LED Work Light - Rechargeable COB Inspection Lamp with Magnetic Base

Description

This LED work light is a 375 x 34mm rechargeable COB inspection lamp with a magnetic base that rotates through 360 degrees, a hook at the top, and a rotary switch that dims it smoothly from off to full. It runs on a built-in 1500mAh lithium battery charged over USB, and is $33.58 for one or $62.98 for two at Lets Party. The body is reinforced ABS with a non-slip grip.

The value of this shape of light is that it puts itself where you need it. Working under a bonnet, behind a washing machine or inside a cabinet, the problem is never that you do not own a torch - it is that you only have two hands and both are busy. A strip light that sticks magnetically to the nearest steel and swivels to face the work, or hooks over a pipe above you, means the light stays aimed at the job instead of rolling into the footwell. That is why these live in toolboxes and glove boxes rather than in drawers.

Specifications

What's in the Box

Why Choose a Magnetic COB Strip Light

• Frees both hands - magnet on the base, hook on the top, so it mounts almost anywhere near the work.
• Wide even light - a COB strip throws a broad flood rather than the tight hot spot a torch gives, which is what you want in an engine bay.
• Stepless dimming - a rotary dial rather than fixed modes, so you set the brightness that suits and get the runtime that comes with it.
• Rechargeable - no disposable batteries, and it charges from the same USB cable as everything else in the car.
• Rotating base - 360 degrees of aim, so the magnet can go on any flat steel and the light still points at the job.

What Is a COB LED and Why Does It Matter for a Work Light?

COB stands for chip on board - many small LED dies mounted directly onto one substrate rather than as separate packaged lamps. The practical difference you notice is the quality of the light. Individual LEDs produce distinct bright points, which cast multiple overlapping shadows and make it hard to judge a surface. A COB strip behaves much more like a single continuous light source, so shadows are softer and single, and a wide area is lit evenly. For inspection work - looking for a leak, a crack, a dropped screw - that even flood is worth more than raw brightness.

How Long Does It Run on a Charge?

The supplier gives figures that do not entirely agree with each other, so here is what they say and what we would rely on. At full brightness, about 3.5 hours - that number appears consistently. At reduced brightness, one section says 20 hours at low and another says about 13 hours at 50 percent power. Those two are not necessarily contradictory, since "low" and "50 percent" are different settings, but we are not going to present either as a specification we can stand behind.

What is reliable is the shape of it: a 1500mAh battery driving a COB strip gives you several hours at full output and a long evening at a comfortable working level. In practice most people run these at half or less, because full brightness on a strip this size is more light than a cabinet or an engine bay needs.

Where Does the Magnetic Base Actually Help?

Under a car and inside an engine bay first - there is steel everywhere and it will stick to a strut tower, a bonnet underside or a jack stand. Behind appliances, on the side of a washing machine or a fridge. Inside a switchboard or a meter box. On the leg of a steel workbench. And on a caravan or camper, where it can go on the door frame while you sort out a hitch in the dark. Where it does not help is aluminium, stainless of the wrong grade, plastic and timber - which is exactly why the hook at the other end matters, because that covers pipes, branches, shelf edges and bonnet catches.

Buyers are typically people who work on their own cars, tradespeople who want a cheap second light for the van, campers and caravanners, and households that want something better than a phone torch for looking behind the washing machine.

For more, see our Tools and Hardware range, Camping and Outdoor, and Essentials.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it 500 or 700 lumens?
The supplier's own copy says both, in different sections of the same document. We have asked them to confirm. If output matters for your use, treat 500 lumens as the conservative figure until we have it in writing.

Is a wall charger included?
No. A USB cable is included; you charge it from any USB port or your own plug.

Is it waterproof?
No IP rating is supplied, so assume it is not. It will cope with a workshop, not with rain or immersion.

Can it be used while charging?
The supplier does not say. Many lights of this type can; we would not rely on it.

How strong is the magnet?
Strong enough to hold the light on a vertical steel surface. No pull rating is supplied.

Does the battery replace?
It is a built-in lithium cell, so no. When it eventually stops holding charge the unit is at end of life - dispose of it through a battery recycling point rather than in household waste.

What is the difference between the two options?
Only quantity. The 2PCS option is two identical lights, which works out slightly cheaper each.

Fast Australian Shipping

We dispatch from within Australia, so orders reach Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Canberra and Darwin quickly rather than waiting on overseas transit. Regional and remote addresses go through the standard Australia Post network.

Specifications are as supplied by the manufacturer; the stated lumen output is inconsistent in the supplier's documentation and is under query. Contains a built-in lithium battery and a strong magnet - keep away from pacemakers and credit cards, do not crush or incinerate, and recycle at an approved battery collection point at end of life.