A big torch is great until you need both hands. The Wuben G5 is the opposite idea: a light the size of a matchbox with a head that rotates, a magnet and a clip, so it points where you want and stays there. We paid $50 for it, and it weighed 54 g on our scale.
Featured inBest Camping Lights of 2026
What You’re Getting
A small black light in an aluminium body, a lanyard and a USB-C charging cable. One end of the light is a head that rotates and holds two LEDs: a white main light and a second light for colours. Along the side are a dial, a slide switch and the USB-C port. It comes in Black, White and Green. Ours is the black one.
The good
- Head rotates a full 180 degrees
- Strong magnet and a rotating clip
- Wheel for brightness and colours
- Sliding switch locks it
- Rugged aluminium casing at just 54 g
- Seven colours, beacon and warning
The not-so-good
- Brightest setting steps down quickly
- Button sequences take learning
- Built-in battery can’t be replaced
Quick Specs
| Spec | Details |
|---|---|
| Brand | Wuben |
| Model | G5 |
| Weight | 52.2 g |
| Size | 37.3 × 15 × 62 mm |
| Colour options | BlackWhiteGreen |
| White light | 400 to 2 lumens |
| Runtime, white light | 50 minutes to 65 hours |
| Coloured light | 10 lumens9 hours |
| Flashing modes | 10 lumens25 hours |
| Beacon | 10 lumens45 hours |
| Beam distance | 82 m |
| Beam intensity | 1,681 cd |
| Impact resistance | 1 m |
| Water rating | IP68 (2 m under water for 1 hour) |
| Charging | USB-C |
Light and modes
The main light is cool white and runs from 2 to 400 lumens, with a beam distance of 82 m. A physical rotary wheel adjusts it: turn the wheel and the brightness follows, so you can set as much light as you need without clicking through modes.
400 lumens from something this small is impressive, but it doesn’t last. The rotating head is tiny, so it has little metal to carry heat away, and the light steps down from its brightest quickly, to around half within a minute. The box gives 50 minutes on the brightest setting and up to 65 hours on the lowest. For most camp jobs you’ll run it somewhere low in between.
The white light is a cool white with low colour rendering, which helps the beam reach further but makes colours look a bit washed out next to a warmer light.
The second LED gives coloured light in seven colours: red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue and purple. It’s 10 lumens and runs for 9 hours, so it’s for keeping your night vision or marking a spot, not for lighting up a campsite. There are also flashing modes in red and blue, red and green, and red and yellow, which run for 25 hours, and a beacon mode that lasts 45 hours.
How to work it
One button and the wheel do everything, and once you know the pattern it’s quick:
- One click: the light comes on in the setting you used last.
- Double click: boost mode, the brightest white light.
- Double click again: back to the normal white light, which you dim with the wheel.
- Hold the button for a second: switches to the coloured light. The wheel then cycles through the colours.
The wheel is the good part of the controls. The button sequences are the part that takes some learning, because one click, a double click and a long hold all do different things.
Rotating head, magnet and clip
This is what makes the G5 more useful than a small torch. The head rotates a full 180 degrees, so the body can lie flat, stand up or hang, and the light still points where you need it.
The back has a strong magnet, so it sticks to the bonnet, a roof rack or any steel surface. The pocket clip is reversible and rotates, so it goes on a hat, a pocket or a pack strap facing either way. We’ve had it stuck to the 4WD next to the rooftop tent, where the head can be turned to point the light wherever it’s needed.
Controls and charging
The wheel sets the brightness in white mode and cycles through the colours in coloured mode. The sliding switch next to it is a smart bit of design: in the lock position it stops the light switching itself on in a pocket or a bag, and it doubles as the dust cover for the USB-C port.
A full charge takes about 1.5 hours, which is slowish for a battery this small, and because it’s USB-C you can top it up from a power bank or the car. The 450 mAh battery is built in and can’t be replaced, so when it wears out after years of use, the whole light goes with it.
Size, weight and build
The G5 measures 37.3 × 15 × 62 mm and is listed at 52.2 g. It weighed 54 g on our scale, and 59 g with the lanyard, so it goes in a shirt pocket without you noticing it.
The casing is a rugged rectangle of aluminium, and the build quality is excellent for the size. It’s rated IP68, which means up to 2 m under water for an hour, and it has a 1 m impact rating.
Conclusion: Wuben G5
The Wuben G5 packs a lot into 54 g. It gives up to 400 lumens with stepless dimming, the head rotates, it sticks by its magnet or hangs by its clip, and it has coloured light in seven colours. The brightest setting steps down quickly, the button sequences take learning, and the battery can’t be replaced. I paid $50 for it. As a small light that’s always in a pocket and works hands-free, it’s a very handy one.
A 54 g rechargeable pocket light with up to 400 lumens, a rotating head, a magnet, a clip and seven colours of light.
The brightest setting steps down quickly, the button sequences take learning and the battery can’t be replaced.
- Car campers
- Hikers
- Everyday carry
Yes, if you want one small light for the pocket, the tent and the bonnet. $50 is a lot for something this size, but it was well below that on Amazon when we looked.
