It is amazing how long solar camping lanterns and solar lights in general have been around. The good news is these products have improved tremendously over the years. This article is going to cover the advantages of solar camping lanterns and other solar devices that you can use anywhere not just camping. You may camp in a tent or RV or a rented home and you still want your own light resource.

There are also more brands and styles of lanterns and other solar devices than ever before. Given that our electronic gadgets like cell phones are so important to us now, you can even recharge one by solar chargers. There are also solar reading lights you can use when you want to read a book but you don't need a big light or you don't want to disturb others.

Cut the Cord

Yes, because these lanterns use the power of the sun, you don't need electric cords and you don't have to pay a bill for their use. You also don't need any gas or other fuel that can be a hazard to store and transport. The only batteries you need are the ones that the solar light uses and they last for a long time. You also don't need standard bulbs. Most of the solar lights today use LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) to give off the light and they last for years.

Power of the Sun

Once your solar camping lanterns are charged from the sunlight, run them, as you need them at night or anytime. You can either set the lanterns to turn on automatically when dark or use the manual switch. Some of the lanterns even have an optional car charger. All you really need is to set them out in the sun from time to time and charge them up.

Safety

Be sure to think about safety when you look for a solar camping lantern or any other solar light or device. You want to make sure they are CE certified, corrosion resistant (to keep it in good shape), and water-resistant or waterproof. Since you are going to have these outside and/or moving them around, you want a safe light to operate. There are even some solar lights with motion detectors that come on when someone moves near the light.

Other Ideas

Some other ideas are solar reading lights as mentioned before. You can get a small device that clips on a book or sits where you can position the light to shine on what you are reading. You might even need to clip it on your camper or RV as an emergency light. It can even sit on your desk at home or work and you just charge it in the sun when it starts to run down. You can also use any solar light that is designed to sit on a flat surface as solar camping lanterns. Sometimes people use solar lights designed to sit on a deck or fence post as a lantern. Why not? As long as it sits on a table, the ground, or other flat surface, use it where you need it!