GoKawiilEmergency Solar Hand Crank NOAA/AM/FM Radio 4 / 5 Very good pros and cons Pros Competitively priced emergency radio
USB-C/solar, and hand crank charging
It's a good radio -- great reception, loud, clear speaker, decent runtime. Cons No earphone jack
Hand cranking takes a LONG time!
Power bank feature is definitely a "last resort" feature. $13.99 at Amazon
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In an age of 5G, satellite internet, and being able to make calls from your smartwatch, an AM/FM radio might seem old-school and outdated. I mean, they had those things when dinosaurs roamed, right?
Today, most people seem to think radio outside of cars is dead. But nothing could be further from the truth (research suggests radio still has an enormous reach, 87% weekly reach, ahead of smartphones/TV, and is still the main source of in-car entertainment). And when it comes to emergencies -- you know, the sort of stuff that's happening all around us, like wildfires, heatwaves, and storms -- FEMA recommends that you have a radio in your kit, alongside your spare water and food, flashlight, and first aid supplies.
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And not just any radio, either. Since the power could go down for an extended period, it's recommended that you have a battery-powered device that can be charged via hand crank.
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