NEXTORCH UL360 1XAA Pocket Lantern Review.

Woods Walker

The Wood is cut, The Bacon is cooked, Now it’s tim
Joined
Jun 8, 2008
Messages
5,433
Location
New England woods.
NEXTORCH UL360 1XAA Pocket Lantern Review.


Disclaimer. Sample sent to me for review.


Info from the manufacture.


The UL360 is a 360° utility pocket lantern. It's compact thumb-size, easy to carry and pack. The UL360 is drove by neutral white CREE® LED, more gentle and without hurting eyes during long use. Powered by one AA battery, max output up to 70 lumens, with a reach of 5 meters beam diameter. With 360 degree rotatable lamp body design, light in any direction you want, making most use of the light. Most interesting of all, UL360 comes with a magnetic bottom plate, a bungie cord and a S-biner, which offer countless mounting option that makes UL360 fit in almost everywhere. The UL360 is the best choice for camping, outdoor activities, maintenance and emergency.


• LED:CREE® XP-G2 R5 LED
• Output:70lm/10lm
• Runtime:3h20min/30h
• Battery:1*AA battery
• Distance:16.4'/5m(beam diameter)
• Diameter:78mm*34mm*21mm
• Weight:1.41oz/40g(without battery)
• Impact Resistance:1m
• Water Resistance:IPX-6


Lets take a look. Comes with two extra O rings and S biner shock cord lanyard/hanger which is attached in the photo but easily removable. I ran the included Energizer battery down in testing. After that used a 2500 mAh NiMH 1XAA.


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For size comparison. The Mora #2 has a 4.25 inch blade.


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The UL360 gets it's name from being able to spin 360 degrees via multiple points or maybe that's just a coincidence. Naw.... That's why it's called the UL360. I like descriptive names. It can move on these hinges.


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Rather well balanced and can tail stand.


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The base is magnetic and can also swivel in 360 degrees.


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This allows the light to be directed though the output is all flood. Still being able to choose the direction of the light is really useful. Nice to get the most out of the low mode or point the glare of the high away yet still light up a desired area.


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For example the magnetic base and 360 action working together.


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The outer shell has smooth plastic threads with an O ring.


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The tail cap is metal (mostly aluminum) with a spring.


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Directions on how to properly install the battery. The lantern appears to be polarity protected per my testing.


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Inside of the tube is metal lined. I didn't see or feel the side hinges going through the inner metal tube. It's rated for IPX-6. I am inclined to believe them. The testing was done in sub freezing conditions so was only able to dump water from a canteen over the lantern. IPX-6 isn't waterproof rated but highly water resistant if I am to understand the system. It past no problem.


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Beam profile is all flood. It's a bit hard to see the difference between high and low using my camera but much more obvious in person or the video.


High.


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Low.


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PWM is used for the low however could only be seen via camera test. Even shaking the lantern the pulse was impossible to see. I am down right picky about PWM as sensitive but didn't have any issues here. No PWM on high was detected.


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The UI is a simple two mode twisty. The UL360 comes on at high then just twist again for low. There is no memory mode so if left off for a few seconds it will always turn on in high initially. I normally prefer low first but the 70 lumen high isn't crazy blinding and given the softer NW tint and floody beam it's ok in field use.


Runtimes. I didn't verify the 30 hour low but did test the 3:20 hour high. Seemed bright for most of the runtime then started to dim per my eyes around 3:15 minutes or so till dying at:


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Field use evaluation.


I used it inside my tipi and around camp. On low there was enough light to function. Jobs like cooking the sacred bacon are no problem. Not enough light to read fine print but good enough for most of my in camp jobs. On high it was more than bright enough for anything though couldn't light up an entire large group camping area with multiple tables etc etc etc. We are talking about 1XAA so power is limited. I liked the tint of the NW XP-G2 shinning through the white plastic. Almost seemed like a Nichia 219B though know it's an XP-G2. Tint is the color shade of the light for those uninformed. For a lantern this is important or at least IMO. Harsh alien abduction angry blue cool white kinda sucks for area lighting though tint is within the eye of the beholder. The is tint is just fine though not warm. This lantern seems to be able to work in just about any situation given the multiple adjustment and mounting options. Tail stands very nice. All of this can be seen in the in camp review video.


Pros.


1. Not that expensive compared to similar options for what yea get. Around 20 bucks if you shop around.
2. I like the tint and that's no small thing.
3. Very versatile and adjustable.
4. Like the simple UI.
5. Like the high and low light levels.
6. 1XAA is a common battery type and form factor.
7. Feels very well made and solid. Smooth threads etc etc etc. Just feels like quality.
8. Good strong magnetic base.
9. Nice shock cord/S-biner lanyard and good lanyard attachment points.
10. Past my water test. The overall design seems very water and dust resistant.


Cons.


1. My preference is often for UIs which can start on low.
2. I would like a medium mode if possible. I bet 30 lumens could do everything 70 can but with longer runtimes.


Conclusions.


I really like this little lantern. Going to include it in my kit when packing AAs.


Here is a video review. Thanks for looking.


 

phosphor22

Enlightened
Joined
Sep 13, 2015
Messages
495
Location
USA
Great review -- appreciate the thoroughness. I may have to go for this one as emergency power outage light as well as for camping, especially since it uses the common AA battery. Although I haven't tried the light, I am sure I'd agree about the mode sequence; low is always better IMO.
 
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