147 of 148 people found the following review helpful:
Pleasantly surprised with the battery life
This review is from: Et�n American Red Cross ARCFR160R Microlink Self-Powered AM/FM/NOAA Weather Radio with Flashlight, Solar Power and Cell Phone Charger (Red) (Electronics)
This radio is an excellent radio for the price. No, it is not a top-end emergency radio, but it should work rather well for anyone looking for a basic AM/FM/Weather radio with both a solar and hand-crank charging option. I purchased mine about a year ago and used it only occasionally for the first few months. Then I placed it on a shelf with limited light and there it sat for about six to eight months. About six weeks ago I dusted it off and it actually worked for about an hour or so with no hand-crank charging. Later that day I sat it in the front window where it would get plenty of direct sun light. A couple days later I picked it up from the window and have been using it a few hours each day since; some of those days it was used for more than six hours in the basement. I have not needed to crank it at all, but did crank charge it for about one minute total just while playing with it - for the record. Since then, I have been keeping it on the shelf out in the open where it is exposed to normal room daylight, no direct sunlight. The charging light does not light up in this setting, and I would not expect it to. I have occasionally taken it out on the front porch to sit a listen where there is direct sunlight, but only for about an hour or so each week. I really like the idea of not having to buy batteries, and the convenience of knowing I always have a charged radio.
The flashlight is minimal, but I would not expect more from an LED light source. I have my 6-D-Cell Mag light if I need a powerful (luxury) light source.
Tuning the radio is a bit sensitive and can be difficult to fine tune. I would consider this to be a SIGNIFICANT problem for an elderly person or anyone without the use of fine motor skills in their hands; but for me it is a minor hassle I am willing and able to deal with. I have considered getting the Eaton FR600 for its digital tuner. The reviews for that model suggest the battery life is pretty bad, so I have decided to wait for an improved model. For now, my FR160 is just fine. I would consider giving this 5-stars if the fine-tuning was much easier.
The USB charge does work, but know that it will not charge an iPhone 3Gs. This is more a problem/restriction of the iPhone 3Gs (a widely discussed complaint across the Internet for many-many generic charging devices) and is not because of the radio. Charging my old Samsung phone was not a problem.
The weather bands do pick up a signal, but to be absolutely honest, I have not used it much to provide any real opinion.
The hand-crank charger feels solid enough (I wouldn't abuse it) and tucks away securely when not used. I have found the manual crank-charger will provide about 25-30 minutes of radio time (at about 1/4 to 1/3 volume) for every minute of crank-charging. I average about 2 cranks per second or about 120 rotation per minute. Now I just count to 120 or so instead of watching the clock. This play-time per craink-time yeild has been very acceptable for me. After two minutes of crank-charging my hand does begins to tire a little, but just a little. If I leave the radio in a place with good direct sunlight when not using it, changing via the crank is never even needed.
In short, it works for what I want - a radio that that can be charged by sunlight or by hand-crank when absolutely necessary. If you want the construction and feature-set of a $100+ radio - buy a $100+ radio. But, for $30 (or less), I am pleased with the FR160.
74 of 77 people found the following review helpful:
The Perfect Emergency Radio!
This review is from: Et�n American Red Cross ARCFR160R Microlink Self-Powered AM/FM/NOAA Weather Radio with Flashlight, Solar Power and Cell Phone Charger (Red) (Electronics)
The reasons this Eton-manufactured emergency radio is the ideal emergency radio are: 1) small, compact size, 2) shock-absorbing case, 3) sensitive AM/FM/NOAA Weather tuner picks up weak signals, 4) handy 3-LED flashlight on left-hand end of the radio's case, 5) Earphone jack under dust cover on the right-hand side of the case, 6) USB port under same dust cover on the right-hand side of the case, 7) All radio bands will run 4-5 hours at low volume on full charge of the internal NiMH battery, 8) Solar panel on top of the radio's case is strong enough to power the radio indefinitely (as long as the solar panel is 'seeing' daylight), 9) the internal NiMH can be re-charged via the solar panel during daylight hours, an external transformer or the hand-cranked dynamo. You get all of these features for the low price of $30, plus free 'Super Saver' shipping from Amazon.Com. You can pay a lot more for an emergency radio and get a whole lot less!
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Don't waste your money, buy a real weather band radio.
This multi-function product does nothing well except sit on the kitchen windowsill. It doesn't hold a charge, even though it sits in bright sunlight all day long. by Patricia J. Fix
Handy, but wish it reached it's potential.
Really great flashlight and radio. However it does not charge an iPhone 3GS or 4G. It has a lot of potential, but I only wish it had lived up to it! by Heather Ellison
Just in time
We bought this little Eton radio/flashlight/charger combo just in time for the massive blackout that affected San Diego County earlier this year. by Brent
D.O. A.
The only thing that worked on the radio was the flashlight. All parts of the radio were dead, not working at all. by Samm
Etón American Red Cross
GOT IT LOVE IT PLAY IT I LIKE HAVING IT IM GLAD I BOUGHT IT GOOD COLLOR GOOD 4 POWER GOSES OUT
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001QTXKCE/ref=cm_cr_rev_prod_title by KENNETH
Handy little radio from Amazon
Last month we had a power outage for 12 hours. One of the things I wasn't prepared for was the lack of news via TV, computer, or satellite radio. by bengalkat
Great little emergency radio
This is very small, but it serves it's purpose very well. It is an ideal size/product for a hiking/emergency situation. by tresb4
Red Cross solar radio
I live in "earthquake country" and do need a radio that does not rely on electricity or even batteries. by Gysbertah
Decent emergency radio
Radio and flashlight works great. Charging a cell phone is a little harder. I assumed that the internal battery would charge a plugged in cell phone, but this is not the case... by H. Kevin Chu
Works as advertised.
This is exactly as stated in the description. I have tried out all the functions and they work as advertised. It will come in real handy the next time I have a power outage. by Vince8 |
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