Although I’ve never been camping in my life, I seem to have an unnatural fetish for outdoor gear like pocket knives, compasses and flashlights. I enjoy going into stores like Dick’s Sporting Goods and spending time looking at all their gear. If you prefer online browsing, a store that specializes in knives and flashlights is Discount LED Lights and Knives. In the past, they have sent me several LED flashlights to review and the most recent product that I’ve had the opportunity to try out is the Coast LED Lenser TT7105 LED Lantern. While I didn’t get a chance to test this product on an actual camping trip, I did test it a couple of times during my version of a ‘roughing it’ activity… power failures at home ;o)
Flashlight Specs
Light type: LED (3)
Bulb: 4.63-watt 70 lumens
Reflector: Patented Reflector System
Case type: Metal and plastic
Powered by: 4 D Alkaline batteries included
Water resistant?: Weatherproof
Size: 10.5 x 6.00 in
Weight (with batteries): 3 lb. 5oz.
The TT7105 stands 10.5 inches tall and is constructed of sturdy materials that give it a great robust feel. The casing is made of sturdy Black plastic and a combination of Silver brushed and chromed metal.
The attached swivel handle is both simple and functional. A hard plastic grip makes it easy to comfortably carry the lantern.
If you slide the grip down the post, it will reveal a hook that you can use to hang the lantern. Nifty.
This LED lantern is powered by 4 D cell batteries. To access the battery compartment, you unscrew the hard rubber base and and open the cover. According to Coast LED Lenser, one set of batteries should power the lantern for 80hrs at maximum brightness. If you dim the light, you can get as much as 200hrs from a set of batteries. I do wish that this lantern had the additional ability to be powered by alternative means such as a 12V car adapter.
To dim the light, you just hold down the power button on the front of the lantern. After a few seconds, the light will start dimming. This setting is not saved though. As soon as you power the light off and on again, it will go back to max brightness.
I should mention that the power button doesn’t have any tactile feedback, which is a minor gripe for me. I also found that I often need to press it multiple times before it powers on or off.
This lantern puts out a nice wide beam of light that would be great in a tent at night or in at home when the power’s out. It’s even bright enough to read by. The LEDs are rated for 100,000 hrs of light.
A nice feature is the built in battery level indicator. Located below the power button, this gauge changes as your batteries drain. It will glow Green when the batteries are full, then Yellow and I’m guess, finally Red. I’ve yet to deplete a set.
The TT7105 LED lantern puts out a generous amount of White light without needing kerosene or propane. If it falls over in a tent, it’s no big deal as it does not get hot. This is a quality light source that is handy for use on camping trips or for those times when the power is out at home.
Updates 05/02/16
I still have this lantern and used to use it every time the power would go out. That was before we installed a whole house generator. These days this lantern doesn’t see much use at all. But, someone posted a comment on this review the other day asking if it was a bad idea to leave the batteries in the lantern if it wasn’t being used. So I took the lantern off the shelf and it still turned on. It has the original batteries that shipped with it and they are still going strong. You really can’t beat that considering they are going on 9 years old!
Product Information
| Price: | 79.99 |
| Manufacturer: | CoastProducts |
| Retailer: | Discount LED Lights and Knives |
| Requirements: |
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I like this lantern – really great idea. I like the handle and that it slides down to reveal a hook on top, I like that it uses LED’s and batteries instead of propane, I like that it has a battery life indicator (which is very smart – and necessary in a device like this), and I like the overall looks of it, too.
But as far as the power button is concerned, that was a design mistake. I don’t like that each time you turn it on, it automatically goes to full brightness without remembering the level of brightness you last had it at – that would get real annoying, real quick.
In fact, I don’t like the button concept at all, and certainly not a spongy type of button. Yuk, get that outta here!
What they should have done instead, is just put a rotary knob on the front, and have it operate like every other rotary knob in existence – you turn clockwise to “click” it on, in which the light would start out at the dimmest setting, and as you continued to turn the knob clockwise, the light would gradually increase in brightness until the knob came to a stop at which point the light would reach full power. Then you’d just reverse the process to dim it or turn it off. Basically, the same thing you’d find on a Torchiere lamp with a dimmer knob. Now THAT would’ve been simple and elegant. Not to mention, smarter and more intuitive, with the much needed and wanted tactile feedback.
If they change that, then they’ll have a winner. But until then… close, but no cigar.
One of One:
You’ve made some excellent points and I agree with them 🙂 But even as is, this is a nice product. Having to re-dim each time you turn it on isn’t overly annoying. I mean it’s not like you’re going to be turning it on and off every 5 minutes or something like that.
Oh, I think the product is really nice overall. I just don’t like the switch.
But you might end up repeatedly turning it on and off quickly if you’re a total dork or if you’re sending out morse code and don’t want it on full power.
OK, that was a lame attempt at a joke, but in all seriousness, how often you’d turn it on and off isn’t the issue. For instance, if someone needs to get up in the middle of the night to run to the bathroom and doesn’t want to disturb their sleeping partner, not having it turn on to full brightness would not only be preferable, it would also be easier on the eyes (until they adjusted), hence my desire for a dimmer switch.
Very true… and I do agree that the switch is the weakest feature of this otherwise nice lantern. 🙂
This lantern is not doing so well in the battery life department in my opinion. My 2-LED flashlight lasts about four days of continuous use (yes, I turned it on and never turned off to test). When we go on vacation, we use it as a night light so confort my two daughters since they are afraid of the dark.
As it is, 80 hours for full power on a set of 4 D-size batteries is not the performance I expect from LED bulbs. Correct me if I am wrong.
I’m not sure how to interpret the battery like. I do know that this lantern has 3 LEDs and 4.63 watts / 70 lumens. That probably makes a difference when compared to your 2 LED light.
I’ve had this lantern for about five years now. It is excellent. Batteries last a very long time. It is built like a tank.
I do not think it is available anymore, which is too bad. Top quality and performance, if you are lucky to have one.
@Analytica I still use mine on occasion and it still has the original batteries!
Is it advisable to leave batteries in flashlights, since most people do not use them that often?
Probably not, but I still have original batteries in this lantern. They are at least 9 years old and are still working. Here’s a pic I just snapped
I see in the photo that the battery indicator is on yellow. I have one of these that was also years old and on the original set of batteries, and when the indicator started showing yellow, I opened it up. And… the original set of batteries had leaked a ton of gunk, even though they were still working. Since it’s waterproof, all of it stays inside and there is no visible warning. It was a tremendous hassle to clean all of that corrosive gunk out. I would run this on 4AA white Eneloops with A to D adapters and just charge them more often. Leaving alkaline batteries installed for 9 years is asking for trouble.
Also, it has only one LED if you are counting the actual emitter and not the indicator lights. Take it apart and see.
Hmmmmm, thanks for the tip / warning. I will check it out and report back.