We've seen our share of multifunctional lanterns of late, including the "Lantern" and the BioLite BaseLantern. The CampGuard lantern from Utah startup Bright Path LED packs a multifunctional feature set we haven't seen before. It works as a basic lantern, proximity sensor light and full-blown campsite alarm system.
Lanterns with built-in proximity sensors aren't anything new – the aforementioned BaseLantern has one – and we know there are a variety of camping perimeter alarms out there designed to scare off animals and alert campers of intruders. We've never seen those two functions integrated into an unassuming camping lantern, though - until we found the CampGuard.
At its most basic, the CampGuard is an LED lantern with 100- and 300-lumen settings. It also has a proximity sensor setting that automatically turns on the 300-lumen light when it detects motion, a feature that's designed for the camper getting out of his tent for a nature call or otherwise fumbling around in the dark without a light. Once activated, the light shuts off after 15 seconds of not detecting motion.
The fourth mode is what makes the CampGuard really shine (pun kind of intended). This is the full-blown 360-degree perimeter alarm mode, which sets up a perimeter up to 35 ft (10.7 m) away. If it detects motion, the light goes on full blast, accompanied by a loud alarm. Bright Path says that the alarm has been tested and tuned specifically for scaring off dangerous animals and predators. So whether it's a bear or burglar, it should be turning tail and scurrying back to whence it came.
We're not sure the CampGuard will be a welcome edition to a crowded summertime campground if it starts blasting at 3 a.m. because a squirrel ran through your site. But for more remote forms of camping, where you aren't near anyone else and may be worried about what's lurking in the darkness, it could prove a winner – or at least a contributor to your peace of mind. It probably won't do quite as much good work as the Thermacell mosquito-repelling lanterns, but one repelled bear could be worth an awful lot of repelled mosquitoes.
The CampGuard is available for US$79.99 on Bright Path's website, which is $10 off the listed MSRP. You can see it in action in the video below.
Source: Bright Path