I remember night fishing for crappie—or specs, as we called them growing up in Florida—with my dad and a buddy of his. We'd load up the boat before sunset, push off from the dock, and spend hours drifting under the stars, the only light coming from the small lantern hanging from a pole at the stern. When we finally got back to the house, exhausted and smelling of fish, Al would grab that old incandescent hanging shop light from his garage, clip it to a branch over the cleaning table, and we'd work by its warm, yellow glow, scaling and filleting until the bucket was full of white meat and the raccoons started circling. That light—a simple bulb in a metal cage, suspended from a hook, plugged into an extension cord—was not bright, not efficient, and not particularly durable. But it was simple, and it worked, and it hung wherever you needed it to hang. The Ryobi P790 18V One+ Hybrid LED Project Light is, in many ways, the modern, vastly improved descendant of that old hanging shop light. It is a compact, lightweight, corded‑or‑cordless area light that produces up to 900 lumens of clean, neutral‑white LED illumination. It has a hook that locks around pipes, cords, and branches. It runs on any Ryobi 18V One+ battery ever made—a platform that has been around for over two decades and encompasses more than 200 tools—or it can be plugged directly into a wall outlet with a standard extension cord. It even has a magnetic tray embedded in the top for holding screws, nuts, and small parts. It is not the brightest work light in Ryobi's lineup, nor is it the most feature‑rich. But it is, in a way that I have come to appreciate deeply, the most practical. It is the kind of light you keep in the garage, the shed, the truck, or the job site because it is always ready to provide light, regardless of whether an outlet is nearby or a battery is charged. It is the modern version of that old incandescent hanging shop light—but brighter, cooler, more versatile, and vastly more efficient.

The P790 is part of Ryobi's growing commitment to hybrid power tools—devices that can run on either the company's 18V One+ batteries or on standard 120‑volt AC power from an extension cord. This is not a new concept for Ryobi; they have applied it to fans, lights, radios, and even some larger tools. But the execution on the P790 is particularly well‑suited to the task. The light is compact—barely larger than a typical cordless drill—with a handle that incorporates Ryobi's familiar GripZone overmold for comfort and security. The LED panel, consisting of 18 individual chips arranged in a grid, is housed in a pivoting head that rotates a full 180 degrees. You can set the light on its base, with the head angled upward to bounce light off a ceiling, or you can point the head straight out to illuminate a wall or a work area directly. The pivoting mechanism is smooth and holds its position firmly, with no tendency to droop or shift under vibration. The LED chips themselves are rated for the kind of long life that is now standard in the industry—tens of thousands of hours—which means that for the typical homeowner or even the professional who uses the light intermittently, the LEDs will likely outlast the rest of the tool. The light output, at 900 lumens on High, is sufficient to illuminate a small room, a workbench, a section of a garage, or a job site task area. It will not light up an entire warehouse or replace a stadium floodlight, but it was never intended to. It is designed for the kind of close‑to‑medium‑range illumination that characterizes most home improvement, automotive, and professional trade work: under the hood of a car, on a workbench, inside a cabinet, around a job site, or suspended from a rafter to light a specific work zone. The Medium setting of 600 lumens and the Low setting of 100 lumens provide options for when less brightness is needed or when extended run time is a priority. On Low, with a high‑capacity P108 4.0‑Ah battery, the light will run for approximately 35 hours—more than enough for an entire work week of intermittent use on a single charge. The High setting, at full 900 lumens, still provides several hours of run time, depending on the battery capacity. The ability to plug the light into an extension cord means that run time is effectively unlimited when AC power is available. For the homeowner working in the garage, the mechanic working on a vehicle, or the contractor working in a space with temporary power, the extension cord option eliminates the need to manage battery charge at all. Plug it in, turn it on, and work until the job is done.

The Hook and the Magnetic Tray: Small Features With Outsized Practicality


Two features of the Ryobi P790 elevate it above the level of a simple portable work light and make it genuinely more useful than many of its competitors. The first is the adjustable, locking hook. The hook is integrated into the top of the handle—the part of the light that faces upward when the light is standing on its base. When not in use, it folds flush against the handle, completely out of the way. When you need to hang the light, you simply pop the hook open. It extends outward and can be slipped over a pipe, a cord, a branch, a nail, or any other horizontal or semi‑horizontal support. But what makes it genuinely useful, as opposed to merely convenient, is that it locks. A spring‑loaded gate closes over the opening, preventing the light from being knocked off its perch by a gust of wind, a bump from a passing shoulder, or the vibration of a nearby power tool. This locking feature means you can hang the P790 from a ceiling joist, a conduit, a ladder rung, or a tree branch with confidence that it will stay put. For the professional working on a construction site, the ability to hang a light securely from overhead framing or from a pipe run means the light can be positioned exactly where it is needed, without requiring a dedicated stand, a clamp, or a nearby flat surface. The second standout feature is the MagTray—a shallow, magnetized recess in the top of the light, just behind the hook. It is designed to hold small ferrous metal objects: screws, nuts, bolts, washers, drill bits, and the like. For anyone who has ever balanced a handful of screws on a ladder rung or fished a dropped washer out of a pile of sawdust, the utility of the MagTray is immediate and obvious. Set a handful of screws on the tray, and they stay put, held by the magnets, while you work. It is not a huge tray—you will not store an entire box of fasteners on it—but it will hold enough screws for a typical task, and the magnetism is strong enough to prevent them from sliding off when the light is moved or knocked. The MagTray, combined with the locking hook, makes the P790 not just a light but a mini‑workstation. Hang the light overhead, load the MagTray with the fasteners you need, pivot the light head to illuminate your work area, and you have created a temporary, self‑contained work zone that requires neither a helper to hold the light nor a separate container for your hardware. It is a small thing, but small things add up, and the P790 accumulates enough small things to become a genuinely pleasant tool to use.

Power Options: The One+ Battery Platform and the Extension Cord Port


One of the most attractive aspects of any Ryobi One+ tool is the platform's extraordinary longevity. Ryobi has maintained backward compatibility across its 18V battery system for over 25 years, meaning that a battery purchased in the 1990s—if it still holds a charge—will power a tool purchased today, and vice versa. This commitment to the user's existing investment is unique among major power tool brands, and it is a significant factor in the purchasing decisions of homeowners and professionals who do not want to be forced into buying new batteries every time they add a tool. The P790 benefits directly from this philosophy. It will run on any Ryobi 18V One+ battery, from the compact 1.3‑Ah pack to the high‑capacity 9.0‑Ah pack, with run time scaling accordingly. For the homeowner who already owns a Ryobi drill, impact driver, and a couple of batteries, the P790 is an inexpensive addition that extends the utility of those batteries into lighting. For the user who does not own any Ryobi tools, the P790 can still be used as a corded‑only light, powered by an extension cord and requiring no battery at all. The extension cord port is located on the back of the light, beneath a protective rubber flap. It accepts any standard three‑prong extension cord, and when a cord is plugged in, the light operates on AC power, drawing approximately 18 watts on High. The light does not charge a battery while operating on AC power; it simply runs the LED panel directly from the line voltage. If a battery is installed, it remains fully charged, serving as a backup power source that will automatically take over if the extension cord is unplugged or the power fails—though this automatic switchover is dependent on the specific model and may not be present on all versions of the P790; check the documentation for your specific tool. The ability to run on AC power is a significant advantage over purely cordless lights, because it means the P790 can be used continuously, for as long as the job requires, without depleting a battery. For the professional who works in a fixed location—a workshop, a renovation site, a garage—the extension cord option eliminates the need to manage battery charge at all. Plug it in, turn it on, and work until the job is done. For applications where cordless operation is essential—working in a crawl space, up a ladder, in a location far from an outlet—a battery provides complete portability. The hybrid power system, like the locking hook and the MagTray, is a small thing that makes a real difference in how the light is used. It eliminates the anxiety of battery life, and it provides a flexibility that purely corded or purely cordless lights cannot match.

Light Quality, Output, and Real‑World Performance


The P790's 18 LED chips are arranged behind a diffusing lens that softens the light and spreads it into a broad, even flood. The beam is not adjustable—there is no zoom, no spot‑flood toggle—but for the applications that the P790 is designed for, adjustability is unnecessary. The broad flood illuminates a wide area, roughly 15 to 20 feet in diameter, with a consistent brightness that does not have hot spots or dark zones. The color temperature is approximately 5000K—a neutral white that renders colors accurately and closely approximates the color of natural daylight. For the painter who needs to see true color on a wall, the electrician who is identifying wire colors, or the mechanic who is distinguishing between different fluids under a vehicle, the accurate color rendering is a genuine benefit. Many cheaper LED work lights have a pronounced blue or yellow cast that can distort colors and make it difficult to distinguish subtle differences. The P790 has no such issue. The light is flicker‑free at all brightness settings, which means it is comfortable to work under for extended periods and will not cause the eye strain or headaches that can result from low‑frequency flicker. The three brightness settings are accessed via a single pushbutton on the back of the light. The button cycles through High, Medium, Low, and Off with each press. There is no memory function—the light always starts on High when first turned on—which is a minor inconvenience for users who prefer the Medium or Low setting, but it is consistent with most tools in this class. The button is large enough to operate with gloved hands, and it has a positive click that provides tactile feedback. The light head pivots through a full 180‑degree range, which means it can be angled to face forward, upward, downward, or anywhere in between. The pivot is smooth and holds its position without requiring excessive force to adjust. For close‑up work on a bench, the light head can be angled downward to illuminate the work surface directly. For area lighting, the head can be angled upward to bounce light off a ceiling, creating a softer, more diffuse illumination that fills the room without casting harsh shadows. For hanging applications, the locking hook and the pivoting head work together to put light exactly where it is needed. Hang the light from a ceiling joist, pivot the head to face downward, and the work area below is bathed in bright, even light. Hang it from a pipe, pivot the head to face the wall, and the work area in front of the pipe is illuminated. The versatility of the pivoting head, combined with the locking hook, gives the P790 a positional flexibility that many competing lights—even some that are more expensive—lack.

Durability, Warranty, and the Ryobi Advantage


The P790 is built from the same high‑impact polymer that Ryobi uses across its One+ tool line. It is not a heavily armored, industrial‑grade light intended for the most punishing job site conditions—Ryobi's price point does not support that level of construction—but for the typical home garage, workshop, or light professional use, it is more than adequately durable. The GripZone overmold on the handle provides a comfortable, secure grip and some protection against drops. The lens is recessed behind a protective lip that prevents it from being scratched when the light is set face‑down. The hook mechanism, though made of plastic, is robust enough for daily use, and the locking gate is a clever bit of engineering that adds security without adding complexity. The light carries a 3‑year warranty, which is standard for Ryobi One+ tools and which provides a reasonable period of protection against defects in materials and workmanship. The real value of the P790, however, is not in its warranty or its raw durability; it is in the platform that supports it. For the millions of homeowners and professionals who already own Ryobi 18V batteries, the P790 is a natural addition—a tool that extends the utility of batteries they already own into a category that every user needs. At $48.99 for the bare tool, it is inexpensive enough to be an impulse purchase or a gift, yet capable enough to serve as a primary work light for most home and light professional applications. For the new Ryobi user, the P790 provides an entry point into the One+ platform that is affordable, useful, and a demonstration of the platform's versatility. It is not the brightest light, the longest‑running light, or the most rugged light. But it is a light that does almost everything well, that is backed by a battery platform with unmatched compatibility, and that costs less than a decent dinner for two. It is the kind of tool that, once you own it, you find yourself using for tasks you never anticipated, because it is always ready, always adaptable, and always capable of illuminating whatever dark corner you find yourself working in. Al, my dad's old fishing buddy, would have loved it. And for the same reasons that I love it, too.