GPX FR1807 Weather X AM/FM Instant Weatherband Lantern Radio with Clock Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I received the GPX WeatherX FR1807 as a gift. My first impression was that it looked like a pretty good, well built, versatile flashlight/radio combo. But after installing the batteries I noticed the battery compartment cap/carrying strap will not stay on unless you are very careful with it. It was molded in two pieces, and if there is any flexing at all, it will split apart, regardless of the two tabs that keep it intact, and disconnect from the main unit. This would appear to be a serious design flaw and needs to be addressed by the manufacturer. If it were not for this problem, I would give it a much higher rating.

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Ambient Weather WR-088 Emergency Solar Hand Crank AM/FM/NOAA Weather Radio, Flashlight, Cell Phone Charger (Red) with Cables Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I was looking for an emergency radio/flashlight that would allow me to use my cell phone in case there was a prolonged power outage. This device seems to fit the bill nicely.

The only reason I didn't rate this as a 5 was that 1 of the 4 units that I bought had a defective AM radio. It would only barely receive 1 powerful local station. The radio comments below apply to the other 3 units.
The crank is easy to use and has a nice long arm on it and noticeable resistance is encountered when cranking. The charge LED lights almost immediately at low cranking speeds. The solar cell was able to charge the battery on an overcast Indiana morning. I was able to receive many AM and FM radio stations as well as the NOAA weather station in our area, with good sound quality.
The unit has a mini USB connector to accept charging of its internal battery via USB as well as the solar and hand crank inputs. Power output occurs through a full-sized standard USB jack. The supplied USB cable has a coaxial power style female connector (3.5mm O.D.). This cable mates up with one of two supplied tips to yield either a mini USB or micro USB cable. The mini USB cable can be used for charging and the micro USB is a very common cell phone power interface. The photo online doesn't accurately show the 3 cable related items I received with my radio (1 cable and 2 tips).
The 3 5mm led powered flashlight produces a pleasing white light of about 800 lux @ 1ft and 140 lux @ 2 ft, well focused into a single beam.
All-in-all the build quality of this item appears to be good. The charge handle seems secure, the case is made of a rubberize plastic (I like the feel of these plastics), the flashlight switch is a push on/push off switch under a rubber cover. The radio tuning knobs feel a little spongy and the band switch feels like the case material interferes with the sliding of the switch a bit.

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Etón American Red Cross ARCFR600R Solarlink Digital AM/FM/SW/NOAA S.A.M.E. Weather Radio with Flashlight, Siren, Solar and CellPhone Charger (Red) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Pros:
Nice features - great for camping. While outdoors in sunny weather can charge the ni-mh battery pack with solar while listening. You can also charge with a USB cable via your computer (you don't need to buy the AC adaptor).
Nice sound on the FM and AM bands - short wave nice option for those really remote areas - (but is there really anything on SW to listen too?). Digital tuning a real plus - I never could tune a station properly with analog dials
This has a 'true' hand crank generator. Yes you can charge your cell phone or anything that charges via USB cable (i.e things you plug it into your computer to charge). Good only for emergency charging (too much cranking to fully charge a cell phone) - but this is a real crank generator charger, unlike some other products I have purchased.
Cons:
Battery hog, (good thing you can recharge)
It is more rugged than most radios, but this is not really waterproof - don't leave it out in the rain
Expensive - in the end you get a mono radio, sure you get a crank generator but this thing 'aint cheep.
Solor only works in bright direct sunlight (no clouds).
Manual - what manual?
Flashlight ok - but SOS LED flasher and siren are worthless. Those are just marketing items to get you to buy the radio.
Weather alert -NOAA SAME code descrimiter is buggy and weather alerts go off (when my other SAME radio does not) randomly. Eton custom service don't know how to fix this issue, and I've even had replacement radios sent. If you buy this radio for NOAA alerts using S.A.M.E. this is a big problem. I did and a big reason why I am rating this radio low. For $80 a radio should work properly. IF you don't care about S.A.M.E. alerts, then this won't be an issue for you. For me I like to have an emergency radio SAME turned on all the time in case there is a emergency/storm etc that I need to know about. I don't care to hear about storms that are in other areas and that is what SAME does, is only give give you alers in your area.UPDATE (April 2010) - I've had this radio for about a year now, and while it is still a battery hog and I can't use it for my NOAA weather alerts (as it gives false alerts all the time), but I do like this radio. I'm glad I bought it, it's my main radio when we go camping, or I'm working outside - but still think it's overpriced.

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Self-Powered Digital AM/FM/SW/NOAA, S.A.M.E. Weather Radio with Flashlight, Siren, Solar Power and Cell Phone Charger

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