Customer Reviews

Etón FR1000 Voicelink Self-Powered Hand-Crank AM/FM/NOAA Weather Two-Way GMRS Clock Radio with Flashlight, Siren, and Cell Phone Charger (Black)

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

 

 

I haven't tried all the features on this radio, but so far it's very good. Extremely solid with very clear sound and reception (mono - the radio only has one speaker). Very good battery life. About water resistance... I don't know about that. As a product designer there's a serious design flaw I can spot right away, and it's about water. Once you pick up the radio by it's handle, the battery compartment gets facing up. Frankly, the compartment will not keep water outside, even less if water is dripping from your hand in case of a shower to a facing up cheap battery compartment's cap. Inside the compartment there are a couple of holes that give direct access to the interior of the radio. Well... You do the math. The problem could have been prevented by using a simple water tight cap attached with screws. Lame. Anyway I'm still loving the device. I'll handle the water problem myself. It has a very readable green display and crank operation is very smooth. Solid antenna. Flashlight is bright indeed. I hope this helps.

*** UPDATE ***

I returned the FR1000 and purchased a FR500. The FR500 has all the attributes of the FR1000, but is solar (it works), has way better water protection and shortwave! Yeah I'm missing the two way radio thing, but is not such a big deal. The range is short anyway (~10 miles)I can always get a good receiver with the money saved in the FR500. Uff... now I'm in love indeed.

I have owned an earlier model of the Eton hand-crank emergency radio for several years. That product works quite will. I purchased this new model for the several functional enhancements it comes with: 1) Digital receiver, 2) NOAA receiver, and 3) FRS/GMRS radio base station transceiver capability.

Once I started to use this new FR1000 model, I realized just how much of a piece of junk it is:

1. Bad battery pack - The rechargeable battery pack failed from the beginning. I charged it overnight out of the box. Two days later, when I used the radio in the field, it lasted all of 5 minutes.

2. Terrible reception on all bands - I used the FR1000 in two separate and very different environments, and compared it to two other common radios. In the field, where there was very limited reception, the FR1000 could not pick up any FM stations, and only 1 AM station. My mini-van radio picked up all sorts of stations on both AM and FM bands. In town, the FR1000 could pick up a few local stations if the signal was strong. My motel room el-cheapo clock radio picked up far more stations on both AM and FM bands. The FR1000 never did pick up any NOAA stations.

3. Poor station change dial switch design - On the FR1000, in order to change stations, you have to turn the upper right-hand dial upwards or downwards. On order to do that, you have to get your finger into the space alloted for the horizontal dial. I found that doing so caused my finger to jam into that limited space. Searching for stations was both uncomfortable and difficult. This is a really annoying design flaw.

4. No radio carry case - My older model radio came with a carry case, for protection and easy transport. This model does not have any such case. That is really annoying. I feel like Eton added insult to injury when they decided to go the cheap route and not include a carry case. Jeez, this radio costs $150, and is supposed to be used in emergency situations! What were those guys/gals thinking about?

I returned the FR1000 and will stick with my older Eton analogue model. Half the size, half the cost, has a carry case, and is far more functional. Oh, and it actually picks up radio stations! Wow ... what a concept!

Oh well.

First, don't buy the case Amazon Bundles this with. I can not see any application with the two and the case is about half the size of the Radio.

Yes the radio isn't water proof or resistant. It would be nice if they would fix that, it really wouldn't take much. I went out to a local store and payed $3 for a water proof bag to seal this in.

It would also be nice if the radio had a shortwave feature since they have everything else.

As for everything else this is the radio you have to have for emergencies! It has everything in a rugged design and you never have to worry about stupid batteries. In an emergencies the last thing you are going to find is batteries.

I bought this radio at a sharper image closeout. I wish I didnt, as now I cannot take it back. TERRIBLE reception! The piece of junk radio I found on the side of the road picks up more stations than the FR1000 does. In order for me to get it to work I have to attach a jerry rigged aluminum foil antenna to the radio. Even then it still does not work very well. Eton tech support have been totally unresponsive. The hand crank dynamo only works while you crank, as the battery does not hold a charge very well.

Avoid this model...

The radio doesn't get good reception. We had to attach an antenna, and still can't hear it well. I figured with the quality and price, it should receive better than it does.

Bought this to charge my phone only to find out several months later (after no response from Eton) that they do not make an iphone adapter for the unit.

Wish I Eton would have at least put something like that on their website.

I bought this so I could monitor the walkie talkie while listening to the radio, but you cant do both at the same time, bummer.

An Emergency Piece of Equipment. Purchased Amazon. March 2008. Not 10 hours on the radio. Why! PURCHASED for EMERGENCY. Tested radio ( Periodic ) this day 02/07/2011. Volumn control does not function, properly. ETON Tech Support. Will not help! "Out of Warrenty" Recommended service vendors.Called Two of them. I was told "No parts for this unit; or will not answer their phone. Requested to ETON, "Please direct me to someone who will help me with a $150.00 purchase / 10 hours of use, if that. No response or help anywhere up or down the line.Good Product. No adequate support after 1 year warrenty.

Pros: None
Cons: Very poor reception and will not pick up any signal outside of the city limits and no clear signal in the city.
Will not run on 12V supply. (9V Only) No good for Trailer, Boat or RV use.
Inaccurate and useless instruction Manual.
Clock will only work with AC Power.
Very Difficult setup and operation.
I paid $40 w/free shipping on line. I will ask for my money back.

Just got my FR1000 which seems to be well built and do all the things advertised. I am not sure who wrote the instruction manual but it needs serious revision. Several details either not covered or information given is incorrect. My only complaint at this point is how the heck would you charge a cell phone with this device? While there is a charging port, I have never owned a cell phone that had a plug that would fit the port provided. I hope Eton can shed some light by contacting them. This is truly an "emergency" radio as the sound quality is nothing you would want to listen to for very long!