driver, then the drivers sucking up a little current to "sense" changes in the rotary dial which then "chooses" the intensity of the LED
There appear to be two versions of this lamp. Here are the specs (that I grabbed off Coleman's site) for both. Cree® XLamp® XR-E LED 80 lumens on high, Run time up to 14 hours on low, and 8 hours on high, or the Cree XLamp® XR-C 65 lumens on high, Run time is 14 hours on low, 8 hours on high. I thought the XR-C was superior to the XR-E, yet the C has 15 fewer lumens?
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