The Black Diamond Moji outshines some of its compact competitors. It's bright for its small size and very easy to use. It's not going to knock your socks off if you're trying to light a large space, but it's a nice choice for tent time reading or playing cards with a friend.
Performance Comparison
This lantern doesn't have the brightness that other contenders do and its basic features keep it as a lower overall scorer, but its performance and price point make it a Best Buy Award winner.
Brightness
At 100 lumens, the Moji is not nearly as bright as some other lanterns that we tested, but we were still able to do most everything we needed to. Its lowest setting has a shine radius of about 18 feet, while its brightest setting reached the corners of a 15' x 25' room. We preferred to use it in our tent at night to play cards and read.
We like the light quality of the Moji more than the MPOWERD Luci Outdoor 2.0. It's a little warmer, and the opaque plastic cover diffuses it a little better. This lantern also has a light 'memory', meaning that if you turn it off and turn it on again, it will remain at the same brightness until you dim or brighten it.
At top, the Moji lights up a 2-person tent and a wide area around it. On bottom, the Luci Outdoor 2.0 lights up the same tent, but with a much smaller additional radius.
If you want something a little brighter, more versatile and even more compact, take a look at the Black Diamond Zip.
Ease of Use
This lantern is very easy to use. Unscrew the rubberized top, insert the required three AAA batteries and you're good to go. Its single power button is textured, so it's easy to locate on the lantern in the dark. Beyond that, there's not a whole lot else to 'use' on this thing, which may be ideal for the purists among us.
This compact lantern has easily accessible batteries, while remaining highly water resistant. A standard headlamp for scale.
Durability
The Moji is durable, primarily because there really just aren't very many parts to break. It has a simple, elegant form that stands up well to regular use and being carried around in a bag all day. The plastic light cover could certainly get dinged up if it was dropped on an asphalt surface, but it wouldn't impact the overall performance of the product.
It has an advertised Ingress Protection rating of 4 (IPX4), which means it should stand up to splashing water coming at it from any direction. We left ours out in the rain for several hours and even dunked it in a river just to make sure — it still works great; the light turns on, with no obvious water seepage or damage. The X indicates that it hasn't officially been rated for solid particle resistance, but the seal on the battery cover keeps out the regular "dirt-y-ness" of a campsite.
For another durable, compact option, check out the Streamlight The Siege.
Features
The Moji is almost as basic as a lantern can get. Press the power button once to turn it on, again to turn it off, and hold it down in between to either dim or brighten it. It comes with opposed metal hooks on top (also found on the Black Diamond Zip and Black Diamond Apollo) so it can easily be attached to a carabiner, or hung from a clothesline. The logo on top is also reflective, which makes it easier to spot at night.
Because of how compact it is, if you don't have anywhere to hang the Moji, you are out of luck. It has no stand or legs, so resting it light side down on the ground or a table means that almost none of the light shines where you need it. Flipping it over so that the light is shining straight up makes it uncomfortable to look at and casts heavy 'telling a ghost story' shadows on people and objects around it. It does have small rubber nubs on the cap to rest on, but we wouldn't bat an eye if they weren't there.
The Moji lit up in the foreground with its larger sibling, the Apollo, behind it. Both come with opposing metal hooks for easy hanging.
The Moji also comes in five colors (vibrant orange, process blue, graphite, dark berry, and fern) if that's your thing.
Weight/Size
At 4.3 ounces (with batteries!), it's less than an ounce heavier than the super lightweight Black Diamond Zip. It's 2 ¼ inches in height, with a diameter of 2 ¾ inches, also making it one of the most compact lanterns we tested. We love that it fits in the palm of a hand, so it can easily stand in for a flashlight in a pinch.
Best Applications
The Moji is great for individual use or intimate spaces. We would recommend it for those looking to limit weight and carry just a single light source on an overnight or weekend excursion. It can light up a tent or a modestly sized room, and we love that it fits comfortably in the palm of a hand, making it great for a walk around the campsite in the evening. A bunch of them strategically placed around a car camping site could create some nice ambiance.
Value
At $20, we think the Moji is a really solid value. Not only is it one of the least expensive lanterns in this review, but it is durable and should last for many, many years of good use. It is also less expensive than headlamps of equivalent quality, so it's worth a look if you are choosing between one or the other.
Conclusion
The Moji continues what we have come to expect from the Black Diamond line. Though we would definitely opt for something like the Black Diamond Apollo or Ultimate Survival Technologies 30 Day Duro Glow if you are looking for a single campsite lantern, we really have no major complaints. In the Moji, you get a compact, lightweight, bright-enough lantern.
