Nitecore NEF10 Fan Review (Bought & Tested!)

This is my Nitecore NEF10 review, after months of using it while camping. I put it through many different tests, all of which you’ll find below in this post.

This page contains affiliate links, and that means that I may earn a commission if you buy something, at no extra cost to you. You can find my full disclosure policy here.

Quick Summary

The Nitecore has many pros. It’s feature-rich, has a reasonable price point, and it even comes with an LED ring light, to name a few. If you’re looking for a tent fan with an attached lantern, this Nitecore NEF10 is easily the best one out there in the market.

RELATED: Best Camping Fans

If you enjoyed this video, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel here:

Check out the Nitecore NEF10:

1. In the Box

I picked up this Nitecore fan direct from Nitecore, though you can also get it on Amazon at this link here, and here’s what it looks like still in its packaging:

And here’s everything I got out of the box:

• Nitecore fan

• Carabiner

• User guide

• Ball-head tripod

• Included USB-C charging cable

2. Charging Port

At the back of the fan, there’s a rubber flap, and behind it you’ll find the:

• USB-C input

• USB-A output

3. Charge Time

To charge the Nitecore NEF10, just grab the provided USB-C cable and plug it into the fan.

When you do so, the indicator light above the ports will turn red, which means that it’s charging. When it’s done charging, the red light will turn green.

It usually takes about 4.5 hours to finish charging.

4. Built-in 10,000mAh Charge Out

Now, the USB-A output is for charging your mobile phone or other small devices.

When you do so, the power indicator will turn blue.

Here’s my results when I used it to charge my iPhone 12:

• Day 1: 14-98% charge (2.5 hours)

• Day 2: 14-96% charge (2.5 hours)

• Day 3: 14-25% charge (0.25 hours)

• Leftover fan usage: 5 mins (high) or 20 mins (low)

The capacity of the li-ion battery is 10,000 mAh, which is surprisingly large capacity li-ion battery for such a tiny fan, so I got a lot of charge out of it. The output power 5v 2a is what is specified by Nitecore.

5. Fan Modes

The Nitecore NEF10 has 3 fan modes in total:

• Low

• Medium

• High

6. Fan Speeds

I used a mini anemometer to test out the different fan speeds for each fan mode, and here are my results:

• Low: 2.7m/s or 8.9ft/s

• Medium: 3.7m/s or 12.1ft/s

• High: 4.2m/s or 13.8ft/s

7. Airflow Distance

I then used the same anemometer to test the airflow distance, and here are my results:

• Low: 5.8ft / 1.8m

• Medium: 7.7ft / 2.3m

• High: 10.1ft / 3.1m

Note: When it comes to tent camping, I recommend using this fan in at most a 4-person tent. My 6-person Coleman Sundome was a tad too big but manageable.

8. Noise Level

To test for the noise level, I purchased a separate sound meter. And here are my results:

• Off: 41 dBA

• Low: 45 dBA

• Medium: 51 dBA

• High: 56 dBA

The brushless motor of the Nitecore is what helps produce minimal noise. It was surprisingly quiet, better than I expected.

9. Fan Run Times

I also ran each fan mode to test for max runtime, and here are my results:

• Low: 9 hours

• Medium: 14.75 hours

• High: 32 hours

10. LED Ring Light Modes

Of course, the Nitecore NEF10 multifunctional electric fan came with an LED ring light, and here are the different modes:

• Low

• Medium

• High

11. Lumen Outputs

So, I used a lux meter to test the lumen output for each of the LED ring light modes:

• Low: 34 lumens

• Medium: 71 lumens

• High: 124 lumens

Overall, I thought that the light quality was decent, the frosting on the light is quite nice and doesn’t hurt my eyes as much as other tent fans with ring light.

12. Ring Light Run Times

Now, if you don’t use the fan, and just use the lantern function alone, how long can this Nitecore ring light run for? Here are my tested results:

• Low: 75 hours

• Medium: 38.5 hours

• High: 23.5 hours

Nitecore markets this – LED light 100h max runtime; however, I got about 25% less (75 hours).

13. Fan & Light Run Times

What if you run both the fan and the LED ring light functions together? Here are my results:

Mode	Run-Time	Decrease
Fan (High)	9 hours	0
Fan (High) + Light (Low)	8 hours	11%
Fan (High) + Light (Med)	7.25 hours	19%
Fan (High) + Light (High)	6.5 hours	28%

• From the previous test (#12), the high fan mode came in at 9 hours.
• If I run the low light and high fan mode, that came in 8 hours.
• Medium light and high fan came in at 7 hours and 11 minutes.
• Max brightness and high fan came in at 6.5 hours.

14. Sleep Timer

Now, if you want to conserve your battery power over multiple days, here’s a power saving tip – use the sleep timing function to turn the fan off after you fall asleep.

You have three options for the sleep timer, along with my testing:

• 1 hour: 0:59:58

• 3 hours: 2:59:51

• 5 hours: 4:59:50

I used a stopwatch here to test exactly how long each of the timer modes ran for, before turning off. And I found the sleep timer to be very, very accurate, give or take only about one-sixth of a second.

15. Power Indicator

The power indicator light is right next to the fan mode lights (the bottom row in the previous picture), and here’s what to take note of:

• Blue: Charging mobile devices

• Red: Charging the battery capacity

• Green: Fully charged battery

• Blinking red: Critically low battery

16. Ball-Head Tripod

This Nitecore comes with a ball-head tripod, it comes detached, but you can easily screw it into the tripod thread screw hole at the bottom.

The tripod stand comes with three legs, making it a little bit more stable on various terrains.

I really liked the adjustable ball-head function, because you can literally turn it 360-degrees all around in different angles. It faces upwards, sideways, or whatever your desired angle might be.

17. External Tripod

Another feature is the standard 1/4-inch tripod thread, though I noticed that the thread on the screw hole is deeper than I would have liked. It doesn’t fit on my external tripod because of this design flaw, but other different tripods may work.

18. Handle

The Nitecore comes with a tiny handle at the back, which gives you a nice grip to pick it up and bring it around.

You can use the provided carabiner to hook it to this handle and hang it up in your tent:

19. Removable Fan Hood

The Nitecore NEF10 also has a fan hood that you can remove.

To do so, just slide the hood anti-clockwise.

20. Waterproofing

As for waterproofing, I couldn’t find an IP rating on the Nitecore, so I decided to rain test it myself.

I put it through a little bit of light rain, maybe 15 minutes or so, and it was fine. Everything still worked.

After that, I put it through another 30 minutes of heavy rain, and it blew out my fan. It took about 4 months to dry off before it finally worked again.

21. Overall Quality

The entire fan seems to be made of high-grade plastic, which I found to be decent quality.

And the warranty period comes in at about 12 months.

22. Weight

As for weight, this Nitecore came in at exactly 23 ounces, which is about 653 grams.

23. Size

As for the packed size of the fan, the detachable legs itself came in at about 8 inches, or about 20 centimeters long.

The size of the face of the fan came in at about 7 x 7 inches, which is also about 18 x 18 centimeters.

The depth of the fan came in at 4.5 inches or 11 centimeters.

And the fan blades come in at about 5.25 inches in diameter, which is about 13 centimeters.

Overall, a very portable fan (especially since we can remove the tripod legs and pack them separately).

24. Best Tent Fan with Light

Now, I’ve got 2 other tent fans that come with in-built lanterns, and that’s the Coleman CPX 6 and the Odoland Camping Fan.

I’ll list out some of the important features of what I look for in a camping fan with a light, and here’s how the Nitecore compares to the other 2.

Feature	Coleman CPX 6	Odoland	Nitecore NEF10
Fan Speeds	2.8-3.7m/s	2.6-3.6m/s	2.7-4.2m/s
Airflow Distance	21in	70in	121in
Noise Level	55-61 dBA	59-63 dBA	45-56 dBA
Lumen Output	150-470 lumens	230-398 lumens	34-124 lumens
Mobile Charging	No	No	Yes
Sleep Timer	No	No	Yes
Removable Hood	No	No	Yes
Fan Run-Times	25-35 hours	21-40 hours	9-32 hours

Fan speeds: The minimum speed is about the same for all these fans, but the Nitecore has a much higher max fan speed than the other 2.

Air flow distance: The airflow distance of the Nitecore is much longer than the other two.

Noise level: The Nitecore is much quieter than the other two. The Coleman’s and Odoland’s low fan speeds are just as noisy as the Nitecore’s high fan speeds.

Lumen output: As for the lumen output or brightness of the led light, the Nitecore doesn’t look so impressive at first, but honestly, I found the other 2 lanterns too damn bright and too harsh on the eyes. The Nitecore’s is the least harsh.

Light diffusion: Nitecore has the most frosted light of all these fans, it has the best diffusion, so maybe that leads to a dimmer light, but it was much better for me than the other two.

Features: And the Nitecore is super feature-rich compared to the other 2, complete with mobile charging, a sleep timer, and a removable hood so you can clean the blades.

Run times: That’s where, unfortunately, the Nitecore isn’t so good, coming in at just 9 to 32 hours. The other 2 fans have a slightly longer max runtimes, because they run on D-batteries. But these are really expensive in the long run, so I don’t usually recommend these.

Overall, as you can tell from the data above, the Nitecore NEF10 is a solid pick as a tent-plus-lantern combo.

25. Bonus – MUST Read!

Now, is the Nitecore the best camping light and fan combo? Click that link to find out.

Otherwise, if you’ve already made your mind up, do check out the Nitecore NEF10: