Last Christmas we got a Tough Light 1000 LR camping lantern, which we’d had our eye on for a while. We wanted to share our review of the Tough Light 1000 LR, just in case you’re thinking of getting one.
How is The Tough Light 1000 LR Performing?
The Tough Light 1000 LR seems to be rugged and it’s super bright – almost too bright on high. It has 5 settings, which are low, medium, high, flicker and SOS. The light that it gives out on high is probably very close to 1000 lumens and enough to light up the entire campsite. (One lumen equals roughly 12.5 candlepower).
The Tough Light 1000 LR’s 12,000 mAh battery takes about 6-8 hours to fully charge. It does not come with a charger or cable. There are 2 ports, one for charging the lantern (USB C) and a USB outlet for charging phones, etc., from the lantern.
Extremely Long Run Time on Low
One thing we really like about the Tough Light 1000 LR is how long it can run on low. The manufacturer claims 400 hours, or 16.6 days of run time on low. We’ve had ours on for 8 days now, and it’s just as bright as on day one.
Big Glowing Green Eye
The green LED above the power button never goes off. I suppose it’s to help you find the lantern in the dark, however it’s very bright and it would be nice if you could turn the green LED off.
If you enjoy night photography when camping as we do – it’s annoying to have a light source you can’t turn off. We solved this one with electrical tape, but that shouldn’t have been necessary.
White Light Can Be Harsh
The SOS mode should have something to make it not part of the day to day settings. It should have to be activated by a long press of the button or separate switch. The flicker mode, which is supposed to mimic the flame of an old-school lantern, is not that realistic and is kind of annoying.
We added some parchment paper around the outside of the globe, for a more neutral campsite lighting effect that wasn’t as harsh as the white LED light the Tough Light 1000 gives off.
Price Seems a Bit High
Currently selling at $85 on Amazon, this price seems a bit high for a small Chinese-made camping lantern. The rechargeable Tough Light 400 LR ($65) might have been a good alternative, especially since we rarely use ours on the high setting. If you don’t mind using batteries, the Streamlight Seige, with 540 lumens, sells for just under $40.
The Bottom Line?
We use the Tough Light 1000 LR for camping and have found ours does tend to discharge some after being stored for a couple of months. We just have to remember to charge it up ahead of time, before our camping trip.
On a budget overlanding forum we belong to we heard from with several others who own the Tough Light 1000 LR, and most were happy with it. As for us, we like it, but we found that we seldom use this lantern on the high setting, and it has far more battery life than we’ve ever needed. For us, the Tough Light 400 lumen model would probably would have worked just as well, and it’s $25 cheaper.
The Tough Light 1000 LR is a great little camping lantern, with only a couple little quirks. Also, it’s too bad the green LED is always on, with no way to turn it off. Some have reported difficulty in contacting the manufacturer for warranty issues, so make sure you keep your receipt and return it within the Amazon return window if you have any issues.
