Why do you need a wind up lantern?  Simply because you don’t want to be caught in the dark without a reliable light source!  A wind up lantern is a very useful item to have for camping trips and for emergencies.  Instead of being powered by batteries, which can be unreliable in emergencies or when you’re out in the wilderness, a wind up lantern comes with an attached crank.

If you had one of these lanterns, you will never be caught in the darkness without a light source – ever again.  The portable lantern can simply be charged by winding the crank anytime you wish.  A good wind up lantern should be highly portable, durable and be full featured.  There is really no point bringing multiple devices when just one convenient device will do!  Most devices come with many additional features such as a radio, an alarm, a compass and more, making it truly the new must have swiss army knife of camping and emergency devices.

We recommend that if you want a full featured wind up lantern, you should go with the bestselling Wind ‘N Go Portable Lantern/Radio which is packed with features in a low cost package.  Compared to some other lanterns which also work by winding a crank, this lantern comes with many other functions which will definitely be useful when you go camping or in an emergency.

The Wind ‘N Go Portable Lantern/Radio has the following great features:

- 9 bright white LED lights
- 5 red LEDs that flash for emergencies
- AM/FM radio
- 120 decibel siren
- night light
- high frequency mosquito repellent
- compass

In addition, it can be charged by winding or by plugging in the included 12V DC adapter, so you can even charge it in your car!

Pros

1. Portable – The wind up lantern is definitely the most portable and light when you compare it to the battery and fuel lanterns.  This is especially true when you take into account the fact that you don’t have to bring any spare fuel or batteries for this lantern.
2. Green – The wind up lantern does not use any additional fuel or new batteries and works by recharging an internal battery.  This is a much more environmentally friendly solution.  We all need to play our part to preserve precious environmental resources and reduce our carbon footprint.  One of the ways we can do that is to start using more environmentally friendly product such as wind up lanterns.
3. Safe – Not having to carry around flammable fuel makes the wind up lantern safer than a fuel based lantern.  Safety is of paramount importance and this should be a factor when you are considering any equipment for a trip.

Cons

1. Not as bright – Most wind up lanterns use bright white LEDs as a light source.  These are still not as bright as the light which a fuel based lantern emits.  However, this is usually not an issue as the light is bright enough for most purposes including camping and hiking.
2. Needs to be recharged – The nature of the wind up lantern technology means that you have to recharge it every 1 hour or so by winding the crank.  Some of you might find this process rather troublesome.

In my opinion, the pros outweigh the cons and a wind up lantern is a convenient green wind up light for all kinds of camping and night outdoor activities.

1. Environmentally friendly – Compared to fuel based lanterns, the wind up lantern can be recharged simply by winding the attached crank.  Depending on the model, a few winds can be sufficient for minutes to hours of light.  If the lantern runs out of energy, just wind it again to power it.

2. Safe – A wind up lantern is much safer than a normal fuel based lantern.  There is no chance of any leakage of fuel and any other dangerous flammable substances which may pose a fire hazard.

3. Always have a light – You don’t have to fear that you run out of fuel or batteries.  Light will always be readily available no matter what the situation as long as you have a wind up lantern.

In addition, the wind up lantern is cheap, with most lanterns costing at most $30.  It’s definitely worth it for the peace of mind that a wind up lantern brings.