Camping Lights & Lanterns
Camp does not end when the sun goes down. It just gets harder to find anything. A lantern over the table is what keeps dinner going and what stops the tent becoming a place you only sleep in. The ones here split on two questions: how much light you need, and where the power comes from when the night runs long.
What is in here, and which one is yours?
Lanterns for the table and the tent, a torch that doubles as one, and a lamp that folds flat for when something goes wrong. They hang, they stand, and every one of them dims down to a glow.
A lantern for the table
200 to 400 lumens over dinner, dimmable down to a glow. From 170 g.
A light that comes with you
1000 lumens, and the head pulls off to become a torch in your hand.
A light for when it goes wrong
Folds to 25 mm, charges in the sun, and lives in the glovebox.
Everything in Lights
-
26% off
Often Outdoors
Often 3*AA Retro Camping Light Lantern Waterproof (Medium Size)
Sale price $29.00 Regular price $39.00Unit priceIn stock (6 units) -
-
26% off
Often Outdoors
Often 3*AA Retro Camping Light Lantern Waterproof (Small Size)
Sale price $29.00 Regular price $39.00Unit priceIn stock (6 units) -
-
17% off
Often Outdoors
Often USB Rechargeable Retro Camping Light Lantern Waterproof (Small Size)
Sale price $29.00 Regular price $35.00Unit priceIn stock (19 units) -
-
26% off
Often Outdoors
Often 3*AAA Portable Retro LED Lamp (Small Size)
Sale price $29.00 Regular price $39.00Unit priceLow stock (5 units) -
-
9% off
Often Outdoors
Often Tactical 2 in 1 Detachable Outdoor Light & Flash 3AA
Sale price $49.00 Regular price $54.00Unit priceIn stock (20 units) -
-
21% off
Often Outdoors
Often Collapsible Solar/USB Emergency Lamp Light
Sale price $19.00 Regular price $24.00Unit priceIn stock (30 units) -
The lantern doing its job before the light runs out, inside the tent. Own photography, tested in Queensland.
Batteries or a cable?
This is the choice that matters, and it has nothing to do with the light. A lantern that runs on AA cells does not depend on electricity at all, and that is the whole point of it. On a long stay with nowhere to plug in, or in a blackout at home, it keeps working for as long as you have cells, and a spare set weighs almost nothing. The cost is that the cells are a consumable: you buy them separately, and you keep buying them.
A rechargeable one is the more comfortable of the two. You charge it, you use it, and there is nothing to buy again. It suits weekends and any trip where the car comes along, because the car has USB. What it cannot do is outlast its own battery: on the fourth day with nothing to charge from, it is a paperweight.
So the answer is the trip, not the lantern. Away from a plug for longer than a weekend, or keeping a light for emergencies, go with AA. Weekends and anywhere with power, go rechargeable. Plenty of camps end up with one of each, and that is not indecision. That is the backup.
Which lantern goes over the table?
Ordered by how much light they put out. If you want one answer: the 400 lumen medium, because its knob dims with no steps at all, from a glow you can sleep beside up to the whole tent, and it runs as long as 70 hours on three AA cells. The last row says what the other three are for.
| Model |
3*AA Lantern (Medium Size)
$29.00
|
3*AA Lantern (Small Size)
$29.00
|
3*AAA LED Lamp (Small Size)
$29.00
|
USB Rechargeable Lantern (Small Size)
$29.00
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light | 400 lumens | 300 lumens | 300 lumens | 200 lumens |
| Power | 3 x AA | 3 x AA | 3 x AAA | 1200 mAh built in, USB-C |
| Runs for | 9 to 70 hours | 6 to 40 hours | 4 to 10 hours | 3 to 25 hours |
| Size | 101 x 174 mm | 84 x 138 mm | 137 x 178 mm | 84 x 138 mm |
| Weight | 278 g | 170 g | 300 g | 220 g |
| What sets it apart | A dimmer knob with no steps, from a glow to the whole tent | Three brightness steps in a body that fits a jacket pocket | Three colours: warm, white, and both together | Charges by USB-C, so there are no batteries to buy |
| Link | View product | View product | View product | View product |
Swipe the table sideways to see them all.
Which one leaves the table?
Two lights that do not stay put. If you want one answer: the tactical 2 in 1, because the head pulls off and becomes a 1000 lumen torch in your hand, then clips back on and lights the whole site from its bracket. Take the folding solar one if what you want is a light that is simply always there.
| Model |
Tactical 2 in 1 Light & Flash 3AA
$49.00
|
Solar/USB Lamp Light
$19.00
|
|---|---|---|
| Light | 1000 lumens | — |
| Power | 3 x AA | Solar or USB |
| Runs for | 5 to 20 hours | — |
| Size | 60 x 302 mm, 625 mm on its bracket | 125 mm across, 100 mm of shade |
| Weight | 417 g | 105 g |
| What sets it apart | The head detaches and becomes a torch. Aluminium body, IP54 | Folds to 25 mm thick and charges in the sun. Silicone shade, IP55 |
| Link | View product | View product |
Swipe the table sideways to see both.
Frequently asked questions
How many lumens do I need at camp?
Less than the number on the box suggests. Around 200 to 300 lumens is enough to eat by and to find things in a tent, and it is the level most people leave a lantern on all evening. Four hundred covers a bigger tent or a table with people around it. A thousand is a different job: that is for walking out to the car in the dark or finding what fell under it, and at camp it is more light than anyone wants in their eyes. The useful thing is not the top number but the dimmer, because you spend most of the night at the bottom of the range.
Should I buy a rechargeable light or one that takes batteries?
It depends on how far you are from a plug. A light that takes AA cells does not need electricity at all, which makes it the one to keep for emergencies and for long stays where there is nothing to charge from: a spare set of cells weighs almost nothing and works the second you put it in, with no charge time and no flat power bank. The trade is that the cells are a consumable you buy separately, and the tactical light ships without them.
A rechargeable one is more convenient day to day. You charge it from any USB, you use it, and there is nothing else to buy, which suits weekends and any trip where the car comes along. If you camp both ways, one of each is the honest answer.
Can I hang a lantern inside the tent?
Yes, and that is what the handle is for. All of the lanterns here have a bail handle sized to hook over a tent loop, a ridge line or a branch, and they are LED, so the body stays cool enough to sit against fabric. Hang it high and point the dimmer low: light from above spreads across the whole tent, while a lantern on the floor throws shadows up the walls and into people's faces.
Will they survive rain?
They are built for it, with limits. The tactical light carries an IP54 rating and the folding solar lamp an IP55, which between them cover dust and splashes and the kind of rain that blows in under an awning. None of them are rated to be submerged. The practical rule outdoors is that a light can get wet but the battery compartment should not sit in water, so hang it rather than leaving it on the ground in a downpour.
What is the warranty?
One year on Often Outdoors branded products, and six months with proof of purchase on the other brands here. All of it sits on top of the Australian Consumer Law guarantees, which cannot be excluded and which entitle you to a repair, replacement or refund depending on how serious the fault is. The full terms are in our warranty policy.
The light decides how long the evening lasts
Nobody sits around in the dark. The moment the light goes, people go to bed, and a lantern on the table is the cheapest way to get another two hours out of a night that was going to end early.
Free shipping on orders over $150 AUD. One-year warranty on Often Outdoors products and six months on other brands, on top of your statutory rights under Australian Consumer Law.
