I’ve used this device for a couple of weeks, and have overall been happy with what it has to offer. It is a very handy device to have in emergency situations, and it gives my family and me some piece of mind when contemplating various potential natural disasters that could affect us and leave us without power and information.

First the bad news: I have been very unimpressed with the solar panel charging for this device. I had left it charging in sunny summer days for hours at the time, and was only able to get a very meager amount of power out of it. However, as it is not very likely that I’ll be leaving it out for it to get charged, this shortcoming is not much of an issue for me.

The handcrank charging works somewhat better. I was able to get to listen to the radio after just a few turns of the crank. I expect that for a prolonged use I might have to do a lot more of turning, which may get tiring, but that is a small price to pay for the peace of mind that this device provides.

The radio reception was pretty clear, on par with most other hand radios I’ve used over the years. The radio antenna extends quite a bit and you’ll most likely be able to pick up all the relevant radio stations in your range.

The LED flashlight is pretty bright, but its effectiveness will largely depend on the amount of charge you have. So yes, more cranking.

One of my favorite features of this device is its ability to charge the small electronic devices, such as smartphones and even tablets. I was able to fully charge my iPhone with it, but in order to charge the iPad it would probably take a lot of work and effort.

Overall, this is a pretty decent emergency radio/flashlight/charger tool, but I do wish that its solar panel worked more efficiently. I do intend to keep it in my emergency drawer, and feel comfortable enough using it for such exigencies.