The UST Duro Glow puts out 30 lumens on the lowest setting for 24 hours a day and just keeps going and going and going. It lasted for 33 days in our testing, using a set of generic batteries. It glows in the dark, has four settings, and a sturdy, rubberized, impact resistant base.
Performance Comparison
This mid-size lantern offers solid utility, especially when getting the most out of your batteries is a top priority.
This light scores well for its brightness and durability. It doesn't have any glaring weaknesses, there are just a handful of minor annoyances that hold it back.
Brightness
This light puts out a very respectable 700 lumens on high and can do so for just over 22 hours. The frosted dome makes the light softer than it otherwise would be without it. The medium setting puts out 140 lumens (for up to 106 hours) and the low and SOS modes both glow at 30 lumens. You have the option of taking the dome light cover off and hanging it upside down by its plastic hook in order to illuminate a larger area with slightly more light.
The 30-Day Duro Glow has three settings; high, medium and low.
It doesn't have the same dimmability as many of the other models, but its longevity makes it well worth keeping around.
Ease of Use
It's fairly easy to use. Press the power button successive times to cycle through each of the light settings. The light cover detaches and attaches easily, however, we found that the battery compartment lid/bottom isn't as simple — it's just tricky to line up the two pieces to screw them together smoothly.
This light stays put, even on loose and soft surfaces.
There are no feet at the base. However, between its weight and the gripping rubber base, we felt good about setting it down on relatively flat surfaces and confident that we weren't going to knock it over.
Durability
The 30 Day Duro Glow has a rubberized housing which makes it a very durable product. UST claims that it is water resistant, not waterproof, but we did submerge it in a river during testing and it came out totally fine. If you're looking for something waterproof and a little smaller, check out the Streamlight The Siege, which is a similar but much more compact product.
We just don't quite trust the hook on the Duro Glo the same way we do with the carabiner on the Streamlight The Siege.
It didn't fail during testing, but we think that hook which enables the lantern to be hung from above could be one of the first pieces to break. The lantern is relatively heavy and the hook is just not very sturdy plastic.
Testing lanterns' claims of waterproofness. Both of these models passed with flying colors.
Features
The UST Duro Glow has a bunch of subtle, but useful features. This light has four lighting modes; high, medium, low, and SOS strobe.
The SOS strobe setting is not just synonymous with flashing. It actually pulses light in Morse code, spelling out S-O-S
It glows in the dark — not as well as we would like, but just enough that you can see it a few feet away at night, say, in a tent. If you charge it up next to a very bright light source, it glows in the dark a little bit better.
It's not a UFO, this light glows in the dark so you can find it...before you knock it onto the floor in the dark.
You can also unscrew the dome lid and hang it upside down by its plastic hook to increase the illumination area. The plastic hook is not super sturdy and bends when taking it out of its snapped-closed position. The base is hefty. Because of the tacky rubber material and the lantern's overall weight, it certainly won't slide off of a table. However, when you unscrew the bottom to replace the batteries, it is kind of difficult to put it back on. See the Ease of Use section above for details.
Weight/Size
The Duro Glo weighs a little under 2 pounds with three D batteries installed. It measures 7.2" tall and has a diameter of 3.75". It is not as light and compact as either of the Black Diamond models we tested. This light probably isn't going to accompany you in the backcountry, but it is much more compact than the Coleman Northstar, and of course, does not require any of the same messy fuel canisters or a mantle.
Best Applications
This lantern is best for car camping, RVing, or if you live somewhere dark like Alaska where you need a product that can run on a low setting for a very long time. This lantern can run on low, 24 hours a day for over 30 days. It will slightly glow in the dark and very sturdy and durable. If you're looking for something that doesn't take any batteries at all, check out the MPOWERD Luci 2.0.
Value
The 30 Day Duro Glow has an MSRP of $50 and comes with a limited lifetime warranty. If you don't need something very bright but need the batteries to last a long, long time, this is your product. It will run for over 30 days on low. This feature is great if you need to save battery life. The glow-in-the-dark feature doesn't work very well. The Streamlight The Siege is a very similar product that doesn't last as long on low, but for the same price it does float and is waterproof.
Four top contenders for your next camping adventure.
Conclusion
We love that this light has the capability of running on low, 24 hours a day for over 30 days. On high mode, it puts out a nice 700 lumens. This lantern is sturdy and durable and would make a good addition to any car camping box, RV outdoor lighting option, or emergency kit. It earns a Top Pick award for use during power outages because of its awesome runtime.
