Best outage nightlight in lanterns and power banks
A plug-in nightlight that switches on by itself when the power fails, then folds into a small flashlight to get you to your main lights.
Our score: 7.2/10 out of 10Researched, not lab-tested
- Brightness
- 50 lm
- Runtime (maker's claim)
- 4 h
- Battery capacity
- 2,000 mAh
- Light type
- Plug-in outage light
Is it right for you?
Pros
- Turns on by itself when mains power is lost
- Folding prongs: unplug it and it's a 50-lumen flashlight
- Motion sensor dims or switches off the nightlight when nobody's about
- Built-in 2,000 mAh battery recharges from the socket
Cons
- Up to about 4 hours of light: a first light, not a multi-day lantern
- Single LED: it lights a path, not a room
- No published ANSI FL1 runtime or beam data
- Best for
- Hallways, stairs and children's rooms, so nobody fumbles in the dark when the power drops, at night or in an ice storm.
- Not for
- Lighting a room through a long outage: pair it with a rechargeable lantern.
Our verdict
The Blackout Buddy Color solves the first minute of an outage: it lives in a wall socket as a nightlight, and the moment the mains power fails it switches itself on, so nobody is feeling for the stairs in the dark. Fold its prongs away and it becomes a 50-lumen flashlight, running on a built-in 2,000 mAh lithium battery that recharges from the socket. A motion sensor dims the nightlight, or keeps it off, when nobody is about.
Keep its job in proportion. Eton rates it at up to about four hours of light on a full charge, and its single LED lights a path, not a room. Treat it as the light that gets you to your lantern, such as the Goal Zero Lighthouse 600, not as outage lighting on its own. Eton publishes no ANSI FL1 beam or runtime test data. A few in hallways, by the stairs and in children’s rooms make sense for an ice-storm or winter-outage kit.
Setup and use
Setting it up. Eton’s owner card has you set the slide switch to AUTO or DARK, plug it in, then press the power button to pick a nightlight colour; after that it runs on its own. AUTO dims the nightlight after 30 seconds without motion, DARK keeps it off until it sees motion, and OFF keeps the nightlight dark.
When the power goes, or when you unplug it, it lights up by itself. Repeated presses of the power button cycle through the colours and the flashlight. If the nightlight never turns off, its ambient-light sensor is probably covered: keep furniture and curtains clear of it.
Lights, not candles. CPSC advises flashlights and lanterns rather than candles during outages; this one is there the moment the power goes. See every light we compare in our lights and power banks hub.
- Brightness
- 50 lm
- Runtime (maker's claim)
- 4 h
- Lights up in a power cut
- Yes
- Weight
- 80 g
- Battery capacity
- 2,000 mAh
- Light type
- Plug-in outage light
Blackout Buddy questions
How long does the Blackout Buddy Color stay lit in an outage?
Up to about four hours on a full charge, according to Eton, from its built-in 2,000 mAh battery. That covers getting through an evening or reaching your main lights, not a multi-day outage. Plug it back in once the power returns and it recharges from the socket.
Does it stay on all night as a nightlight?
Only if you want it to. On AUTO the nightlight dims after 30 seconds with no motion; on DARK it stays off until it sees someone; on OFF the nightlight stays dark. If it never switches off, check that the light sensor isn’t covered.
Can it light a whole room?
No. It is a single 50-lumen LED, which is enough to see a hallway or stairs, not to read or cook by. Use it to get to a proper lantern, and keep the lantern charged; the Blackout Buddy’s job is the moment the lights go out.