Eton ARCPT300W American Red Cross Axis Self-Powered Safety Hub with Weather Radio and USB Cell Phone

• Digital tuner with AM (520-1710 KHz) & FM (87-108MHz), NOAA weatherband - all 7 channels plus Alert
• Flashing beacon red LED light, Can be powered from three different sources:
• 1) Self-Powered Aluminum crank with Hand Turbine Technology. 2) From 3 AAA batteries (not included) 3) AC Power (not included)
• Connectors with rubber gaskets/plugs to seal out moisture, 3.5 mm headphone output, DC-in, USB cell phone charger and AUX-IN input
• Rechargeable NiMH battery
• Includes: USB cable, owner's manual, warranty card

Pros

Decently built, crank seems solid. Charging while not fun is ok.

DOES indeed charge newer cell phones. HTC Evo 5v usb connection tested and passed. Be prepared for a workout though. Highly recommend that you do this with at least a half charge in the onboard Dyno battery.

Onboard Dyno Battery !!! Excellent. I have mine plugged into AC and near my battery storage. Always fully charged and ready to go in seconds.

Also works with standard AA

Decent reception and volume

NOAA reception/WB channels quite good

Cons

ONBOARD BATTERY LIFE IS SEVERELY NEGATIVELY AFFECTED WHEN USING THE 'ALERT' FEATURE -BEWARE NOT TO USE THIS FEATURE UNLESS DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO AN AC SOURCE.

Documentation is horrible.

Alert 'feature' and NOAA channels not documented at all. User will have to research frequencies in their area.

4 leds are very low quality and light output is just passable. Red led is almost useless because it is so dim.

No Solar charging on this unit

Rear plastic/rubber cover over battery cover & connection options is cheap and flimsy

Antenna does not reside flush in unit

overall ergonomics are not great

This unit is NOT waterproof or weatherproof. Beware.

Summary

Lot better than nothing and overall a decent unit. Priced too high for what you get, but it does provide enough current to charge a cell phone which most units cannot.

I give it a pass, but will replace with something better as technology allows.

Used within the limitations described above. It will perform for you.

Currently this would have to be rated top in its class so I give it 4 stars.

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I'm sick of plastic cranks and knobs, even on high-end emergency radios (you know who I'm talking about). This has a solid aluminum crank! It's NOT stamped sheet metal. Its a solid chunk of aluminum, and the handle has a steel screw that magnetically holds it down when not in use. Not a big fan of the volume and tuning dials, though, as they seem kind of chinsy. The reception is outstanding and speaker quality is good for a 70 dollar radio. The case is about 1/4 inch thick plastic. The LED light is protected by an aluminum bezel, and the light is probably 1/4 the brightness of a surefire, which is pretty good, all things considered. Display is adequite. Definitely worth the money. I wish they made it in OD green or otherwise subdued.

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I've been wanting a weather radio for sometime and I feel the Eton ARCPT300W American Red Cross Axis Self-Powered Safety Hub with Weather Radio and USB Cell Phone Charger is near perfect.

First off, I'm not a weather radio expert of any sort or have much experience with one. I'm just someone who lives in Tornado Alley that would like an extra measure of peace of mind while tornado season is in full swing.

So, my first impressions of this weather radio are very positive. The Eton ARCPT300W is small, lightweight and full of features.

Pros:

1. Small enough to fit comfortably in a backpack for camping

2. Can be charged three ways: Hand Crank for the rechargeable battery, 3 AAA alkaline batteries or USB charging cord plugged into a computer or an AC adapter (not included) for the rechargeable battery

3. Has 7 preset weather band channels

4. Has a Weather Alert mode so the radio only sounds off when there is an alert in your area

5. Can charge other portable devices using the USB/mini USB connectors, use the devices charging cords is best.

-I was able to charge my iPhone 4 and Kindle Latest Generation but I can tell they will be a huge drain on the radio's battery

6. Has AM/FM radio channels

7. 1 AUX Audio in, 1 Headphone Jack

8. Programmable Clock/Alarm

9. An antennae to help with reception

10. Flashlight and Emergency Beacon Light

11. Easy to use right out the box, and the manual is easy to follow

12. The crank is easy to turn with relative ease

13. Decent volume level

Cons:

1. Didn't come with an AC adapter

2. Doesn't auto scan for best weather band channel in area

ETA: If you need an AC adapter, you would need a 5V AC Power with a mini USB connector.

Overall, I'm very happy this weather radio. It has for the most part what I wanted in a weather radio plus quite a few extras I didn't even think of. If I'm stuck in a bad weather situation without power, it has all I will need short-term: News, Power Source & Light.

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This radio on paper offers pretty good features. And yet, I don't really like it.

Pros:

Crank charger means you will never be out of batteries

AM and FM radio bands + US weather radio, with decent reception and sound quality

LED flashlight

Can be charged via USB or charge your phone via USB

Among the hand-cranked radio-meets-flashlight combos, this is probably one of the higher quality ones (other no-name ones I have seen feel flimsier)

Cons:

Turns on by itself way too easily. I had it in my trunk during a recent trip and the battery would die for no good reason because the thing would turn itself on due to some minimal contact with something else. Other times I would open the trunk and find the red beacon light would be happily blinking :)

Red beacon mode is useless.

Overly complicated most functions require the manual to figure out. For something that bills itself as a survival tool, this is unacceptable.

Bulky enought not to fit in any of my pockets and so it is unlikely to travel with me or be around when I may actually need it.

It functions OK and does what it is supposed to. However, I feel that a small flashlight, a battery powered radio, and a few extra batteries are more compact and will serve you better than this contraption. For me this would be a backup to a backup, definitely not the first tool I reach for, even in a disaster, let alone on daily basis.

Not recommended.

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This year for vacation my husband and I drove to Nevada for Burning Man (google Burning Man if you want). I've always wanted to go, but it's so far and the conditions out on the desert, well I thought they might be a bit harsh and they were. The first two days there was dust storm after dust storm and the nights were cold and dark. And there is no electricity out on the Black Rock desert.

But there are lots of generators and batteries and music and fun and entertainment.

But we didn't have a generator or a big battery. However, we did have this radio. We camped far away from the center of activity, but we were able to listen to music, because this radio was able to keep my iPhone charged up so we could listen to music during the night. Yes, we had to do a lot of cranking, but when you're sitting around drinking wine with new friends it's not a problem, we just kept passing the radio around.

But this radio really, really earned my undying love at night when I had to go to the loo. The porta potties were a pretty far piece and this radio lit my way every night, showing me where they were and lighting up the portable loo which otherwise would have been dark as a tomb.

I know, I could have used a flash light, but this was so much more fun. It turned out to be quite the conversation piece as we handed it to our new friends to crank. And to boot it's a radio too. This is a product that I highly recommend.