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Midland ER102MO AM/FM Emergency Dynamo Crank Radio with NOAA All Hazard Weather Alert, Mossy Oak Break Up Camo Review

I own several weather radios of various brands. Both desk tops and portables. This Midland unit is in my opinion the very best of the portable units. It is very solidly built, has a long thick antenna, gets excellent weather and FM reception, and even has quite a dynamic speaker for a portable. It comes with an AC adapter, can run on batteries, and has the crank system if all else fails. Although I opted to buy this radio in the "mossy oak camo" design, (which is really cool looking by the way,) I should mention that Midland charges an average of $10 or more for the "cool" look. This exact same radio in plain design is a little cheaper and can be found on Amazon as well. One must weigh the benefits individually on spending a little more just to be cool. As for the radio itself, its my opinion they don't come any better in a carry all unit..

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WeatherX FR6817DT 7-Channel NOAA Weatherband Digital Radio Review

The WeatherX is more useful than expected. I bought it to have as an off grid device for use during power outages, but have found it to have a nicer radio receiver than expected so I'll not pack it away just for emergency use. Radio has digital tuning as well as line-in and stereo headphone jack so I find it okay for casual radio listening despite only having one built in speaker. Line-in audio volume is adjustable so I've plugged in an audio line from my computer and am now using it as an external speaker.

It was well worth buying just for the LED lamp and removable LED flashlight. Flashlight may be powered on via a switch on the front panel while docked and alternately removed for use with batteries. Depending upon what type of batteries you install in the flashlight you may charge it or not while docked. Built in positionable LED lamp has several switchable light settings making it even more useful.

My WeatherX will be kept out for everyday use and a couple of sets of spare batteries will be packed away with my emergency candle supply just in case of an extended power outage. It also came with a 12v DC power cord as well as an AC power brick making it useful at home and away. It is not my best radio receiver, but it is my best radio with a weather band and was an excellent value for the price paid. I recommend it as your spare flashlight / spare lamp / spare radio for casual and off grid use whether for garage, picnic, or use during power outages. It also works well as an external computer speaker.

As the unit is portable and the LED lamp head is flexible and positionable it is suitable for occasional use as a chore light or home flashlight.

The built in clock does not display the time while you are using the radio, but does display while playing audio from the line-in. Overall it is an excellent spare flashlight / lamp / radio for use off grid and nice enough for use far more often than just during power outages.



























































































































































































































































2335t it well enough to use it much much more often. Would make an excellent back-up lamp radio for use during power outages, but offers enough neat feature


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First Alert Portable AM-FM Emergency Alert Radio Review

I admit I bought this radio on price alone. I was interested in basically just the weather broadcasts. But it is difficult to find a portable unit that doesn't offer AM and FM. The radio receives excellent reception. And the speaker sounds exceptionally well for such a small portable in my opinion. The only major drawback to this radio to me is its terrible battery compartment design. The unit takes four AA batteries, one on top of the other, rather than straight in a row. This requires that you squeeze back the little holding spring at the top to insert the battery beneath. Its always been my opinion that all battery compartments on anything are designed by the sadist on staff at whatever company is producing it. But this one offers very little lee way even by the generous standards of terrible battery compartments. In my first try at inserting the batteries I managed to break one of the little retaining springs. Rather than return the whole unit, I fixed the problem by inserting a small piece of aluminum foil to allow the battery to make contact. Since this radio will be almost exclusively used as a portable unit by most customers, I felt compelled to mention that the battery department leaves a whole bunch to be desired. One other observation. This radio is just a smidgen over and inch wide at the bottom. Although it has two little rubberized feet, it is so narrow that unless it is placed on a dead level surface, it tips over easily. This radio would be useless on a camping trip or picnic if you expect to place this on a rock, or the ground. It will continuously tip over and drive you crazy. The three star rating on this radio is for the good reception of the weather forecasts, and the excellent FM reception as well. Its overall design is however very substandard, and not very well thought out.

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Etón American Red Cross ARCFR160W Microlink Self-Powered AM/FM/NOAA Weather Radio with Flashlight, Solar Power and Cell Phone Charger (White) Review

The Eton 160 is an incredible upgrade on exterior design. It seems slicker and better designed than the 150, but not necessarily a huge technological advance. Being able to charge on the go and use the solar to passively charge the device is a great backup.

The three-led light is extremely bright and runs on extremely low battery power. The weatherbands tune in perfectly, with AM/FM stations sometimes requiring the antenna pulled completely out.

The dynamo crank seems relatively strong, but slightly oversized when needing to crank it for a while--as in charging a phone.

One thing has been added, a cell switch on the front of the radio, which designates all power to charging an added device. But one thing has been removed, the AC power adaptor option has been removed since the 150--it was unnecessary anyways.

I haven't worried about breaking the device and I've dropped the radio before--no problem resulted. I've already found it useful in a storm we had today in Colorado! Great device!

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