Splendid cheap USB light for emergencies
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- Опубліковано 20 сер 2024
- Update. There appear to be many clones of these lights and many of them use smaller 3528 LEDs running at a total of around 60mA. They still work well, but will put out less light, and may not be a high enough load to keep some power banks awake.
This came as a "gift" with an online purchase, but it turns out that it's a really nice design that would be perfect for adding a splash of light to a room or tent while camping or during a power outage.
It's sold on eBay as a USB night light, and is available in white, warm white and a selection of other colours. The construction is simple, rugged and functional, and the diffuser provides a soft even distribution of light.
Aside from its intended use as a night light when plugged into a USB wall socket or adaptor, it also has potential for use with a power bank and solar panel to provide regular nighttime illumination during prolonged outages or in remote locations.
I'd regard this light as an emergency essential as it is cheap and very useful.
Here's a "lowest cost first" search on eBay to prevent price gouging:-
www.ebay.com/s...
Guide price is around 1.50 to 2.00 pound/Euro/Dollars.
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#ElectronicsCreators - Наука та технологія
I do like the rotational symmetry of the board. It's like the designer thought, "you know what, no-one is going to know what's inside this, but I'll add a bit of design anyway. At least I'll know."
Both LEDs have the same orientation, for easier placement. Both resistors have the same value and are placed optically out of the way. They saved a fraction of a Yuan by skipping the plating on the data pins that aren't even soldered. He ticks every box with style.
I like this video a lot. People often overlook things like this and say words to the effect of "It's just a light" but it's well designed, simple and cheap to produce and I say credit where it's due.
It's surprisingly refreshing to see a solid, compact, eye-friendly, reliable, cheap, and functional LED light, when the vast majority of LED lights out there only hit one or two of those categories at best.
Can always rely on Clive to find something I didn't think I needed but purchased anyway.
I so ordered some myself
I have several Clive items and/or projects around the house.
But you've gotta order the pink ones.
So true
in power outages it would be pretty useful ngl
These are great for ensuring that power is flowing through a charging cable, at least simplistically so.
That's really neat. Sometimes the best designs are the most simple!
So true!
Like the Space Shuttle
@@RS-Amsterdam lol
In the emergency case where your power bank is low and not boosting, this will still glow.
@@tactileslut I have a solar charging 24,000 mAh Power bank, so I can't see my power bank going flat, unless it's a nuclear attack, and I'm sheltering in my pantry, 24/7.
Even then, only using the lamp for a hour or two a day, it'd probably still last.
I have a kid that was afraid of the dark and I set up a light similar to this on a long usb cable from the wall so it never died. He still uses it for reading, but it’s more of a spot light. Glad to know these exist.
We keep simple LED lights around for emergencies. They run on two AAA batteries, have a single LED and series resistor. The really cool part is they fit into the cork end of a wine bottle very nicely. We fill the bottles with either clear plastic or glow in the dark plastic rocks, kick on the light and shove it in. The rocks diffuse the light to fill the entire room. On one set of batteries, the light will run for well over 48 hours. Living where hurricanes hit with regularity, these have been very helpful.
Sounds good. Your reference to "the cork end of a wine bottle" made me chuckle. Have you ever tried putting anything into the other end of a wine bottle?
I just bought 3 for use as hotel night lights when on holiday, they remind me of those ones you had on the channel that plugged into a power bank to use as a torch.
Max respect to you Clive. Over the last few weeks, I've found several of your li-ion videos extremely useful during research for a simple video guide to vaping batteries on my own utube channel (still not quite complete). Your vids are totally invaluable for non-alarmists facts backed up with hard examples, circuits and links. Fantastic work. Mine is an extremely modest channel but for what it's worth you'll be getting a shout-out! Keep up the great work, it's much appreciated!
Simple and awesome. I bought something like this ("traditional" epoxy - embedded LEDS) a long while ago, which works very well indeed, and fits nicely in one of the front USB ports on the desktop p.c. - provides just enough light to see with but not act as a distraction.
I like the yin-yang PCB layout.
Extra gift! They like you Clive!! Cool light and nice job explaining how it actually functions!
I bought 20 of these based on your video and I must say I am not at all disappointed! They are great. You were absolutely right. I am currently testing how long they´ll last on my beefy power banks but I suspect it will take many hours. Nice tip! Thank you.
Oh Clive, this is great stuff. You're why I've made quite a few aliexpress purchases based around lil lights like these. If you find more lil usb gadgets like these to contribute to my collection, I'd love to see more! ❤️
He's tore apart basically every little led gadget ever!
refreshingly simple, basic, no-frills no tricks functional design! becoming more rare these days
I like how simple it is but I also like the nice large tracks, looks like they actually tried to keep most of the copper on the unit.
I got a break apart PCB of ten of the little PCBs with a pair of LEDs and resistor, and the pins on one end that fit into the type A socket. They can't get much simpler than that. If you're interested in minimal size, these are thin so they'll store almost anywhere. Thanks, Clive. I like the diffusing case, but it raises the cost. I also have a night light that looks like that but uses rainbow color slowly changing LED for effect.
I do this too, you can balance a diffuser from a busted light bulb over it for a super ghetto $0.10 night light.
I know the ones. I taped them to my battery packs with electrical tape so I always have several lights to hand if I need them.
best part of this is that Clive has a video on those too:
ua-cam.com/video/HgNFwoSwhbM/v-deo.html
imma go buy me some though, that's a fantastic idea
@@taylorbledsoe6090 Ah yes! That's probably why I bought them :-)
I recently transplanted the innards of a broken solar garden light into a wall-mounted light switch. Tweaked the inductor for a bit higher brightness, at about 25mA output with a 3V COB strip it is plenty bright and still runs ages off an eneloop AA cell.
This one is way smaller though, but I like big switches :)
I like big switches and I cannot lie.🎶
Big switches that go ka-thunk are the best. Followed by light switches that enthusiastically snap/jump into either their fully on or fully off positions
@@InsanePacoTaco I like it when the switches twerk.
@@InsanePacoTaco I would love a modern replica of a Frankenstein-style blade switch that works in a regular electrical installation and is safe enough to actually use.
@@steveoddlers9696 You could probably make one that simulates functionality with a microswitch that pulls in a relay or contactor but the metal of the switch doesn't handle any electricity.
I have something similar. It's a flashlight that simply snaps on to a 9V battery, making the battery itself part of the whole thing. Very handy, part of my boating kit.
I have something similar. Two rows of LEDs with a 3 position switch; Off, one row, both rows.
That's so cool and useful. Makes for a great little light while travelling, I agree.
These have been in my Amazon cart for weeks while I debated whether or not I need them. Definitely ordering them now.
You are so passionate about LEDs its amazing
2:36 Genius in its simplicity. I bought some (a while back) on naked circuit boards without diffuser. I think yours is better.
i bought that little lamp just because of your video, and honestly it's super neat. the light is comfortably bright and most importantly doesn't hurt my eyes (retinal detachment caused light sensitivity sigh). thank you!
i like these short ones. they are like candy, the longer ones are great too. just wanted to like and comment for the algorithm.
Thank you Clive, I was just looking for an item of this kind, your video came right in time! Took 2 warms (3000k) and 2 colds (6500k), always nice to have such convenient sources of light around.
You might want to measure them. I got one of those "2 warm + 2 cool" packages from eBay, and they turned out to be 0.009 to 0.015 watts, with much smaller LEDs (despite looking identical to these on the outside). Eventually got my money back, because they're advertised as "1 watt" and are a wee bit off that mark.
Nice little light. You're right. Nice quickie video
Sometimes simplicity is mastered and it's a great thing to see.
Hi Clive, very pleased you are making money for the work you do for us. But I do miss the early scary videos!,
Bob
So simple and so basic. This little light is marvellous! I need one! Thanks Clive!
Just bought a set for camping, thanks Clive
Bought 13 of them for $1 from aliexpress, i then added LDR and put them all over my house for nightlight. Amazing cheap little devices!
If Clive started a sleep podcast subscription, I would be the first subscriber. His voice is relaxing. Speaking of subscribers, great job for reaching 900K subs. Just 80,000 more to 1 million!
Good work Clive. A quick vid before I head off to work. Thanks. ✔️
That's the exact LED light color I like. the diffuser is doing a great job!
I was so impressed i bought 16 of em
P.S little tip, a rolled up post-it note makes a handy lamp shade, wow they bright
It looks very attractive for sure.
I bought a bunch of the milled aluminum usb lights you showed several years ago. Difference here is these are diffused.
Im really impressed how neat this board is, its really useful, i love LEDs
These are great! I pair them with a USB voltage regulator so I can dial the brightness way down. Very nice lights I’d recommend warm white the cool White is very blue
In South Africa we have loadshedding, rolling blackouts because the power stations haven't been properly maintained.
It was gone for a while, but now it's back with a vengeance, so this plus disposable vape salvages could be pretty useful
❤Just used ours on a tiny trailer camping trip with a big battery bank for some night ambiance lighting, it was perfect with the warm white glow. You mentioned altering the resistors to change the brightness, I'm sure you showed us how in a video somewhere but I'm having a hard time finding it. Since I have a pair I'd love to turn one down dim and leave one as is.
I already got myself a bunch of those a few months ago, Very nice light from them, especially the warm-white. Great review!
Care to share a link, my online finding skills suck.
Glad to see that has real resistors unlike that other crappy printed one.
You know, that's a good idea. A USB battery bank that has various USB light modules you can attach to it. You get both a very versatile flashlight and a battery bank all in one.
A delightful little device, Clive. It does one thing and does it very well.
I actually bought the warm usb lites and am glad that he reviewed the exact same one. Thx Sir.
Huh. These look far more useful than the others I’ve seen in the past. They were more of a USB stick form factor, resulting in a nice big lever hanging out of a USB port just waiting to be a wonderful cantilever and snapped straight off.
Ordered a pile for the hurricane box. I was feeling spendy, so I splurged for a warm white version as I hate cheap cool white LEDs.
well, I now have 10 of these on the way. They'll be going in my fishing box, camping bag, random drawers in my house, and my dad will probably yoink a few
Having this, a usb extension, USB solar charger and battery bank would be awesome for camping!
It's another gadget from china but doesn't come with an unearthed, unfused tingly metal bit and it looks like the resistors won't set your house on fire either. I am impressed!
No fear, you can always plug it into a tingly wall wart and pry off the lens if you really miss the morning jolt.
I really like the design of this light.
I got a couple when I bought my Miyoo Mini and I really like them. When I was traveling recently I did indeed use one as a nightlight for my little kiddo and one stayed in my bag by my power bank as a quick flashlight.
Ordered some, will be ideal nightlights in the caravan for the Grandkids :)
The Chinese are just brilliant at designing stuff, always bringing simple, cheap new innovations to the market. I would love to have one of those things especially in my country with poor electricity problems.
That's a really cool 😎 little light.
Now I want one for every room.
Very simple and effective design indeed, but I have a few similar USB lights with their own rechargeable battery that are probably more practical in case of emergencies, and more compact than both the power bank and the light too.
I have been installing a couple 12V light bulbs in a caravan. I like the fact that they don't have an integrated 220V radiator (AKA transformer) so much that I plan on installing them in my house too, run from a regular transformer, but also from a battery in case of a power cut. Then the lights and phone chargers would work just as usual, with the same cabling and switches.
I actually like this - simple, neat & practical
Nitpick: At 1:15 the multiplier is not 0 (30×0 would be 0), but 10 to the power of 0: 30×10⁰ = 30×1 = 30
i was also thinking that ;)
I recently bought one of these little guys, and instead of standard SMD resistors in their place were thin deposited strips of what I would assume is graphite or some other sort of resistive material. Just goes to show how much the cost of these can be compressed. It is impressive.
there are even USB powered multiple LED stick without the fancy dome or casing that cost less than a pence and people usually students use as makeshift reading light at dormitory when the curfew kicks in.
Going to pick up a few of these to have in a kitchen drawer, will be nice to have with a power bank.
I’ve got a usb light on a stalk and it’s flexible,it is brilliant,it gets a little warm but very useful
ive bought some led usb sticks that is just a circuit board several years ago and then picked up long led sticks with a plastic housing. these all make great loclized spot lights and emergency lights. i do like this one better as the difuser looks to be much better. thx Clive
What's even more clever about the idea of using this as a Night-light, is that allot of new mains -wall-outlets nowadays come in variants with one or two built-in USB connections for charging devices.
You could plug one of the these lights in and voila: a wall mounted Night-Light 😀
Reminds me of the lil aluminum USB torches for power banks that were all the rage a few years back. Got a bunch of these ordered now too lol.
Yes, its really neat... and very useful for camping in case the if the camping light is not working because normally I always have a USB battery pack with me if I go camping or hiking.
I'll bet that Clive knows his package delivery people on a first name basis.
They do ones that look like a tiny lightbulb with a USB on the end which is quite charming!
Brilliant find! Excellent for travel or night light use.
I remember seeing a video on urban exploration. One of the takeaways was that you should always have one more light than you need. I don’t need one right now, so I have one.
"It's a very nice little light!" - I expected that to be followed by "... that becomes a blowtorch at the most inopportune moment, and will likely cause the grippe."
I might order one or two myself for when we go camping..... Nice one Clive 😊
Brilliant little light Clive I’m going to get a couple thanks
Ah.. love it, thank you for your time and work to share it!
Nice find... the aluminium housed 1/2 W USB spot lights are great too... I believe Clive has featured these in the past.
The spare battery I keep with me for emergency phone charging comes with an integrated led at one end. Very handy at times.👍 Camelion is the brand.
I bring my makita usb charger camping all the time. Now this means I don't need one of those dicky tent lights now so great!
Just got one, they're ultra cheap. Could definitely come in handy!
Yeah I got a pack of 5 off aliexpress pretty cheap less than £2
Dang it. I just ordered a few. I only found Warm and Cool white but that's okay. I also got a flame version and another on a little goose neck.
Thanks for the coolness. I will now be the envy of any power bank party.
:-D
As you were mentioning in one of the Live Streams, there seem to be a lot of these for sale and there are some differences with the circuit boards. The first batch of the ones I ordered arrived (cold white) and each draws just under 60 mAh but the LEDs are tiny and the resistors are ultra super tiny which might make hacking them a bit of a challenge. Fun to play with though and maybe hand out to friends.
If your power bank can stand upright, then get one of the desk lights bendable LED strips. Just bend it at the angle you want and you can light up the whole place/room. It comes slightly diffused too.
elegant and functional
That looks like an ideal candidate for a 3d printed diffuser.
I saw this and bought a small pack of six of these, three warm white and three daylight white
I've bought three different types.
One is running at 130mA, one at 120mA, and one at 70mA.
The 70mA ones seem to be only slightly less bright than the others.
When it gets dark, I'll compare two of the 70mA ones, to one of the 130mA, to see if I can get more brightness, for the same current.
Experiment conducted.
I plugged two of the 70mA lamps into a (claimed) 20,000mAh powerbank, and left them running overnight, which was roughly 8 hours.
The light was plenty good enough to read by, and, after 8 hours, the LED display on the powerbank was still showing 75% charge.
Much better than a dedicated single purpose nightlight that can't be repurposed!
Just bought a four pack for a camping trip. Alongside some battery banks and a USB solar panel! Can't go wrong with the price of these lights!
Good Job Clive!
Julian Illets home is totally lit using these lights. 😄 great video 2x👍
I got a few put one each in my work and EDC bags as a second light source seem to work well
i used to have half a dozen similar ones in a different shape. they were about the size/shape of a USB stick and had 4 LED's lined up in a row side by side
Hi, this is indeed a nice little light. Unfortunately doesn't draw enough current for my Anker power bank to continue supplying power to it, but can of course be powered from the mains or OTG.
I may have to find a cheap AA to USB unit so I can take it to the bathroom without getting dazzled by the ceiling lights. Or perhaps it could be wired up to the shaver socket, though I'd rather not have it on 24/7 despite its negligible energy usage. Endless possibilities!
What a wonderful little gizmo, for what it is!
If I wasn't so stingy with my money, I'd buy a bunch of these, stick them in USB hubs and have myself a field day making my own custom power bank-based lighting setups.
I got a bunch of those "toothbrush" lights. Basically looks like a flexible toothbrush, with the COB lights where the "bristles" would be. Most were cold-white, but I got a bunch that were a rather nice 4000K-4500K or so.
That was in the roughly 1yr window that Gearbest was in its prime.
I'm a big fan of cheap USB gadgets - there are some little lights with touch sensitive brightness control on a bare PCB for about 50 pence each - really cool little things :D
Order placed! :) You always find some cool things.
They are good little lights, I have 2 like that and several more Light bulb looking types. They use so little power that most of me USB power banks shut off due to low draw.
1:02 I get the uneasy feeling that circuit is staring back at me. O O
That really is a simple design.
I'll be getting some of them.
I've just ordered some, at 99p each, including postage.
They've arrived, along with some of the "bulb" type.