topAlert HY-016 LCD Emergency Survival Solar Hand Crank Self Powered AM/FM/WB(NOAA) Digital Radio, Flashlight, Smartphone Charger with Adaptors & Cables

I purchased this radio and initially liked it very much and gave it a five star review. The sound is good and the digital tuner held the frequency well but then it started turning off by itself (not during an over current situation as stated could happen in the manual) and resetting the tuner necessitating the need for me to keep pressing the tuner button to get my station back but then the button failed after all of that button pressing. The radio also is not cutting off just because the battery was getting low or something like that as it still cuts off even right after being charged and there is also still plenty of power for the light. Sometimes there is also no volume when it turns on despite the volume bar graph showing the volume is all the way up. Sometimes the volume eventually comes back on its own but often I had to turn it off and then on again. The digital liquid crystal display also occasionally has sections of the digits missing. Pressing the reset button does fix the display issue but otherwise I found this radio to be very unreliable and certainly not suitable to emergency use! When it works properly I like this radio so I ended up purchasing another one thinking I purchased a lemon initially but the second radio has the same problems except that none of the buttons have failed yet. I have extensive experience in electronic circuit design and trouble shooting and it seems to me that these radios likely have thermally unstable circuit boards and/or a poor connection to the internal rechargeable battery. I live in Florida and it is generally hot and humid here and I gave these radios a workout but never exposed them to any rain or anything like that. Anyway, I sadly would not recommend purchasing one of these radios unless you just want to cross your fingers it will work and you use it to tune in a news broadcast during a power once or twice. As something to use regularly I don't think this radio would make you happy. By the way, I purchased this TopAlert radio as well as the Epica radio for a dollar less and they appear to be identical except that you get an extra adapter for cell phone charging for that extra dollar. After giving up on these radios I purchased the only other moderately priced radio with a digital tuner I could find here on Amazon (important for me in this rural areas with weak signals and constantly changing ambient temperatures that negatively impact analog tuners) which was more important to me than the ability to charge the radio when there is a power outage. I am all for rechargeable batteries but they also have a life just as as conventional non-rechargeable batters have and in the end I think the radio at the link below would be a far more reliable radio to have in case of an emergency or power outage situation as although it has no crank or solar cell for charging, it takes regular AAA batteries and if you purchase alkaline batteries for it their shelf life would normally be for years. You could just have your radio in a drawer with the batteries for years without having to worry about it but with the rechargeable batteries in this radio I am reviewing you will need to use it and charge it every 60 to 90 days according to the manual even if you do not use it in order to maximize the life of the internal Ni-MH which by the way will cost more to replace when the time comes. Of course, if you intend to use your radio regularly it would be better for the environment to use recharge batteries. Anyway, I recommend the radio below over this one I am reviewing. It has been working fine for me here and my only complaint is that the sound is rather tinny and admittedly inferior to the sound of this radio I am reviewing but worth enduring for a more reliable radio that is also smaller and costs less. Ambient Weather WR-090 Emergency Pocket AM/FM/WB Weather Alert Radio with Digital Tuner and Flashlight

Radio worked okay until I plugged in a pair of headphones. (Bose, if you must know, not a weird funky pair.), then when I pulled the headphones out, the internal speaker which had worked before the headphone test, simply stopped working. A downside to the design is that the DC out is on the smallest ever mini jack. Why oh why not a full sized USB. Even from a cost and production scenario, It does not make sense to use a tiny mini jack instead of a full sized USB out, when you supply a small bag of leads with various connectors including a full size USB to inline jack lead. "Oh I forgot the proprietary leads that goes with the unit, od darn it, now we can't charge anything in the field" Stupid!

I had a Sony One that Got Stole from Me. I Found this One at Amazon so I Thought it was Nice. I Knew that it was Going to Be Small. When I got it I opened it and Took it Out. It Worked Fine. I Keep it in My Window as it Says it has A Solar Charger. I Haven't used it as its Suppose to be a Emergency Light and Radio. So the Other Day the Power Went Out so I Took it Out to Listen to the Local News. After 5 Minutes it Died. So I Cranked it For 15 Minutes and it Worked for another 5 Minutes. Didn't Know I would have to Crank it Like a Ice Cream Maker to have it Work. Sent a Message to the Place I got it with No Response. Wish Anyone would Not Buy this as Its Junk Plain and Simple. I will Buy a Radio with Battery's So I Know it Will work.

Ordered one of these and the radio never worked, only the flashlight after having set it out in the sun for several hours to charge. Sent it back and ordered a second one, same thing, radio didn't work, but flashlight did. Returned for refund again. You get what you pay for.

This item was a gift, and person was very happy. Arrived very fast & great deal!

Expected better solar charging... Flashlight works great. Radio plays for a couple of hours on full charge. Needs to be connected to PC to fully recharge. When battery was fully depleted, left it "charging" in full sun for 8 hours. Tried to play the radio - low battery message appeared and radio locked up. Won't rely on to charge phone (#1 reason I purchased it). Will keep using for emergency flashlight and weather radio.

Horrible product. Won't turn on unless you push power in and to the left. Shuts of after a few min, battery won't stay charged. BUYER BEWARE!!I had to give it 1 star to post review. Please do not think I would even give it that.

Good for preparedness in times of storm and power outages. Love solar power.

This thing was awesome. Works great The flash light is really bright and the radio is pretty good for being so small. Charging it with the solar panel or hand crack will take awhile but that's not a big deal. Over all it's not bad, but I wouldn't recommend it.Update:The radio stopped working, but everything else still works. I haven't even used it out side. I only used it a couple of times inside. I wouldn't recommend this product.

Radio stopped working

The solar panel was smashed when arrived, so I don't even know if it works.

Works ok

Works ok.