Category Reviews & Testing

Every June the same scene plays out on my porch: one light on, thirty moths in formation around it, and…

The question arrives every spring: you want lights over the patio, and you are standing in the aisle deciding between…

People ask me how many lumens for outdoor lights expecting a big number, and the answer is smaller than they…

The lens is the part that decides whether a solar light throws a glow or a smear, and it is…

I have taken apart a lot of path lights, and the cheap vs expensive solar lights question never gets answered…

Solar string lights are the most popular decorative lighting option for outdoor spaces, and they are also the most fragile.…

Solar light packaging advertises a single runtime number. “Up to 8 hours.” “Up to 12 hours on a full charge.”…

Solar light marketing photos always show warm summer evenings. Dusk falls gently over a manicured garden, and the path lights…

Solar light manufacturers quote warranty periods of one to two years, and anyone who has owned solar lights knows that…

A solar light that glowed every night all summer can quietly stop working by October — dim by 9 p.m.,…

Walk through the solar light section of any retailer and you will see bold claims on the packaging. “Runs up…

A new claim has started appearing on solar light packaging in the last couple of years. Alongside the usual runtime…

Motion sensor solar lights have turned into an arms race of detection angles. Three years ago, most lights advertised 120…

I left a batch of solar path lights on my back patio during a heatwave last August. The ambient temperature…

The solar path lights I installed in 2019 are still in my side yard, and that is not a happy…