 Great lantern to take to a backpacking / car camping trip |
| Review Date: November 16, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Kundan Sen, New York, NY United States |
I must admit - I am a bit of a lantern and flashlight addict - I have one too many in my collection at home, though I've had just one instance of power failure in the last 10 years.
That said, every flashlight / lantern has its purpose. And in spite of the other reviewers thinking this one did not hit the mark, I think it did so just fine - with flying colors, no less!
Now, this is not a propane lantern. If you are traveling, you know the pro's and con's. Nothing like being 'all set' on the light part before you reach your destination. I've been on several car camping trips where we've reached the destination only to find something in the way of getting light after dark - those French CampinGaz systems are really tough to get fuel for, the wicks are equally tough to find, and the regular propane ones require finding out a local camping supply store in a strange place when I'd rather be opening a bottle of wine and pitching tent. I don't risk traveling with fuel on road trips, as I don't really pay much attention to hazmat warnings on bridges and tunnels and ferries. Flights, of course, entirely rule out carrying fuel from home.
Given those hard-learned lessons, I've shifted to portable LED lanterns for a while. LED is, well, an obvious choice, as otherwise you are talking about a couple of hours of burn time.
Within the LED space, there's a wide array of options that are now available. This one fits a certain set of requirements - now its up to you to see if they are the same as yours.
1. This is bright white LED. There are come with warm white colors, this is not one of them. If you are particular about the color of light, you should know.
2. This is not as much light as the full-size D-battery powered GE CFL lamp lanterns. Those pretty much resemble a propane light, but are not easy to carry, specially if you have a small car or need to take a flight. This is super portable, and the convenience more than makes up for the small trade off in light output.
3. Yes, this is portable, but not to "ultralight backpacking" standards. There are other lanterns - powered by AA and AAA cells - that are meant to be ultralight. I like the fact that this snugly fits the "middle ground" - way more portable than full size 4xD cell lanterns, while offering a lot more burn time than the measly AA and AAA powered ones.
4. 3 watts is a lot of light! Chances are you'll use this in full power once you've seen the bright setting, and that's a good thing. Enough to light up a small campground, like the standard ones in car camping sites.
5. Nice clip to hang it in the tent, or elsewhere. Another plus over propane lanterns, no harm in letting these burn inside the tent!
So, there. Not the smallest of the lot, not the brightest of the lot (well, among the brightest in the LED space), but a good balance in everything.
And, if I may say, a much better build quality than those cheap knock-offs some "deal" websites have to offer. But then this is a Brunton, so that's a given.
When you are out camping, a lantern should be the last thing on your mind -should be as easy as throw it in the bag and expect it to work. This works great. |
Great for Camping or Emergencies
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| Review Date: November 29, 2008 |
| Reviewer: SkinDiver, |
I decided to purchase the Brunton Polaris Lantern because it looked mysteriously similar to a Gerber Lantern that I love. The price of the Gerber however was $20 higher than the Brunton and I am happy to say that they are almost identical! The Gerber model features a camo-body instead of the gray Brunton body but other than that, they are basically the same. The output of the Brunton Polaris in low makes for a nice night light while the high mode can light up a small bedroom brightly and easily. The color of the light is also more "normal" and not too White or blue as with other LED lanterns. The output is also very nicely diffused with no rings, lines or shadows. This light, like the Gerber model is a great compact lantern with good output and size (it's not the lightest LED lantern out there as it runs on C batteries but I'd much rather have 3-C's than other lanterns that take 4-D's). If you need a small lantern for camping, fishing, or just to have as emergency lights around the home, this is a great find.
Update:
This lantern was put to the test in an island-wide blackout and I must say it performed wonderfully. We used one hanging high in the kitchen and one in a bedroom...a quick walk outside in a pitch black parking lot confirmed that these lights are indeed bright. There was also no flickering, dimming, or overheating with continued use on high mode for over 5 hours. We are very pleased and plan to order more for future use. |
Like Having Your Own Miniature Sun
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| Review Date: August 12, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Gines Pasamonte, New York |
| When I first looked at this lantern I thought I had been scammed. It's tiny in comparison to old school lanterns. It looked like something that belongs in a children's camping set. Once I turned it on I was amazed -- it throws off tons of light. It's simple to use, has two levels of illumination and the batteries last a long time. This lantern is perfect not only for camping, but to keep for emergency lighting around the house or in the car. I've even dropped it a few times and nothing bad has happened. |
good camping lantern
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| Review Date: February 28, 2009 |
| Reviewer: J. Rickert, maine |
| Im big into backpacking and camping and this lantern seems like a very solid unit. As of yet I dont have outdoor experience with it but it seems like a good compact lantern to keep around, my initial impressions are you might need two or three of them if you have a large tent, and then you will have a very good cast of light from all directions. LED technology is the BEST! Very good value for a well built unit. |
Brunton Polaris LED Lantern -- Great Value, great product
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| Review Date: September 10, 2009 |
| Reviewer: J. Blann, Columbus Ohio |
There are so many LED lanterns to choose from depending on your tastes, needs, and convenience, and of course budget.
These lights live up to their name and described features and battery life and beyond.
This lantern features a 3 watt CREE LED module (one of the most efficient and brightest on the market today) I'm not sure about any regulation from the battery pack (3C cells) Although there are 2 brightness settings (not PWM like some models) I have tested these lights and battery life by simply leaving them on for 8-12 hours a day. I've gotten far more than 50 run time hours, although the LED starts to dim down. another 20 some hours later in my test, the LED on the High setting glows like that of using new batteries at the Low setting.
The CREE LED's can yield a variety of bright colors, including a "true" white light, unlike other cheaper lanterns and flashlights, that give off a cool bluish/purple tint. There is a slightly colored diffuser dome that supposedly makes it give off a "warm" glow, but I don't think the dome really does anything, the LED itself gives off a good clean white light, it is not harsh one bit.
Compared to my 3W Sportsman Xtreme lantern, which by itself is a bit brighter and gives a much cooler (purplish tint) white light, it seems to be a bit harsh as opposed to the Brunton Polaris. I use the Sportsman Xtreme mainly for work purposes.
Now, how does it light up a room? For an emergency power outage, one lantern will get you around effortlessly, and light up a small room for general use, but not quite reading-quality light.
I recommend at least 2 of these lanterns, spread apart. I just ordered a third one, and guess what, the first two I ordered came with Energizer batteries.
So for a value light on a budget, the Brunton Polaris will fit the bill. You will not be dissapointed.
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