Odyssey Hand Crank NOAA Weather Radio, All Band Emergency Radio, AM/FM Shortwave Storm Radio, Bluetooth, Phone Charger, RDS, Solar, Multi-Function Flashlight, Camping, Hiking

This Eton emergency light/radio works great for me. It take very few cranks to get it up and running. The radio is easy to tune and the channels are clear. I have yet to charge a phone with this but so far I am very pleased with this purchase.

I say it is the best because it comes with a lithium Ion 18650 battery (replaceable) and can use three “AAA” batteries as well as back up. The important thing here is that the battery is not built in, therefore no need to try and send it out for a replacement. The downside here is that if you add the “AAA” batteries with the 18650 you can’t recharge the battery. You have to remove the “AAA” batteries in order to charge the 18650 battery with the USB C charge cable. Another downside to the emergency Eton radios with a built in lithium ion battery is Eton doesn’t reply to emails requesting service.

So this seems to work well, though I can’t tell how effective the hand crank is yet, and I’m not sure how much I should be cranking it for a good charge. Reception is good, flashlight is bright, sound quality is nice, it seems fairly sturdy. I’m excited to have this as a weather radio. All that said, for some reason my allegedly new radio is covered in Mysterious White. I don’t know what this is, but it is in all the rubber crevices and it is very noticeable. It does not have a smell. I am a little uneasy to handle it because it could be nothing, or perhaps it could be some nefarious harmful Substance. Hard to say. If it doesn’t kill me this will be an excellent emergency radio!

Haven’t had much time with the radio but it looks good and does what it’s supposed to. Wonderful radio reception on FM. Some quirks that could be solved... minimum volume is a bit loud... only auto-stored memory, no way to change or manage memory preset stations... can only cycle sequentially, and backwards, the memory stations… screen with poor viewing angles and backlight always on… a screw to lock/open the batteries compartment/cover that inevitably disconnects the radio (loses time and memory presets) and needs a screwdriver to be done… can’t say how long it will last under regular use.

This device is supposed to serve as a support item when you are in an emergency situation such as a power outage, flood, hurricane, earthquake or other emergency. It has a lot of functions incuding a weather radio, short wave receiver, flash light, bluetooth speaker, and most importantly a battery. The battery capacity is ridiculously poor. It cannot charge a cell phone to even 25 percent of power, and it gets depleted rapidly when using the radio or bluetooth. Batteries are expensive of course, but this unit has a very low capacity battery. It has a solar panel that is a sales point but not a functional item. You might be able to fully charge the batter if it was left in the sun in the summer for 12 hours a day or more for a week. It has a handcrank that will charge it only if you turn it for several hours. In short this is a waste of money because the weak battery cannot support the many functions it is designed to provide. The hand crank and solar panel are there to drive sales, but they are not actually useful in practice.

Intended for use in an emergency without batteries, electrical, solar capacity.

The battery doesn't hold charge and radio is not very strong for receiving many of the common stations in the city. I can see it doing any better when you're in a rural setting - even with an external antenna. Sorry...

First, I returned the Odyssey because after a full day of charging, the battery wasn’t fully charged. I. Didn’t want to replace the battery so returned the unit. I own several Eton shortwave radios, and they’re good, But the “emergency “ models don’t stack up well to other brands like Midland. The Odyssey is a fair performer, but overpriced for what it offers. Pros: — Good radio reception on all bands. Not stellar DX performance on AM or SW, but not a deal breaker. — Handy handle for easy carrying. —SOS flashlight and LOUD emergency siren. — Solid display and backlight Cons: — Too heavy for easy portability. Not a good addition to a backpack or go-bag. — Questionable battery (see above). — Abysmal SW tuning. No fast tuning on any band. You’d spend half an hour trying to go from 4 to 21 MHz on shortwave. Tuning on all bands is way too slow, with no direct digital tuning option. Summary: This radio wouldn’t be so disappointing if it were $40 cheaper. But there are far better emergency radios for much less, many of which offer more coverage such as air and VHF. Eton should stick to shortwave radios, where their products are much better.

Fantastic all rounder for an emergency

Never had to use it and hope I never do but it seems solidly built and if the hand crank is capable of charging it up in a reasonable time then I would recommend it as a decent emergency radio.

The radio which seems excellent, unfortunately arrived looking used. See images. Sending back to request new unused unit. Review rating is low because of the condition ie used. Overall rating would be 4 stars otherwise.

I took some time to choose a better quality item. Unfortunately it arrived faulty - after a full charge the lcd display did not come on properly and do I sent it back. I have an unproven suspicion that this may have been a previously returned/ faulty item.