The Memorial Day deals have arrived — err, at least some of them. BioLite, purveyors of all things solar, has kicked off a larger holiday promo ahead of May 26th, resulting in reduced pricing on smokeless fire pits, headlamps, and solar-powered stoves, just in time for summer. The company’s Site Lights are also on sale at Amazon, REI, and direct from BioLite for $74.89 ($25 off) through May 26th, which is the best price we’ve seen on the excellent solar-powered lighting system.
While still somewhat expensive for a six-bulb set, I’ve found the Site Lights to be worth it given their sheer convenience and versatility. Each IPX4-rated bulb can illuminate your campsite for up to 20 hours on the lowest brightness setting — or six hours on the highest — letting you light a path back to your tent or blanket a 1,000-square-foot area with ambient mood lighting. What’s more, the hangeable lights can easily slot onto the six included ABS stakes, which also double as tent pegs when necessary. It’s a nifty trick, though I do wish the attachment mechanism for mounting the lights was slightly more secure.
The mounting options are only part of the equation, though. The Site Lights come with a solar-powered charging case that functions similarly to a set of wireless earbuds. The clamshell charger provides enough juice to charge each shatterproof bulb at least twice on a full battery, and when they’re diminished, you just plop them in like you would a set of AirPods. Zepath’s rechargeable AA batteries use a similar charging technique, which, as we’ve mentioned before, is super useful because it means you don’t have to plug in each cell individually. I just wish I lived in a state where sunshine was easier to come by.