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Garrity Power Lite 3 LED Crank Light | 
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| Brand: Garrity
Category: Sports
Buy New: $8.99 - $22.00
Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 68
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 10.9 x 5.9 x 2.8
Model: K023GSC
ASIN: B001L5TM1G
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| Features:
| • | Self-powered flashlight ideal for power outages, camping, and traveling | | • | Provides up to one hour of bright light per minute of cranking | | • | Three super-bright LED bulbs; sealed, rechargeable NiMH battery | | • | Magnifying lens casts a bright beam; comfortable rubberized grip | | • | Lightweight, compact housing; lifetime warranty on the fixture |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Product Description
A proven necessity for hurricane preparedness, the Garrity Power Lite lets you crank up the power with a few turns of the handle. This go-anywhere, anytime light is always ready, no matter how long it's been between uses. Just press on the power button, crank the handle, and light up the power. The Power Lite includes three super-bright LED bulbs that provide up to one hour of bright light for every minute of cranking. In addition, the light's rechargeable NiMH battery never needs to be replaced. Other features include a magnifying lens that casts a bright beam, a rubberized grip, and a compact housing. The lightweight, compact LED flashlight is also terrific for weekends at the cabin, traveling, stashing in the glove box, and standard power outages. The Power Lite carries a lifetime warranty (applies to the fixture only, not bulbs or batteries).
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
 A better wind-up flashlight than The Illuminator December 24, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
[Note: This is a re-upload of my original review dated back to Jan 22, 2007. Somehow all old reviews for this product written before Dec 2008 were zapped]
I own both the Garrity Power Lite and the ILLUMINATOR wind-up flashlights. They have the same basic design, but with the following differences:
1. Size: The Illuminator is about the size of a man's electric shaver. It is easier to hold and to crank. The Garrity is bulkier, mainly because of the extra plastic lenses in front. It is also less comfortable to hold because rubber grips on the sides are shorter (see my Customer Image for size comparison)
2. Ease of Cranking: The Illuminator's handle takes very little effort to crank. However, you need to turn it virgorously (2-3 turns per second) in order to charge up the battery. The Garrity's cranking presents more resistence and is noisier. But the good news is that you only need to turn it at around one turn per second to charge up the battery.
3. Light Output: Both flashlights use 3 white LEDs, and have the option to turn on either one or all three. As far as I can tell, the LEDs are identical. The main differnce is that the Illuminator's light output is diffused, while the Garrity added three plastic lenses in front to produce a well-focused beam.
4. Light Duration: When fully charged up, the Illuminator gives out brighter light initially. However, its light dimmed down within a few minutes. After ten minutes, the light becomes barely visible (see my Customer Image above). The Garrity, on the other hand, produces fairly consistent light output for at least one hour!
Based on longer light duration, I would recommend the Garrity over the Illuminator. The Garrity is also cheaper when you order it with free super-saver shipping. (Be carefull when ordering The Illuminator, because some places offer the flashlight for $8-10, but charge another $8 in shipping!)
[The following Info for geeks only]:
Why does the Garrity produce much longer light duration than the Illuminator?
The Illuminator uses one 3.6V Lithium-ion rechargeable button cell (capacity unknown, probably around 30mAh). The Garrity uses 3x 1.25V NiMH cells rated at 80mAh. In my opinion as an electrical engineer, the NiMH design is much better because:
1. Each white LED needs about 20-40mA at 3.6V to produce sufficient light output. Three NiMH cells provide a consistent 3.75V throughout most of the discharge period. The Li-ion cell may provide up to 4V when fully charged, but its voltage drops quickly during discharge to 3.6V and below. This explains why the Illuminator produces a brighter light initially, but dims down much faster.
2. NiMH cells are more robust and can withstand over-charging better than Lithium-ion cells can. Think about it: there are chargers that can fully charge up NiMH cells in 15 minutes (that is, charging at 4X), but there are no chargers that can do Li-ion cells in less than one hour. In this case, since you can charge up the battery in one minute and then use it for up to one hour, that means the battery is being charged at 60X! This kind of abuse is not recommended even for NiMH, and it can be murderous for Lithium-ion rechargeable batteries.
[Update on April 9, 2007]
Warning: Don't crank the handle virgorously when you have just the middle LED turned on. This is because the voltage across three NiMH cells can be as high as 4.5V when being charged. At this voltage, excessive current can flow through the LED and burn it out - as I have found out for myself. Luckily I was able to replace the middle one with an ultra-bright greeen LED. (It looks really cool, too.)
[Update on Nov 6, 2007]
Please check out my review on Duracell Crank Light 3 in 1, 3 LED Flashlight, Radio, Charger. I feel it is even better designed than the Garrity.
[Update on Dec 24, 2008]
I should add that all three Illuminator crank lights I bought two years ago are nearly useless now (batteries can't hold any charge). The two Garrity crank lights are still going well.
Good value in an always ready emergency light December 24, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The advent of LEDs that consume little power but offer bright light is a technological marvel with practical implications.
Since we had a couple of power outages this past summer, I involuntarily inventoried our household flashlights. Do I have to tell you that the batteries in most were deader than a doornail or close to it?
I bought this one because it was inexpensive and seemed to offer what I want: 30 minutes of light for a minute of cranking is a fair trade; three diodes should provide enough light and no batteries to worry about.
The Garrity Power Lite 3 LED Crank Light pretty well fits the bill. It is relatively small, but big enough to grip comfortably, which is important when you are cranking. The crank itself is amply sized, another advantage when cranking. There are cosmetic grooves on the side which may help in holding the unit when your hands are damp or gloved. There is also a punchout for a lanyerd, although I would use it for a carbiner clip or something similar.
There are three LEDs. The switch turns on one LED first which provides a usable amount of illumination. The pattern is entirely circular. When you switch on all three LEDs, the pattern is still circular, but brighter. The reflector design is not very good. This is not a light you'd want to use for detailed work, for example. For finding your way in a darkened home or along a path, it is fine.
Keeping several of these around the home in fixed locations so you know where to find them, would be a good idea. You never need to worry about batteries with them: a minute of cranking and you're good to go. Another in the car is also a sound idea. These units are not the smallest ones available, but you'll definitely enjoy the advantages of the larger crank when the need arises.
Good value.
Jerry
 Garrity's wind-up LED flashlight is a winner! December 24, 2008
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
Was browsing through some Red Cross literature late last winter after a brief power outage, and they had suggested that every home have a wind-up flashlight flashlight available for emergency use. Did some research on these, and last spring ordered a Garrity Power Lite 3 LED Crank Light. Was simply looking for a reasonably priced crank or wind-up emergency flashlight without any frills, but one that was built well and might hopefully last a few years. Must say that I have no regrets about this choice.
Came very close to buying the Dynamo Illuminator Wind-up LED Flashlight, but checking with people who knew more than I did, found that it didn't seem to have the battery life of the Garrity. That was backed up by some of the reviews found here.
The product features from Garrity say "easy-to-wind crank-light provides up to 30 minutes of light with one minute of cranking." Further down the product description says: "With just one minute of cranking, this flashlight will provide up to one hour of bright light with its three super bright LED bulbs." My personal experience has been that 60 seconds of cranking (60 complete cycles), this Crank Light provides decent illumination for over an hour... and it will last longer than that if you use it in the single bulb mode. The only thing to watch out for is to not crank the light with it turned on in the single bulb mode, as too much current could flow through the LED and burn it out.
If you're looking for a full-featured item for a home emergency kit, then the American Red Cross FR150 Microlink Solar-Powered, Self-Powered AM/FM/Weatherband Portable Radio with Flashlight and Cell Phone Charger, which is made by Eton, might be a perfect solution. Have had mine since last summer, and it's actually an amazingly small full-featured emergency radio that has a flashlight with three LEDs on the its side. It provides surprisingly bright illumination, and for comparison it's about on the same level as my Garrity Crank Light. It's radio pulls in both AM and FM stations, and with surprisingly clear reception, and it receives all seven NOAA bands using a separate slide selector, so you can monitor changing weather conditions, along with tuning in to the FCC and EAS public alert systems.
Others crank-powered emergency lights you might want to consider are the more costly Duracell Crank Light 3 in 1, 3 LED Flashlight, Radio, Charger with its extra features, or the Wind N Go Flashlight. Should you be looking for something extremely small, yet the idea of hand-cranked generator power is appealing, the diminutive Ziotek Mini LED Dynamo Keychain Flashlight should work, as a few turns from its crank and and you'll have full power again.
Summarizing, I can recommend the Garrity Power Lite 3 LED Crank Light as a sturdy and reasonably-priced solution as an emergency light, and it's handy enough for general use as well.
Solid Feel for Light and Cranking December 19, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Has a good feel in the hand and has two inset handles that makes it easy to crank. Like the options of three lights for bigger field of light and single bulb for more focused attention with just a click of the switch.
For the price, beats cussing that the batteries went dead.
Great for emergencies. December 15, 2008
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
There are some streets that are very dark at night -- especially during Winter. This flashlight has kept me from tripping and falling. It doesn't need batteries because it is rechargable by cranking it.
So far, I'm very satisfied with it.
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