I have one more consideration, even though Iām sure I can trust that aspect with you: make the lantern very attractive looking (even though IMO it does not necessarily have to mimic an old-school kerosine lantern)
In my opinion this is much more important for a lantern than it is for a flashlight: a lantern, when camping, is often the center of the attention, and must add to the good vibes of being in the open. I see the cheap plastic angry-blue crap everywhere and that immediately makes me feel depressed, while my handsome old Feuerhand always makes me smile.
i did that already with the Apocalypse lantern
a complex design would drive the price up for a manufacturer to replicate, but i do plan on making this one here ālookā like a lantern and not be completely plain.
i did mention that is an issue especially with 75 % of LED lanterns on the market being a up-firing design, (LEDs on the bottom facing up) that caused a lot of glare added with colder tints that multiply the glare effect. This will have a much less glare effect.
I propose that first a āC4ā C=Camping (or CL) Camping Lantern, 4 = 4x18650 is taken from proof of concept to āproductionā
Then we can / should go to a smaller
C8 C=Camping (or CL) Camping Lantern 8 8xAA/814500 version
Yes a big cut the glare is very high on the list, maybe we can even get a nice big āawning topā (donāt know the proper name) because lets face it for the vast majority of use it will be popped down on the table with us and so from that level our eyes need to be protected from direct line of sight.
I think we are in great hands and I know the brain trust has forgotten more about lanterns then I will even know but I wanted to put the .02 lumens worth in the pot.
No attack intended but please skip the frills. Once we go to ārealā emitters, (built in) solar panels just cant keep up.
Crank winding - same argument (do you know how much cranking you need to do to charge 4x2600 mah cells?)
and as for built in charging please remember the ACEBEAM debacle.
If we are on an extended trip such that packing 1-4 extra cells is an issue then we can plan on packing a separate solar panel and bring a proper charger (check out GoalZero et al)
KISS!!! If we want a power bank or a power source for our cell phone (how much are we really gong to talk on a remote trip?) See GOALZERO and others of there ilk for solutions.
What about PWM, do you intend to avoid flicker or are you not worried about this aspect? For me it would be an absolute deal breaker regardless of anything else although I do realise itās not that important for the majority of people.