Ryobi has come out with a new One+ Hybrid LED cable light, model P785. The hybrid part means that you can power it off of a Ryobi 18V battery pack or standard 3-prong extension cord.
It’s a rather uniquely designed worklight, with daisy chained lamp heads. Each lamp head has an adjustable support clip, which gives you flexibility in how you position and aim them.
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The lights are dimmable, but not individually. Each one is connected one after the other, with 10 feet of cord between them. And don’t worry about the power cords being completely unmanageable, as there are 3 cord wraps to keep things in check. Each cord wrap has a mounting hook, allowing it to carry the weight of the cord between lamp heads.
The lamp heads are pretty small, and easy to work with.
- 1500 lumens max output
- 3 hours of runtime at high mode
- 6.5 hours of runtime at medium output
- 15 hours of runtime at low output
Price: $99
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Thanks to Rob for the heads-up! Rob had previously shared some feedback about the new Ryobi glue gun, and there are some great reader comments and feedback as well.
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Hands-On
Ryobi sent over a test sample, and I’ve started to explore its potential.
I was surprised at first, that each light is connected to the others. The product images make it look like the Ryobi Hybrid LED cable light has 3 individually connected and controlled lights, but that’s not the case.
While it might be too much to ask for individual brightness settings, there would be benefits to having all three having independent on/off controls.
But on the other hand, having them all connected in series, with a single button for on/off and brightness settings control, the LED cable light is easy to operate. And, going by the product specs, you get around 30 feet of range, from the power station to the final lamp head.
It’s a somewhat simple system, with no surprises and a modest price point.
It makes perfect sense too, and is the kind of product that has me praising the creative minds designing new cordless power tools for Ryobi. You essentially get 3 LED worklights, and can power them from a single battery pack or AC extension cord.
The power base station has 2 keyhole-style mounting slots on the back. There are also 2 loops that might allow you to hang it from rope or hooks, but there’s no clear explanation in the manual
The power station says that the following about power usage: 18.9W at 18V, and 0.7A at 120V AC.
According to the user manual, for 0-2A power draw, you can use 25′, 50′, or 100′ extension cords with wire gauge as small as 16 AWG.
Each lamp head has 3 LEDs, and while they’re bright enough for me to see that there are 3 individual LEDs in each lamp head, the diffusion seems to work quite well at evening out the illumination.
It’s an interesting system, to say the least. It’s as if Ryobi’s product engineers are designing new cordless tools for their own hobbies, projects, and needs, and that’s a good thing.
I’ll be spending more time testing the Ryobi 18V cable light. Questions or requests?
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There seems to be some “hacking” potential, too. If I have a chance I’d love to explore the possibility of replacing the tamed-but-still-sometimes-unwieldy power cable with modular or pluggable cables. Instead of 10 feet of cable between each lamp head, how about a coiled cable?!
Update 1: The power and dimming switch cycles through the different brightness levels each time, meaning that you have to cycle through the settings even if you want to turn it off.
Thank you to Ryobi for providing the review sample unconditionally.
fred
It seems both quirky and interesting. Why they selected 3 lights – not 2 or 4 ? Maybe the 3 fit in with some voltage drop calculation? Anyway – I’d be interested to hear what uses you come up with. Might be good for camping – not sure about on the job – but might be handy.
Drew M
This could be a really neat toy for camping and other outdoor “family” activities if you already have a bunch of Ryobi batteries. I wonder if you could put one inside the corner of a 12′ x 12′ pop up tent and then put the other two on the outside to light up the surrounding area.
Stuart
That’s one of the examples they show – with the Cable Lights strung up around a pop-up gazebo for tailgating.
The yeti
Under the hood and each front wheel well I bet that’s why 3
Adam
Great option for a shed without electricity. Though their work bench light would also work well in that situation.
Seems as if Ryobi can easily put the hybrid option into their tools, why not others?
Anton
There is some cost difference. They used to sell an 18v only fan for $30 and the Hybrid for $40. They probably evaluate which tools are likely to be left on for extended periods and may not always need to be portable. With actual tools, you might get tired before you can kill more then a couple of batteries and don’t want the cords in the way. With lighting, fans, or music you might leave them on for a while and not have to move them at all. I don’t know the logic behind the Hybrid gardening tools since that is the last place I want to be dragging cords around.
Or they might start with the assumption that this will be mainly a stationary tool that has the benefit of being portable. The layout of these lights seems to really hint at that given that there is a long cord from the power base to the 1st light. While something like this is just for portability. https://14cyiuhvcgv.com/stanley-portable-led-tripod-light/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Stuart
Cost. Converting an AC power source to DC requires additional parts, design time, and increases the product size and complexity. There are additional thermal considerations as well.
Jonathan
That brings an interesting segue, I know that LEDs can run off either DC or AC,
Anyone know if LEDs have preferred or native power source, I know that you add inefficiency when you add a transformer to the mix.
I would hope for run time on batteries that Ryobis going from DC to AC.
These would be great during a power outage, for hallways and stairs or split levels homes.
James C
AC and LED is an oxymoron.
Nathan
LEDs (light emitting diode; a diode is an electronic device that only allows current flow in one direction) only work with current flow in one direction. If you hook them up to AC (alternating current) that’s in their working range, they’ll pulse off and on every time the AC cycles (so 60 times a second from an outlet), but on the other hand 110V is way outside the working range of the 3 (or 9 if that’s what this is) LEDs in series, so you’d blow out the whole lot of them without a buck power supply. This device definitely has a built in power supply/transformer for running on wall currrent. In fact, considering the adjustable levels, it has an adjustable current power supply as well, even when running on battery. The fact of the matter is that you can’t avoid power losses from power supply and control circuitry in LED lights unless they are simple off-on lights running from a battery with a voltage in their working range.
nigeldh
Sounds like Ryobi is doing the 80/20 version of Milwaukee M18 18-Volt Radius LED Compact Site Light Model # 2145-20 SKU # 1001839520 Internet # 207041808.
The first 80% of the development work is easy, it is the final 20% that runs the cost up.
Wayne
This would go well with the soon-to-be-released battery-powered Margarita blender, right?
James C
Actually that would be pretty cool! They need to one-up Makita’s 18v coffee maker. There’s this annual river float / camping thing I sometimes go to. A regular there always brings a gas-powered blender. Battery-powered would be less stinky and much quieter!
MichaelHammer
I can definitely see potential in this product. I don’t usually get light until the final stages of the project. Tripod light are in the way and get knocked over. Clamping lights or task oriented. Construction-grade string lights are tens of feet long, too big for most interior home remodel projects.
Stuart, I have an experiment request; if you wouldn’t mind, string these down the center of your kitchen ceiling on an overcast and or rainy day. Does the light cast well to the back of the countertops? Can you see the contents in the upper cabinets well? I request an overcast day because that is typically my highest need of supplemental lighting.
Koko the Talking Ape
Interesting! A portable lighting solution that produces a wide, relatively even spread of light. AFAIK, the lights from Milwaukee, Ryobi, Dewalt, etc. are all floodlights, that are almost point-sources. They make a wide spread, but also deep shadows.
I also would like detachable power cords. I notice there is no strain relief on the individual light housings. I suppose they could use ordinary extension cables! Overkill for the voltage and amperage, but cheap and universally available.
Ed S
If they could make a tent with solar-cell fabric on the roof/rain shield, then just plug regulator in, these led lamps and any battery-device to charge during day, light up at night, right? Like a perimeter or so.
Agree that maybe coiled or braid-cover over the wires will increase longevity and storage.
Jason. W
String some of these in a shed, crawl space, or attic and you have easy lighting for an area you may not use that often .
Charles
Do you know the color rendering index (CRI) for these lights? If the CRI is decent, I could see using these for photography projects.
Stuart
I don’t, but sent my contact an email asking.
Generally, I figure that if it’s not mentioned, it might be 80 at best.
Shadows aren’t very harsh, but they’re not soft, and you do get 3 shadows. The diffusion is not far enough away to blend the light together to where it appears as a single source.
If used for photography, you’ll want added diffusion or very good shadow control.
Charles
This could be a useful and very portable lighting system for location wildlife macro photography or for desktop small item photography, providing the CRI is reasonable.
Charles
Forgot to say thanks for emailing your Ryobi contact. I’d be interested in knowing the response. Thanks again.
Michael
Specs can be found in the manual for the New Zealand version of this product. The user guide for model R18STL says that the CRI is 72 and the CCT is 4200 K.
Adam g
You can get daisy chain usb lights that are decent on Amazon as well. The one i bought is good for the money.
razl
I was interested in the idea of using them for camping and outdoor events but the online manual unfortunately says:
Do not expose products to rain or wet conditions. Water entering a product will increase the risk of electric shock.
…
To reduce the risk of electric shock, do not expose to water or rain.
While I can understand them not being waterproof, they’d be so much better if they were at least somewhat resistant. With surprise showers the norm here in Florida, these seem too likely to get killed.
Doresoom
I used the loops on the base for hanging the cable wrap hooks while transporting the lights. Otherwise it’s just horribly unwieldy to move the whole mess. The other solution would be to throw it all in a bucket or tool bag.
https://youtu.be/fatMuIZ_MVU?t=1m21s
dave
It seems expensive for what it is. In relatively small volumes (5 pcs) I can get 5W LEDs at under $1 each, and a multi-mode driver for $5 ea.
12V/1A wall wart, $5. Housings $4 each, $10 for base station, $3 for wire.
That’s $38. Granted, DIY would look ghetto and there’s no easy way around molding a battery socket unless you reuse some other Ryobi tool or charger as the host, so add another $10 for the old incan flashlight or even an ancient NiCd charger shell as the host.
It would be crude, not better ergonomically but just as functional at lighting, and that’s not my point, which is that if a person can buy the parts in extremely low volume at less than half the $100 total, with the sellers of those parts making a profit too, then Ryobi’s markup is pretty high.
LEDs are a nice bit of tech, but not an expensive one to make into a product unless you’re shooting for very high thermal density or output. 500 lumens per light head isn’t that, is just a good compromise.
edward carratura
the wet/dry vac should have been a hybrid.