Solar Rechargeable Lantern - Great Idea Still Needs Work

A recent camping trip down south got me thinking about my lantern. My lantern has accompanied me on dozens of camping trips and appeared to slowly start to die. Evidence of this was shown when it would no longer work on this most recent trip. I decided that I would research for a new one when I got home and discovered something much cooler: the Solar Rechargeable Lantern.

We our a planet in need of consumer consciousness towards using earth's resources in a more intelligent manner. Harnessing solar power to operate your electronics is perhaps the best way to currently do so. The Solar Rechargeable Lantern provides you with the traditional lantern that can light your night while doing so without the use of an outlet, batteries, or other chemicals. You can not go wrong with a product like this.

One big knock on this device is that it is more ideal for emergencies than camping trips. This is because it obtains only 3 hours of energy through being in the sunlight for a period of 8 hours. If it becomes dark early you better plan on making it a short night. However, if you had this lantern with you on a trip you could use it in your tent instead of a flashlight that wastes batteries. A benefit is that the lantern is very bright and will provide the right amount of light.

Another cool thing about the lantern is that it also has a AM/FM radio, strobe light, and fluorescent lights. They are all powered by a rechargeable 6V/4AH sealed acid battery that also comes with it's own cool features. The battery has a special over-charge and over-discharge protection on it. This will protect you in case you leave it out in the sunlight for more than 8 hours of time. The device also works incredibly easy because the light comes on by the flicker of a switch.

Testing of the product was kind of fun because I had to test it in different environments because I was not camping anymore. I really enjoyed the strobe light function because my nephews thought it was a lot of fun feeling as if they were "moving in slow motion". The charge also actually lasted me a bit longer than three hours. It actually lasted me nearly five hours but this might not be the same for all of these lanterns.

Overall I would recommend this product to anyone who is trying to be a little more friendly to the earth's environment. For camping purposes I might just have to be a bad boy and use my traditional lantern for the most part. It is my hope that over time the makers of this product will create a solar powered lantern that can last for longer periods of time so it can be a bit more reliable. Until then, I will simply use this lantern for it's intended purpose of emergencies only.