Customer Reviews:
 Emergency Radio October 25, 2008
Received this emergency radio several weeks ago, and I have used it several time since then (thank the Lord not in an emergency situation though!). It worked great out of the box. Did everything that was promised it would do. The only draw back is that I still have not received the cell phone adapters that I sent for when I received the radio. I guess it takes the company awhile to get them into the mail to me? Otherwise, a great emergency radio!
 Decent Product October 11, 2008
This is a good radio and I was glad I had it when my power was out for 9 days during hurricane Ike. However, I thought the sales description said you could pick up the audio of 13 local TV stations and that is not the case so that part was disappointing during the hurricane and I would have preferred TV news audio to radio news.
 A nice little radio, and it makes me feel prepared October 7, 2008
This is a nice little radio for the price. I've noticed that it doesn't seem to work very well from the wall adapter, but works great either from batteries, or while you are actually turning the crank. Regular FM radio and the weather band stations come in loud and clear, which in my remote area is not true of cheaper radios. The alert feature works very well also. This little radio kept us informed during some scary summer weather, even with the power out.
As far as the phone charger goes, the adapter tip for my cell phone came in about 6 weeks. It does in fact charge the cell phone (veeeerrrryyyy slowly...) Many minutes of cranking would probably get you enough juice to make a very brief call or send and receive several text messages. Not fabulous, but it would make essential communication possible in an extended power outage (if cell towers were working, anyway).
 What is this? September 24, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Well, what I received worked well and seemed to be of descent construction, but it wasn't what I ordered. I'll change my review if the RMA works, but it seems that Eton has two models listed under 1 model number which is a terrible idea for the very reason that it causes problems like the one I'm experiencing. For $60 I expect to get exactly what I ordered. A good quality TV/AM/FM and weather band radio that can run on battery or be hand cranked.
Here are the tech details directly from Amazon:
"
Technical Details
* Hand crank power generator is ideal for emergencies
* Provides you with an emergency siren, water resistant radio, LED lights, and a cell phone charger so you can contact help
* Can receive power from four different sources: built-in rechargeable Ni-MH battery that takes charge from the dynamo crank and an AC adapter; 3 "AA" batteries; the A/C adapter alone or the dynamo crank alone
* Gives you access to NOAA weather channels and TV-VHF channels so you can check the weather or hear important news updates
* Dimensions: 8.6 x 4.5 x 2.0 inches (WxHxD); weighs 1.5 pounds
"
Well the TV band part is false. In the product picture, the product is labeled as an AM/FM/SW Emergency Radio. The one I got is labeled as an AM/FM/Weather Receiver. The dial doesn't even show the TV bands that the FR-400 should have. Also note that it doesn't come with any cell phone charging cables.. I have an iPhone and it will be interesting to see if they have an adapter.
This seems to be more Eton's fault than amazon.. How could amazon know that they have two different radios under one model number. I'm trying an RMA for the first time. If amazon doesn't send the right one now that I've pointed this out, then it will be their fault.
UPDATE: It is now Amazon's fault in my opinion. After calling, e-mailing and posting this review, they were still unable to resolve the issue first try... We'll see what happens now. I got another FR400 that lacked the TV bands. I'm fully aware that the world is going digital, but I still want these channels for the rest of the hurricane season. Also, in emergency situations, those old over the air signals may be used as backups... Anyway. I told Amazon that the box could be looked at to see if the product they were sending me included everything in the product description, but clearly, their automated process didn't look and they apparently have no process for one-off occasions like this. To me, it seems like ETON is no longer making these radios with TV bands.. If that's the case, I shouldn't have to pay 59.99... They've removed a feature without adding one, so the asking price should be reduced. Amazon should be notified when changes like this are made... Amazon should also update their product descriptions. Even if the manufacturer fails to provide notice, Amazon should be quicker to edit their site when CUSTOMERS notify them in three different ways... As of today, the description is still wrong.
Best friend thru Hurricane Ike September 22, 2008
I went seven 1/2 days with no electricity following Hurricane Ike and didn't use one battery. Love this radio. Yes, I had to crank and crank to listen to the radio, but it gave me something to fiddle with - and the light stayed on long and strong without recranking, whether the radio was on or no.
Don't know if the VHF TV Band will work after digital transition in Feb 2009, but I'd buy any Eton crank radio on the strength of my good experience with this.
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