I took a few weeks to use this lantern before writing a review about it. First things first, the CL30R is typical Fenix quality, I haven’t found a single blemish, machine mark, poorly fit piece on the lantern. Out of the box it’s a stout little lantern made from durable aluminum and a thick plastic diffuser. My initial impression was “this is tiny!” It’s easily pack-able in a day pack or your camping gear, it hardly adds any weight and can double as a phone charging battery bank.

The reason for purchasing this lantern was because of a recent power outage that left me with multiple Fenix flashlights scattered around the house trying to produce ambient light. It worked, however it wasn’t very efficient having to charge multiple 18650 batteries.

I haven’t gotten to use this lantern during an outage yet but I have no doubt that it will provide many hours of sufficient lighting to get around the house. I have been using primarily at night, rather than my actual lights and it has been phenomenal. I have charged it one time only, the day I received it, and it is still fully charged. I have read reviews complaining about 2600mah batteries that come with it but they are more than enough. If you truly need that much run time out of a lantern, which I imagine is days…then I recommend getting the 3500mah batteries. For the average user, I think the 2600mah are more than enough,

All in all, I highly recommend the CL30R if you’re in the market for a quality, powerful lantern that provides plenty of run time and brightness in case of emergency or even if you’re just camping and need to light up the area around you!