Yaa i finally got a Warm white Led lantern

[create54321]

I've been looking for one of these forever.. Paid 50 dollars and although that's a little steep, the light quality is amazing for this little lantern.. It does not blind me when I look at it, the light spread is very good, Color rendition is absolutely great... Colors look very very close to normal incandescent bulbs... My skin is pink, i can see blues and yellows as clear as day, contrast is good, (No more trying to play cards at night with eyestrain)! I own a about 12 differnt LED lanterns and this little gem beats them all hands down... I can finally read IN COMFORT by LED lantern light.

Was it worth 50 bucks? Well as much camping as i do, it's worth every penney......

I'll put a picture up on my flickr sight if anyone is interested.

It came sealed in one of those plastic coffins and was impossible to open.. HAHAH ..... No manufacturer was listed on the package other than model no ltc-161344-ww. I'm definately going to have to buy another one.

Package claims 24 hours on high, 48 hours on low, I'll give it a burn in tongiht.

Oh, and my aa rechargeables fit in it without a fight as they are often a bit big for some mini lanterns... like my glorb xb
THE PICS ARE UP NOW ... SEE MY OTHER POST BELOW

 

[metlarules]

Can you list your flickr page?

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

Was it this one here for $50?

http://cgi.ebay.com/XR-E-Cree-Warm-White-Led-Lantern_W0QQitemZ150340933421QQcmdZViewItem

$50 seems really expensive for a mini lantern.

Please, please give us a link to your photo page.

However, even without a photo, judging by the specs you provided, I am guessing you have one of these:

http://www.favourlight.com/1/#products/LTC-1613AA-W

Favourlight makes some nice lanterns. They are the OEM for the Rayovac Sportsman Extreme so many people here are fond of. I've asked a few vendors to carry warm white versions of the Sportsman Extreme (Rayovac brand) or other Favourlight incarnations in the U.S. with no success thus far.

If you did buy it from the e-Bay link I posted, then that seller is really jacking up the price. There is a real niche here for more warm white LED lanterns. I spoke to a department head at Spectrum Brands with no luck; I really can't understand why they don't import the warm white versions which are being sold all over the world on other markets. My guess is Spectrum Brands has an exclusive contract with Favourlight to be their sole North American vendor. I think it would be trivial for Spectrum (Rayovac) to request that the factory substitute the warm white Nichia chips for the cool white chips currently used. Yes, the output would be less, but I think people would love it.

 

[create54321]

Okay, here are the pics.

#1 Color Balance

The first picture is of the my xb glorb so you can see what the colors look like.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brothernature/3532312597/

The second picture is of the new warm white lantern.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brothernature/3532313121/

The camera isn't as fine as the human eye..... but if you are used to working with color and lighting, you'll notice quite a bit.
I'd say in real life there is a little more blue than what shows up in the glorb photo and there is a little more magenta than what shows up in warm white photo... Picky i know but I used to work in a color photo processing center. If you cycle between the two pictures using the little slidebar in the upper right, you can pick which one is more pleasing to your eye.

#2 Illumination
I just built a four core system and don't have connections ready for my good camera. This was taken with a point and shoot camera and it wanted to auto correct for brightness. I darkened the exposure about two stops to give a corrected view of what I see with my eyes. THis is very very close to how it looks in my room (a smidgen brighter in real life).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/brothernature/3532319261/

Ahhh, so nice, If i'm gonna be in a power outage, no headaches from blaring blue light.
I'm gonna spend more time out around the campsite at night. Every wonder why you go to bed early while camping... who can stand to look at the light source around the table? Thats why people sit with their back to it.
God forbid i have to do without utilities for a few days... But now if i do, it's one step closer to being comfortable..
And this thing illuminates more than my xb glorb... WITHOUT MAKING MY EYES HURT!
Form is one thing but function should be first, and this functions quite well considering what I've been used to having available.
All this on three AA batteries.... Wow, I'm quite happy.. LOL

Rayovac must be a bit short sighted, although the sportsman exteme is a nice lantern...... It's an eye killer -- I own one I know. Can you imagine how many more they'd sell if they put this kind of LED in that thing? I know it can be done, I've seen pictures of the GENTOS and it's the same exact body. As the sportsman exteme is now, it's like having a race car but you can't ride around in it because the rough ride hurts your ***.... LOL

Some may argue that there is a slight lumen decrease in the warm whites, well the quality of light makes the light emitted much more useful. Consider a hunting trip, and bigfoot shows up late at night while you guzzle your 24 pack of Olympia, you dont want to be seeing spots in front of your eyes (from the normal blinding blue beam found in run-of- the-mill LED lanterns) when you pull your gun and chase it into the woods.. HAHAHA

P.S. the link above posted by ledaddict is the correct ebay link to this lantern.

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

There must be a way for someone to import the warm white Favourlight models and sell them at a price where they see a profit but the customer is not getting ripped off. I am going to continue doing research into who or what [company] might be able to get these into the States for less than an arm and a leg.

For example, the warm white Gentos branded mini lantern, which uses Nichias instead of Crees, retails for 2,680 yen on a popular commerce website.

EDIT: 5/15/09 7:29 P.M.

In high school, they taught us to avoid vague generalities, and in deference to those hard-working English teachers, here is the link:

http://tinyurl.com/psvkhn

(They will not ship outside Japan).

That's about 28 U.S. dollars. I am sure it could be sold in bulk quantities in the United States for between $25 and $28 bucks. *sigh*

create54321, what a lovely photo! You picked some excellent objects to highlight the color rendering capacity of the warm Cree! :thumbsup:

EDIT: 5/15/09 3:45 P.M.

I am trying to figure out which tint and efficiency bin is used in the lantern create purchased. As soon as I have an answer, I will post here. That tint looks gorgeous.

 

[create54321]

http://www.neweggmall.com/Product/2...Search-_-Hardware-_-Hand Tools-_-2005583910''

Found a new source, same lantern, a little cheaper than ebay

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

Unfortunately, it does not seem to be any cheaper. At the link posted, the store wants $39.99 plus $9.99 to ship, which is the same price ($50) as the e-Bay auction. If you buy two or three, it is cheaper, but that is still a lot of dough for a few mini lanterns.

 

[create54321]

LOL.. I didnt even look at the shipping.. what a bummer

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

All is not lost. If we assume the internal circuitry in the cool white Cree versions is the same and the only difference is the LED tint bin (and probably efficiency bin, as well), then if we can find out which LED tint they are using, we may be on the way to finding a cheaper solution. I am still waiting on Favourlight; if they tell me which LED they use, we may be able to find a source for the cool white version of the lantern at a much cheaper price, and get the warm LED separately. I do not know how to solder (yet?), but, even purchasing the warm white LED separately and transplanting it *must* be cheaper than $50.

My guess is something shown here:

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/2269/creexlampnwwfullix9.jpg



Funny thing is, the pictures you uploaded make the tint seem warmer/yellower than 5A. I have yet to see what 5B looks like, but I am really wondering whether Favourlight is using something with more yellow and less red/pink. All I know is, in your pictures it looks just plain calming.

At a hamfest a few weeks back, I sold almost all my obsolete Sylvania/River Rock lanterns, both for their [relatively] lower output and cool tint. My next batch of lanterns will be warm-tinted. It's past my bedtime now; I am crossing my fingers Favourlight will get back to me in the next few days.

 

[Pumaman]

i have a couple of the rayovac extreme 300 lumen lanterns that can be found at lowes and batteryjunction for about $30
http://www.batteryjunction.com/se3dln.html

modded one with a cree q3-5a, the other with a 4000k seoul star.
equally nice tint, with a touch more red and brightness from the cree.
if you dont mind a bigger light that takes 3 D cells, they are very nice.
crees can be found at flashlightconnection.com and seouls at mouser.com
very easy mod as well

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

create54321, I feel like an idiot! I totally forgot as per this thread

http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=224939

that Target sells the Favourlight 3AA cool white lantern under the River Rock label. It should be way cheaper than the $40/$50 warm white unit; the first post says $22.79, but that may have changed. All you would need would be the LED and either soldering skills or a nice friend.

 

[fireballtp]

HI This my first post...

I bought the RR a couple of weeks ago at target for $22 or so..

I really like the light, except for the price, and of course I'd like a warmer light.

Does anyone know about the build quality of this light?

http://www.ledshoppe.com/Product/ledp/LP3031.htm

At $12, I'd be more willing to experiment with this.

Thanks,

joe

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

Hi, Joe! :welcome: That certainly looks like an unbranded Favourlight! And the weight is telling, specified at 197 grams; that same weight appears on other sites as well. Now, to figure out if it is the K2 or Cree version...

It says "3W bulb over 200 lumens," which certainly sounds like a Cree. However, none of the Cree Favourlight branded lanterns are rated even close to that high. I have not seen model number "LP3031" before, either. I will submit a question, and see what they say...

 

[fireballtp]

Hi, Joe! :welcome:

Thanks. I really like all the info on this forum.

I think I may try a different lantern.

My local Mernards is selling the Sylvania 4AA lantern for $6.

I think I'll order a couple warm white Seouls from Mouser.com.

Hopefully I'll end up with a nice light for $12.

I have to keep things cheap or the wife ..... well lets just say she doesn't understand why a man would need 14 lanterns.

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

HI This my first post...

I bought the RR a couple of weeks ago at target for $22 or so..

I really like the light, except for the price, and of course I'd like a warmer light.

Does anyone know about the build quality of this light?

http://www.ledshoppe.com/Product/ledp/LP3031.htm

At $12, I'd be more willing to experiment with this.

Thanks,

joe

Okay, Joe; here's the rundown! I e-mailed LED Shoppe this:

"Hello! I have a few questions about LED lantern LP3031:

http://www.ledshoppe.com/Product/ledp/LP3031.htm

1) What type of LED does this lantern use? Cree? K2? Nichia?
2) Does it have flashing mode if you hold down button?



~Thank you!"

And after yawning and scratching my head and doing the necessary eating and sleeping that people do, I received this reply:

"Thanks for your contact.

1. It is Luxeon LED
2. It do have 2 brightness level, but no flashing mode.

Yours,

LED Shoppe"

So, no, I would not purchase that one. It appears to be a clone of the Favourlight model, and a clone with an obsolete LED inside it.

Good luck in your quest!

You may wish to check out the new thread I am starting, "Favourlight Mini Lantern Disambiguation Guide," in this same sub-forum.

LEDAdd1ct

 

[fireballtp]

Well this is interesting... I re-checked the NewEggMall link..

They are now selling the warm white lantern for 40% off. ($29.99).

When I put in my zip code It says "Standard Shipping Free"

$29.99 certainly looks closer to the price you are looking for, LEDAdd1ct.

http://www.neweggmall.com/Product/2005583910/product.html

This new link will show the free shipping.

Joe

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

Joe, you are absolutely correct. Yesterday while working on the other thread, I did notice that it had suddenly dropped in price. However, I did *not* notice the free shipping! I have several possibilities:

1) Coincidence. I/we happened to be looking for a better price on a warm white lantern as per this thread, and the seller incidentally decided to drop their price *and* offer free shipping.

2) Divine intervention. It is possible a superior being has intervened, seeing that there is a growing interest in an affordable (i.e., not $50) warm white LED lantern.

3) The seller watches CPF. It would not surprise me, since almost all the people in the industry I spoke with in the last few years have at least *heard* of CPF. Several said they visit occasionally, even if they are not a frequent poster.

4) There is something newer, brighter, and longer running on its way, and the seller is liquidating their current stock. Now, we know Cree's next crop of LEDs won't be out for awhile yet, but, hey, it is a possibility.

Those are my guesses; I lean towards Number Three.

 

[DoctaDink]

Wow, that looks like a pretty good deal at NewEggMall. I've dealt alot with NewEgg for computer stuff. Is NewEggMall, indeed, the same outfit? If so, GREAT!

Also, has anyone used the following Cree Lantern from the same company:

Egear Spirit LED Lantern:
http://www.batteryjunction.com/egear-xrespirit-lantern.html

 

[dchao]

I have just received my Cree XRE-WW lantern from NewEggMall.com. I love the warm white color from this Cree LED, it feel so soft and smooth, unlike my OSRAM lantern modded with regular Cree LED, which could blind you if you look straight into it.

Just to confirm; mine lantern has the same model number as OP's eBay one. (LTC-1613AA-W) So they are the same lantern.

Only disappointment is that the lantern is not regulated. It looks like it's using one single transistor driving the LED as hard as it can until it drops dead. There is no buck-boost converter on board as I could not find any capacitor or inductor. Where as the OSRAM lantern has a buck-boost converter inside.

EDIT: On second inspection, the circuit looks like a cheap inductorless charge pump-based LED driver. Because of the newer LED's requires smaller Vf and less current, typically 100-200mA. LED Lantern manufacturers have started to use low current charge-pumps instead of buck convertor to save cost. These drivers are all designed to work with Li-Ion battery, and all having input voltage between 2.7V and 5.5V, that's why we see a shift of 4-cell LED lanterns to newer 3-cell ones.

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

Just to confirm; mine lantern has the same model number as OP's eBay one. (LTC-1613AA-W) So they are the same lantern.

See here for more info. The seller on Neweggmall and the e-Bay seller are the same company.