Customer Reviews

Eton FR100 Blackout Buddy Radio (Pearl)

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is honestly the worst radio ever. The day I opened it I instantly noticed a horrible smell coming from the unit itself. It really smells like ass.

It only has a rechargeable battery. They say it lasts for four or more hours, but that is a lie. I received it on Friday. I plugged it into the wall from Friday, all day Saturday, and all day Sunday. I wanted to listen to a show on Monday. Today (October 24, 2005), I unplugged it and turned it on. It lasted for a totally of an hour and a half. THAT'S IT!!!!!!!

Not only that, but the reception is horrible. The flashlight is small and weak. It is way over priced. I know radios for ten dollars that are way better then this. Do not buy this crap. If you need a radio buy anything, but this.

If I could give it 0 stars I would.

I purchased this radio and charged it for two full days and got 10 minutes of listening pleasure. I called their 800 number to find out what was wrong. They indicated that I am supposed to charge it for 3 days (The booklet fails to mention how long to charge it yet has instructions in many different languages for your convenience). I did that, and enjoyed a full 75 minutes of play time. This was far from their 4 hours estimated play time. I returned it to the reseller and got another figuring it was a fluke. Charged it in great anticipation, and got about 70 minutes of play time for 3 days of charging. I called the 800 number again. Eton offered to replace it, but I had to pay for the shipping. I didn't think that was fair and tried to return it to the local reseller after my 30 days from the original sale was up. Luckilly the reseller took the radio back and refunded my money. Two bad radios just a fluke? Maybe so. But why penalize the the customer and ask him to eat the cost of shipping to fix Eton's problem? Plus the design is such that the bottom of the radio is rounded and the unit cannot stand up on its own. Eton said it is meant to be left in the electrical outlet. During a "blackout", I'd want it to be portable and set it just about anywhere. Go figure.

I just recently purchased my second Blackout Buddy from Tech For Less, an Amazon store, after the rechargeable battery from my first unit (purchased over 4 years ago) finally died. A call to Eton, the manufacturer, confirmed that this product was discontinued a few years ago and is only available from remaining retailer inventory.

I originally purchased the Blackout Buddy for the master bathroom because I grew tired of continually replacing the regular batteries from an older radio. This unit seemed the perfect solution - a rechargeable battery in a unit that is designed to stay plugged-in and continuously charged. All in all, the unit completely met my expectations. The radio reception is remarkably good. And the sound quality is about what you would expect from such a small unit - a bit tinny, but clear and crisp. Additionally, the digital clock and the blue LCD display, which also serves as a night-light, make it perfect for use in a bathroom. I keep it plugged into an outlet that's right alongside the medicine chest, which makes it easy to see and access. I generally only remove it from the outlet during a power-outage, which is usually a few times a year. The longest I've played the radio on battery-power is about two to three hours, so I can't speak to how long the battery would last beyond that. The small flashlight on the side is useful, but certainly not a replacement for a good lantern flashlight which is far more suitable for a power-outage.

My only real complaint about the unit is that the rechargeable battery is not designed to be user-replaceable. I'm fairly handy and after taking the unit's back off and realizing that I could probably re-wire in a new battery, I was unable to find the exact type battery, a 4-cell NiMH battery, anywhere. Scouring the internet was a near total dead-end, although one vendor did say he could put one together for me. But after finding a brand new Blackout Buddy on Amazon for about the same cost as having a new battery made, it was a no-brainer.

If you're looking to use the unit in the same way as I do, then this unit is for you. At ten dollars or so (including shipping), this unit can't be beat. I've not found anything similar out there, and I suspect I'll probably regret not buying a couple more to keep on hand before they're all finally gone.