Just received this product so I will defer commenting on battery life until later. Overall I have been very pleased and surprised with this product. First off, this lantern is fairly compact...I was under the impression that this would be larger from the pictures but once I opened it up, I was pleasingly surprised. The unit is very compact and feels very sturdy. There is rubber on the base and around the lower portion of the lantern, the switch is very easy to operate and has 3-modes (High, Low, and Strobe). The entire top/globe can be unscrewed and hung upside down (clip in the base) to use as a room or tent light in "bare bulb" mode. Overall I have been very impressed with the output of this lantern as well. This is a very bright lantern for it's compact size; outshining normal 4D fluorescent U-tubed lanterns and a coleman pack-away LED lantern. The diffuser is also very pleasing with no rings, lines, or shadows to speak of. In bare bulb mode, the light is almost too bright for your eyes but works well if it's hung high overhead (so you're not looking directly at the unit). Low mode is also very useful and brighter than your typical "nightlight" levels in other LED lanterns "low" modes. Overall I am very impressed with this product and plan to purchase more of these units for use while night fishing, camping, and to use during power failures.
Update (10/31/09): Just an update, I recently used this light in a power outage and it performed great. Bright and the batteries are still going strong. I also purchased 2 additional units and with just 3-D batteries each, who can complain! This is a great compact lantern. Rayovac SE3DLN Sportsman Xtreme 300-Lumen LED Lantern
Basically in agreement with the positive reviews, with a few quibbles.
(1) Changing the batteries is a clumsy operation. The base twists off to load the batteries. Putting back the base however requires a tricky alignment of the contacts. The base has two sections. The section with the contacts rotate freely about the section that you grip. Maybe I'm just clumsy, took me six tries.
(2) Overall rugged materials and construction, with the exception of the tent hook. Cheap plastic, probably would break if dropped. Folds flat into the base. But held in place only by friction fit. If you use it enough, it will probably wear and no longer stay folded in place. If you don't fold and unfold the hook often, not a problem.
(3) Even when the power is off, one LED flashes every couple of seconds (like a smoke detector). This is a "finder beacon" to allow you to locate the lantern in a dark tent or room. I keep it around for emergencies. I don't know whether this causes any significant drain on the battery. When I have time, I'll check with the manufacturer.
(4) Still, it's one of the few units that run on a few (3) D-Cells. Many run on AA cells or then jump to 8-D-Cells. AA cells don't last as long, of course, but 8 D-Cells by themselves weigh a ton. Good unit for the price. Another example of Amazon's quirky pricing,though. Seems to vary from $26 - $30 on a daily basis. Still, Amazon's shipping and customer service is amazing.
Note added 9/13/09: There are differing opinions about ease of battery installation. As I originally reported, the problem is that the bottom cap consists of two pieces that are joined by a pivot. The inside piece, with the notches that lines up with the tabs in the battery compartment, is free to swivel about the outer piece that you actually grip. So you first line up the notches with the tabs, but when you try to seat the cap, the inside piece can swing out of alignment. I bought two units. One is easy to assemble because the pivot is tight, and the inside piece doesn't swing too freely. The other is a pain because the pivot is loose, and the inside piece swings easily. I think that's why some people say it's frustrating and others have no problem...depends on how tight the pivot in their unit is. This is difficult to explain without a diagram. Still, I think the configuration is poorly engineered. However, this is an operation you don't need to do often, unless you use it constantly.
Note added 4/27/10: I've had a unit with the same set of batteries for a year now (infrequent use), so current drain by the beacon LED is minimal. No need to disable it or remove the batteries. But I do agree with others that the beacon LED is useless because its emission field is so narrow that you can't see it unless you're staring at it straight on.
Let me start off by saying that this is overall a VERY good product, but receives 3 stars for a design flaw.
The green LED is ALWAYS blinking, even with the main switch "off". This constant parasitic drain on the batteries ruins my intended use of a long-term storage emergency light for the house.
I did call Rayovac on this issue and they said that it will drain the batteries in 32 days. This cannot be accurate and I know that this small load will take MUCH longer than 32 days to drain the batteries. Still, for my purpose I now must remove the batteries and fumble in the dark to put them in during a power failure.
The difficult battery cover (mentioned by many in the reviews) does not help this issue!
Yet another product that is ALMOST great. I would have bought many more of these for family members to use as emergency lights, but now have to find a better option where the batteries will still be full after long term storage.
Hope this helps!
OK folks,
let me start off by saying that I am a flashlight afficionado. If you ask me about pistols, rifles, knives, or lights...you are now in my world, and I will talk your ears off.
Let me say that this is a great little lantern. I was walking around my local "Big Boys Covet Store" (Lowes) and saw this lantern on sale. I went over to check it out and inspect it, and then kept it on the back of my mind. When I got home, I went to one of my internet hang-outs (CandlePowerForum.com) and plugged in the lantern for some feedback, or reviews. Evidently it was very highly talked about. So I went back the next day (or was it IMMEDIATELY?) to purchase the little lantern. I gotta admit, I was not disappointed.
Since I have gotten the lantern, it is my new ruck sack companion. I will not leave to a mountain trek without it. And when I am not out in the bush, it stays on top of my reloading bench in case of an emergency blackout...or an earthquake. (I live in the San Freakcisco Bay Area).
The light is small (3.5" x 3.5" x 7.5"), but is plenty tough. It has a great rubber base, a rubber top section, and rubber side grips. Like the earlier folks stated, it has a HIGH, a LOW, and a STROBE function. As for the installation of the batteries...yea...I was scratching my head for a few seconds the first time. (No, not minutes - seconds). But after I looked at it for a second or two, it was pretty easy to see how it was supposed to go on, and I have not had a problem since then.
The little plastic hook on top is a total waste to me. Why? Because everthing else on this little beast is built so well, and then the did this?! (Added a flimsy little "Alfalfa Hair Piece" to the top of this exceptional little lantern). It has not broken on me yet - but then again, I will not take the chance of hanging the lantern from this flimsy little hook and provoking Mr Murphy to curse the lantern to fall and possibly break.
It is small and compact, but beefy and with heft.
Like I said, it's a great little lantern for the money.
You will not regret it.
In Christ: Raymond'
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