Eton NSP101WXGR AM/FM/NOAA Weatherband Scorpion II Rugged Portable Emergency Weather Radio
- Regular price
- $57.39
- Sale price
- $39.99 Sale
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Product Description
Brand: Eton
Color: Green
Features:
- EMERGENCY RADIO: This emergency radio & LED flashlight receives AM,FM & NOAA weather bands with digital tuner & display. Features a rechargeable lithium battery plus hand crank & solar power options.
- RUGGED & MULTIFUNCTIONAL: This compact & rugged unit can easily be stored in a safety kit or tossed in your rucksack. Use it to monitor emergency alerts & charge your USB smartphone or other device.
- STAY SAFE & HAVE FUN: Use the metal carabiner to hang from a tent pole or tree limb to charge. Pop open a cold beverage with the built-in bottle opener!
- KEEP CONNECTED: From weather alert radios & backup battery packs to solar-powered sound systems, we'll keep you connected & in the know at home, in the office, on the road or in the great outdoors.
- ETON'S COMMITMENT TO PREPAREDNESS: We're committed to helping you be prepared for everyday fun & unexpected emergency, whether you're out on a 10-day backpacking trip or barbecuing in the backyard.
- Receives AM/FM/NOAA Weatherband to keep you informed and entertained
- NOAA Weather Alerts so you know what's coming your way
- Digital tuner and display for precise tuning and reception
Publisher: Eton
Details: When outdoor adventures or emergencies take you off the grid, you need a device that can meet your multiple needs. The Eton Scorpion II is a compact unit that you can easily store in a safety kit or toss in your rucksack and take with you anywhere you go. With its rugged exterior skin and aluminum carabineer, the Scorpion II is designed to endure any extreme outdoor conditions or emergency situation.
UPC: 827165741377
EAN: 7426801573513
Package Dimensions: 7.3 x 3.6 x 2.4 inches
Customer Reviews
Based on 12 reviews
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Just about everything but setting the clock is intuitive, except using the USB port to charge another device. Normally, you just plug it in and it works, but for this radio you have to plug in the cable (to radio and device to charge like a phone), turn on the radio with the power button, then hold M until your device shows it’s drawing power and charging.I was very confused why it didn’t work the first time I pulled it out of my bag to charge my phone. Thankfully, it wasn’t in an emergency. I had to look up the manual online. Thankfully, my phone wasn’t dead yet. It really should just be connect, and start charging like most USB power banks. Or connect and hit a button to start charging. Not connect, turn on, hold a button until the radio turns off and the device begins charging. Not great to have convoluted steps to remember in the stress of an emergency.Otherwise, though, this is a great, fully featured, and durable little emergency radio. I feel better right having it nearby. Except for the integrated bottle opener. That’s just dumb.
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This radio is advertised as having an 800mah internal battery, but when mine arrived I opened it up and found a 400mah lithium-polymer battery inside instead. I'm not sure what chemistry the correct 800mah is supposed to be (li-po or ni-cad), but I have ordered a second one and will see what that comes with, then update this review.UPDATE: The second radio also had a Great Power brand 400mah li-po inside. I have contacted Eton customer service for an explanation.UPDATE #2: The Eton customer representative I worked with actually checked with the engineers for me, and came back that the internal battery is actually two 400mah cells wrapped together to form a single 800mah battery. After taking another look at the battery in mine, I could see there were indeed two cells inside the shrink wrap.As an owner of the original Scorpion, I decided to get the Scorpion 2 as an upgrade when the original's 350mah Ni-Cad battery stopped being able to hold a charge. Past Eton hand crank radios were manufactured with the same batteries used in old cordless phones and had the same problems - left on the charger most of the time, the batteries just die after a year or two; left off the charger and the batteries slowly drain and are dead when you finally need them.Compared to the original, the Scorpion 2 winds up being more of a 'sidegrade' rather than an upgrade.The pros: The 800mah internal battery is more than twice as much capacity as the 350mah that was used in the original. The solar panel looks to be improved and, I assume, more efficient, but a bigger battery requires more time in the sun for a full charge. The flashlight is brighter by a significant margin and appears to use a LED chip, where the original had a trio of LED bulbs. This new light has a square-shaped hotspot in the middle of the beam which some people may like and others will not. I've compared this to the soft halo of the original in the included pictures. The biggest improvement is the inclusion of a micro-USB charging port, allowing the radio to conveniently be charged without direct sunlight or lots of hand cranking. The original could be charged using a separate AC adapter and a specific plug - the micro-USB is common and virtually everyone already has at least one of these cables.The included 800mah battery is also lithium-polymer - this is a great upgrade from the old nickel-cadmium batteries Eton has used in the past. Li-pos hold a charge better, longer, and don't suffer from memory effect over time.The cons: Compared to the original Scorpion, the speaker for the radio is considerably quieter. At mid-volume (set at 15 on the controls) the Scorpion 2 is about half as loud as the Scorpion 1. At full volume (set to 30) they seem to get closer to the same level but the Scorpion 2 is still noticably softer. Additionally, they've removed the AUX input which allowed the original to be used as an exernal speaker for other music players or phones. Although the two versions have an identical outer shell, the construction quality seems sloppier on the Scorpion 2. I believe the original was sold for $60-$80 so it appears that Eton has cut some corners to bring down the price on the Scorpion 2.Durability is probably on par with the original, since it feels like the same material and roughly the same weight. The carabiner loop and bottle opener have remained unchanged and the controls and LCD screen on top are pretty much the same as well.Overall, the micro-USB charging port definitely brings some much needed versatility to the Scorpion, but beyond that any improvements have come at the cost of something else. In the end, this radio was on sale and was basically the same price as replacing the battery on my old Scorpion, so in that respect it does the job. In an ideal world I'd simply be able to add a micro-USB port to my old Scorpion and put the bigger battery inside.
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I have been living in my car and my stereo was stolen years ago. I had an Eton red solar compact radio a few years a go that I really liked which was also stolen. When I tried to replace it it was no longer available and the other models were too big and too expensive. I bought a less pricey off brand solar emergency radio which was not very loud and which fell apart within 2 months of life in the car. Finally this model on line and love it. Plenty of volume, radio runs all day on a fully charged battery, charges in a few hours at 2.5 amps in the car or via laptop wall charger. It gets knocked around a lot and thrown in my backpack regularly and is none the worse for wear. Even the antenna is tough. Spend the extra few bucks and get a really tough useful piece of emergency equipment you can use every day. The only drawback is that it can't operate on regular batteries...an option I really liked in my old red model.
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Just had this delivered to me this afternoon and I'm really digging this thing. First off, its heavier then I thought it would be and that is a good thing. It has a nice solid feel to it and I think even if this thing got banged around abit it would fare ok.The idea that you end up with one item that has more then one use also appeals to me and I like the fact that it can be recharged in multiple ways.For instance there is the solar panel which because I just got this I have not tested that but the built in hand crank for an end of the world scenario which all we dooooomsday preppers know is coming will come in handy for generating power. Whether to use the flashlight or radio, this looks like it would work well and my intention behind buying it is to place it in my go-bag!As for the eh..hmm alleged ability to charge a cell phone it does in fact do that! How do I know? I tested it out on a smart phone I have that I let the battery run down and low and behold it works! How exactly?This is the funny part. Per manufacturers instructions all you have to do is crank this bad boy constantly for 4 minutes and your reward is "1" minute of talk time!Need to have a 1/2 hour long chat on your android device with your bug-out partner? Possibly the mistress you plan to meet at the helicopter before bugging out to your off-grid location? All you'd have to do to get that half hour would be to crank this thing constantly for 120 minutes (2 hours) and your golden!Now I don't mind cranking for 4 minutes to inform the ex for "1" minute that I'm bugging out and she's not coming but no way am I cranking for 120 minutes to end up with "30" minutes of why are you leaving me behind?? What did I ever do to you??
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Great little radio. It feels rugged and protected like it would take a beating and survive. I’ve had this radio for about a year and it’s held up well. The hook has been great for hanging from odd places like nails and wood beams while doing demolition or tree branches when outdoors. The solar panel has kept up with my use for a year without needing to crank the unit nor plug in to charge. During periods of heavy use just riding with the unit on my dashboard on the way to work has kept it charged. When used less frequently having it set on a desk facing a window has kept up with my casual use. I don’t have to worry about if the antenna is a weak point as I don’t typically have to extend the antenna for reception so it remains retracted into the unit’s body safe and shielded. As the solar panel keeps up with my use I neither have to worry if the handle is a weak point from overuse. I’ve been very happy with this radio.
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This is a terrific travel/emergency radio. I originally got it for overnight trips for when the hotel room has none but have been using it on a daily basis at home too. Sound is pretty good for radio so small, the stations come in clear (Minneapolis, MN USA) including weather band. Flashlight is really bright. I charge it off my standard phone charger but it will also charge in a window (slow) or with crank.It has a " dump charge" for your phone that also works well. I like the button controls for volume and tuning. On radios that use dials, these often fail with heavy use. No it won't survive dropping in a lake or off a cliff. But it's rugged enough to go to work EDC and seems to have a battery that lasts. I liked it so much I got another one for a " go bag". I looked at a lot of emergency radios. For size, weather band and power options, this one really stands out as a good value and the size makes it practical for a BWCA trip.
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Feels durable. Crank easy to operate. Difficult to figure out all aspects of how it works though. Almost returned it as I thought it was not working correctly until I figured out how to do a couple of the functions. Weather station comes in a little difficult to hear with antenna fully extended and tuned in. Flashlight bright. Charged up iPhone6+ to 0- 20% with the device at 3 bars, then drained emergency radio. Tried cranking for 10 min to charge phone but phone charge did not increase at all. Solar took 3 hours to charge to 2 bars. Wall charged it using emergency radioʻs USB cord with iPhone charger in about 2 hours to full charge. In an emergency situation I would use a pack to charge iPhone rather than rely on this device to charge it. Cranking does give you more time to listen to radio vs use for phone. Device is lighter and has a good handle than others we looked at.
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The reviews I read seem to be right on. Charging via USB, crank and solar don't totally fill the internal battery. Regardless, the radio picks up both AM and FM in our proximity. I found that I do have to extend the antenna to get a decent signal.The weather channel also come in loud and clear. I have not charged an external device yet, so can't comment on that.For the price, I feel this was a fair purchase.
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The metal clip seems fairly sturdy, and the antenna on my model does indeed pivot. I know that's an issue that was apparent for some people, however I got the pivot to clear the expansion sheath by turning the base counter clockwise with light pull as if to further extend the antenna. Remember to turn and pull on the main tolescoping pit of the antenna (the bit that the rest of the antenna collapses into).Otherwise, the unit is well rounded. I did my research, and this radio is the most highly regarded unit of its type. Great reception, holds a greats charge, solar panel starts charging in poor conditions (cloudy days still prompts charging indicator), and the one LED flashlight is suprisingly bright (as in the beam has no problem at all hitting my shed that is roughly 30ft from the back door with a full wall charge). Oh and excellent reception, fanaminal if you take into consideration the size of the unit.I cannot vouch for its durability yet simply because I'm not about to tourcher my brand new toy, but reviews on the internet say if it gets waterlogged, simply let it dry in the sun for a couple days or bake it like you would your phone then it seems to boot back up without much problem beyound the screen becoming slightly faulty. Drop tourcher reviews seem promising aswell. Some people have reported that this radio has fallen out of there second story apartment window onto concrete and the only damage to report was to the protective rubber and plastic on the outside.All around an exelent product! The only thing that I'd like to see change about it is a higher mAmp/hr battery, and better waterproofing beyound splash proof rating. However, the battery seems plenty for the unit and its uses, but I'd buy it again even for anlittle more if it ment a totally water proof model up to, say, 3 fathoms.Stop looking for a backpacking radio, buy this one. You won't be disappointed.
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It was heavier than I expected. But, but, it is smaller than I expected too, and there is an AM/FM/NOAA radio stations, flashlight, hand crank, snap hook, and bottle opener. Plus it can recharge your cell phone by either the crank, solar, or plugging it in to the wall. It actually gets very good reception on both AM/FM and the volume was pretty loud. I could get reception on a FM station from a city 45 miles away. The NOAA weather station gets a lot of static, but you can still hear it pretty clear. I am charging a Li 3500Mah 18650 Fenix flashlight battery right now with no problem just to see how much it will recharge it when the radio is fully charged. It says in the instructions that it cannot get wet or rained on.......interesting. I would definitely buy this again because my cat already knocked if off the table twice, and it still works despite falling 3 feet onto a tile floor. Fortunately nothing broke, so I know it will take a descent fall. It is an amazing and rugged little radio that is very easy to work!
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Use it as a portable power supply, flashlight and radio. Yes, its a little big, but it is all in one. I keep it in by backpack for everyday use, and take it to college football games to listen to the play by play. NOAA radio is nice. Charges my iPhone and iPad mini acceptably while on the road. LED flashlight works well and uses little power. 1 hour of intermittent cranking charges the battery to 2/3. Battery recharges via USB in around 1 hour. I believe the solar cell is practically useless, but have not tested it thoroughly.
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Update: I wanted to love this product. Unfortunately, quality control is an issue. After very little use, the top portion of the antenna pulls out and separates from the rest of the antenna. The crank does not lock into place and just flaps around.Pro's:Nice bright beam.Sturdy construction (not so after use)Carabiner is good quality and attaches well.Holds a charge well.Sounds is decent enough to understand Weather Band.Cons:Heavy (downside of being sturdy)Radio sound quality is poor for AM/FMOn/Off button feels squishy when pressed.I wouldn't recommend it as it is likely to fall apart with use.
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