Kaito KA500 5-way Powered Emergency AM/FM/SW NOAA Weather Alert Radio with Solar,Dynamo Crank,Flashlight and Reading Lamp, Color Black

GREAT! Has weather alert! Has 7 weather channels. Fm sounds good and gets lots of stations. The hand crank is smooth. It’s comes with ni cad batteries so you have a day to pick some up. The regular batteries are AA and you need 3. The shortwave works pretty good but I only tried it once during the day. The solar panel tilts if needed. The speaker sounds great on FM The reading light is bright and the flashlight is only 1 led so I haven’t checked it out yet. ( it’s daytime).. it has a rubber Carrying handle. It doesn’t tip over easily. 1 of the knobs is kinda small but all are marked well. Would I buy again? YES.

I live in New Orleans and the weather reports indicated that Hurricane Harvey could be sending a lot of rain and tornados our way in addition to knocking out power. I thought it prudent to have an emergency alert device that isn't dependent on the grid or on cell service, so I decided to get one. Initially, I bought an Eton at a local store but it was faulty out of the box. After reading reviews, I noticed that was a trend for their products. After returning it, I did better research going forward and purchased the Kaito KA500BU instead. I've only had the Kaito KA500 for a short while, but it's been fantastic so far. The versatility of having 5 ways to charge this radio is reassuring, especially for a device intended for emergencies. My favorite part is that the USB power is reversible. Being a techie, I have multiple laptops that have now become de facto batteries in the absence of power if necessary. I haven't tinkered with the Short-Wave stations yet, but the AM/FM stations come in crystal clear. One nice surprise is that this little radio is quite loud, especially in NOAA Weather Alert mode. We're still under intermittent Flood/Tornado watches until Thursday, so I left this radio on in the bedroom last night. It received an alert and startled my sleeping wife by blasting it, so I had to move it into the next room. The hand crank seems to work well, providing a few minutes of power each time. We've had so many alerts right after receiving it on the initial charge that it was likely run down early from that. It's charging by USB now and I expect the battery to hold a charge longer once it's been fully charged and cycled. The LED reading lights, flashlight, and strobe light are a nice touch. The reading lights were a big selling point for my wife. I need to buy AA batteries and actually get some sunlight before I can test the auxiliary battery and solar power functions properly, but based on my experiences with this product I expect them to work well. Overall I'm very please with this purchase and would recommend it to others without reservation.

Very nice radio has everything you could want. One small issue is the power input - output switch, says it is labeled (IN) or (OUT) in the instructions. But is labeled (ON) of (OFF) on the radio.

Let me start by saying that I've done wayyyy to much research on emergency survival radios. I'm talking hours and hours of research. Why? Frankly, I was looking for a radio to replace this KA500. My expectations for this radio were sky high and I was disappointed by some of the features of this radio. But after hours and hours of comparing the features of every survival radio I could find, I realized that this radio is literally the ONLY radio that combines all the features I wanted. You will not find a radio on Amazon or anywhere else that can do everything this radio can do. Radio Bands: The KA500 has a unique combination of AM, FM, SW, NOAA AND Weather Alert. Many radios can do AM, FM and NOAA but few can also do Weather Alert and almost none can also do SW. The reception is better than many reviews state. FM was crystal clear, NOAA was very sufficient, AM and SW were a mixed bag. I don't have much experience with listening to AM or SW so I can't compare them to other radios very well but I got several AM stations that were clear enough. I was able to get a few SW stations, inside my house, during the day, with no external antenna. I was impressed. A stand alone SW radio in this price range might get better reception but, as I said above, you will need several different radios to get all the bands this radio has. And that standalone SW radio won't have the added benefits below. Power Options: No other radio has the combination of power sources that this radio has. Period. This radio can run off crank, solar, AA batteries, Android cell chargers/external mini-USB batteries, or a DC wall outlet. But here is where the radio really fell short of some of my expectations. This radio does NOT charge efficiently from hand cranking or solar power. You're looking at 1:4 ratio at best for cranking. That means 10 minutes of cranking will give you around 40 minutes of play time. Solar is even less efficient. But after researching other emergency radios I realized this was a industry wide issue. Apparently crank radios used to be powered by a Baygen mainspring crank, which didn't even have a battery to store the energy and was extremely efficient (30 seconds gave you 30 minutes!) These radios no longer exist. Now all radios have gone the route of Dynamo and nimh batteries and simply aren't very efficient. So why did I give it 5 stars? Because the radio can operate just fine from these power sources. Cranking the radio at a slow and steady pace will power the radio. Placing the radio under sunlight will power the radio. Your alarm clock radio with weather alert or your fancy SW receiver will not work when the power goes out and the batteries die. Other, cheaper emergency radios can do this but do they take AA batteries? (It's important to standardize your emergency equipment to one set of batteries.) Can they run or charge from your mini-USB external battery? Added Benefits: Let's start with the most important: this radio is weather resistant. That alone sets it apart from so many other radios I was seriously considering, especially SW receivers and Weather Alert radios. Many emergency radios are weather resistant but can't do half the stuff this radio can do. The lights on this radio are also awesome, the flashlight is great and the reading light is even better. Lights are common on emergency radios but rare on SW and Weather Alert radios. Are you starting to see why the combination of features on this radio are truly unique? Finally, let's talk about the most contentious feature: the cellphone charging. So many emergency radios claim they can do this but none can do it well. If you plug in your cellphone and expect the KA500 to sit there and charge it from solar or it's internal batteries, you will be disappointed. The internal battery is too small, the solar charging too inefficient. BUT this is, without a doubt, still a feature because you can hand crank and charge a device. Will it be slow? Yes. But you're essentially getting the exact same thing the Eton BoostTurbine can do, and that alone is $20. A hand crank charger should be appreciated for what it is: an emergency feature that will work when no other options are available. If any other option is available, it will be more efficient. I challenge anyone to comment below if they can find a radio in ANY price range that has ALL the features of this radio.

I like this radio! It claims that it is a solar radio and it is! Other radios (like Eton) claim to be solar radios but after buying them and using them, you find that they can be charged by solar power but the power does not last very long and a back up battery is primarily used to power the unit. I leave this radio out in my Florida room and let it charge up by solar power. When I want to use it I turn the radio on and listen without any problems. I have used the radio for at least 1/2 hour without any problem, I don't know what the total capacity of how long the solar power will last when the unit is not in the sun during use. The unit comes with an internal battery that plugs in after purchase and is charged with the solar cells or the AC adapter. You have the capability of putting another battery as a back up but I haven't put one in it and have been using solar power as the sole recharging source. I purchased the AC adapter as a backup to charge the internal battery but haven't used it yet. The AC charger is just a backup in case I need to charge the internal battery fast and there is no sunshine available. The radio sounds good and the tuner seems to be easy to use. In one review, I read the crank was cheap and some people had problems with breaking the crank. For my use, I haven't had to use the crank too much and can't say how durable it is. there are several radio bands on this radio. AM, FM, Weather, and 2 Shortwave bands. I also bought the shortwave antenna for future use in case I want to play with the shortwave bands The radio comes in a variety of colors. I picked blue so it would stand out if I was in a park or grassy area so that it would stand out and I hopefully won't leave it behind. I thought Black and Green and camaflauge would blend into the enviroment and not be easily seen, the Yellow was a little too bright, the red was a second consideration and so the blue was the final choice. I primarily bought this radio for the solar capability and it so far performs as advertised. I like the size, it's not too large to carry easily. It will probably fit into a gallon ziplock bag in case you want to keep the accessories with the radio and save it from some wet enviroments. For approx. $50 on Amazon.com I am very happy with this radio.

This Kaito 5-Way Powered Emergency AM/FM/SW Weather Alert Radio was the best choice for a good, budget-friendly radio compared to others I looked at. The power goes out at least 2 or 3 times every winter, sometimes more, where I live, because of storms and high winds. So having a dependable radio makes a big difference when you're waiting for the power to come back on, which can take quite a while. The size is just right, so it's compact and easy to carry and store, and the controls are easy to use. And, probably the best part is the many ways this radio can be charged up, so you're never in a situation where it can't be powered up and used.

I've had this radio for about a week. I wanted to test the hand-cranking feature. I cranked it pretty hard for 2 minutes, 300 turns. It ran for 22 minutes before the "battery low" light came on. After the battery low light came on, it continued to be audible for another 40 minutes, for a total of 1 hour on a charge. At the end, the radio was very quiet, but I could still hear it. I was using the external speaker; it may have lasted even longer had I been using the ear buds. I was rather impressed. Of course the battery performance is sure to go down with use. The reading light looks like it would be barely adequate to read by. The flashlight is like the coin size led lights that are worn on key chains. Since it has the reading light, with 5 LEDs, the flashlight really seems useless, although it does have the flashing red mode, which is kind of cool. I was quite impressed with the sound and general performance. I was able to bring in some SW stations and receive a lot of AM stations. I don't really listen to FM. The weather band works well. One of the reviews mentions an auxillary antenna that helps short wave reception. My radio doesn't have any such feature. I did try the solar cells in bright sunlight and it seemed to work. I bought a similar radio from Radio Shack about 8 years ago, a Grundig FR200, and I used the hand crank a lot. It did seem to wear, and stopped turning smoothly, but it still works. I suspect this radio will be the same. The crank seems to squeak when its being turned hard, and I wonder if a shot of WD40 would help. I listen to the radio quite a bit, and this is the radio I'm using now. I have NiCad batteries in it. I'm sure they'll work for many hours before needing recharging. Its pretty unlikely that a set of 3 AA batteries will go dead before an emergency has resolved itself, but I like the crank and solar cells anyway. I'm a Ham radio operator, and this radio is not real high quality. But for the price, I was pleasantly surprised at how well it is made. The tuning knob is smooth; the speaker is only 2 inches but seems bigger. None of the cell phone charging plugs works in my cell phone, so I won't be using that feature. I doubt if it would work very well for that purpose, given how hard it is to charge the tiny internal battery. All in all, a nice little radio!

At the same time that I bought this, I bought a $16 RunningSnail emergency flashlight radio, and in my opinion the RunningSnail blows this out of the water in all important areas except maybe charging and power versatility. Most notably, the flashlight is extremely weak. Might be better than nothing but that's about it. The radio works great and the audio quality is impressive for an emergency radio - It's even enjoyable to listen to music on. I couldn't get anything notable on the shortwave signals but maybe location is a factor. The location of the crank makes it awkward to crank, especially for long periods of time. Hand-cranking to keep my phone charging is a bit painful but it can be done if you're desperate and it's a big reason to have one of these. You do need to crank for significantly longer than you might think if you want to be able to leave your phone alone for a bit. I was able to charge 5% initially without cranking. But once you're dead, 100 cranks won't even charge 1%. I had similar results for the RunningSnail, but I think the max battery for this is probably higher. The power options are probably the most impressive part and I think the only reason you could justify the $50 price. There are multiple ways to power the unit: By default, a REPLACEABLE rechargeable battery is used (you could even stock up on them!). It can also be powered by AA batteries, a micro USB cable, or 6v DC power (cable not included) Overall maybe not the best value, but it's versatile and may still suit your needs.

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usability

Very happy with seller received Katio Voyager SOLAR crank ka 500 radio very happy with the seller and the radio is all QUALITY I received the post before the due date ...also I noticed in AUSTRALIA this radio dosent catch weather radio bands i tried all channels...but I'm very happy with my purchase money well spent the solar crank radio katio 500 Voyager works great with all features with reading lights torch beacon works great the emergency hand crank works great I've tested it power the radio turning 1min its built with great quality dosent look cheap at all.. The reception of the AM FM radio is excellent quality it also can charge your phone in an emergency situation I'm very pleased with the design I was thinking to buy a yellow colour but decided on blue is appealing I'm very happy with the colour I purchased look cool I recommend to others who are looking for a radio for emergency or a radio that offers more than just music it can be a portable generator charge your phone or devices it has solar panel that can charge and has many function built in that why I recommend to others this Katio Voyager SOLAR crank ka 500 comfortable I give this product 5 stars on its features and portability if your in the market looking for a emergency radio the Katio Voyager SOLAR crank ka 500 lives up to its name AAA +++

Great radio!

This is by far one of the best emergency or hobby/camping type of Short Wave and Weather band Radios that I have ever used. It has a built in light for the display and is easy to use. I plan on buying more of them. I have had other radios that are limited in functions. This one has the most band coverage on shortwave + weather and regular AM/FM radio. It has built in flash light for easily reading the display in the dark and as a flash light or reading lamp. I'm not yet sure how effective the solar panel is but it's nice to have there. I'll be cranking this in most cases and using rechargeable and regular batteries that will work just fine for my needs. I especially like how the cell phone can be charged with this unit very important for long term power outrages. What I would improve on is the tuning it could use a "fine-tune" feature that would be nice, maybe a dual display frequency counter with the analog and a tone control also would be nice but that's about all I can think of that would make it best of the best. If you don't own one already I'd recommend it for sure.