Emergency Gadgets Reviewed

Carl Bialik writes "When power lines go down, hand-cranked radios and standalone cellphone chargers could come in handy. Wall Street Journal columnist Walt Mossberg reviews emergency gadgets, including a $50 radio that picks up TV audio and gets 35 minutes of power from a 30-second crank. Of course, Mossberg also offers the caveat that these gadgets could be rendered useless 'should the communications infrastructure itself go down.'"

Comments

TV on Radio

[minus_273]

As anyone who has lived in the 3rd world can tell you, you can pick up TV on ordinary FM radios it is a matter of tuning it to the right frequency. I have seen these things in Asia for years.

Re:TV on Radio

[Phreakiture]

As anyone who has lived in the 3rd world can tell you, you can pick up TV on ordinary FM radios it is a matter of tuning it to the right frequency. I have seen these things in Asia for years.

This is 100% dependent on the frequency structure in the country in which you are located. To do this with an "ordinary" FM radio in the US, you can only pick up channel 6, at 87.75MHz (with 87.7 being close enough). If you have one of the Japanese radios that has extended coverage to do both the Japanese 72-93MHz FM and the American/European 88-108MHz FM bands, then you can also get audio from US TV stations on channels 4 (75.75MHz) and 5 (81.75MHz).

There are other radios out there that have got TV audio capability on them. They frequently only cover channels 2-13 because it is easier to build a VHF than a UHF radio.

For reference, the frequencies are as follows:

Channels 2-6: 59.75, 65.75, 75.75, 81.75, 87.75 (note the gap betwen 3 and 4 is 10MHz, not 6MHz as elsewhere)

Channels 7-13: 179.75, 185.75, 191.75, 197.75, 203.75, 209.75, 215.75

Channels 14-69: 475.75, 481.75, 487.75, etc, every six MHz up to 805.75

Note also that frequencies within any vacant TV channels in the channel 14-20 range (470-512MHz) may also be licenced to business or public safety two-way radio users, especially in larger metro areas.

Last note, which I am providing to explain the huge gap between frequencies: the structure of a TV channel is this: It is 6MHz wide. The audio is 5.75MHz from the bottom of the channel, and uses the upper .5MHz of the channel (that is, 5.75MHz +/- .25MHz). The video is at 1.25MHz from the bottom of the channel to 5.5MHz from the bottom of the channel. Below the 1.25MHz point is cruft called a Vestigial Side Band. For example, on channel 2, 54.00-55.25 is cruft, 55.25 is the video carrier, 55.25 to 59.5 is video, 59.5 to 60.0 is audio, 59.75 is the audio carrier.

Baylis generator = no batteries at all

[jakedata]

I have been using my original Freeplay radio for about 8 years now.

Unlike the more recent models, it operates on a spring driven generator for about 45 minutes, or in sunlight. It has no internal batteries at all.

The lack of batteries is a Very Good Thing. Rechargable batteries die, and sometimes they short out. If so, you got no radio - cranked or solar.

The downside is that the radio is the size of a loaf of bread. The upside is that it has a very large speaker and very nice sound.

I toyed with the idea of adding an external power tap, but there are dire warnings about opening it up and releasing the giant spring. Someday perhaps...

Re:Baylis generator = no batteries at all

[stefanlasiewski]

Freeplay still makes an AM/FM/SW1/SW2 windup & solar powered (no battery) radio, but it's mostly intended for rural African communities. But you can buy one and donate a second radio for the Freeplay Foundation.

It's the size of a loaf of bread, and it's ugly, but it's not really aimed for American gageteers.

Multiband radios

[stefanlasiewski]

Look around for other reviews of the Eton FR300 (Formally Grundig). While many people like the features, this radio is NOT as reliable as the legendary Grundig FR200. Go find one and play with it-- many pieces feel like they will snap off after a couple uses.

It's a cheap gizmo for the beach or a day outing, not a sturdy radio for emergencies. Of course, an iPod charger isn't exactly an "Emergency Device" either.

What I'm really looking looking for:

• Power: Radio Hand-crank power, Solar power, DC or AC input, LED light, replacable batteries
  
• Receives most available radio frequencies: AM, FM, audio for VHF TV (Channels 2-6) & VHF TV (Channels 7-13), audio for UHF TV, NOAA Weather Band and Shortwave.
  

There are several radios which use which have some of this feature set, but it seems like there is a market for a radio which has all of these features.

To be truthful, I want a pony.

Make friends with a ham radio operator

[TheNucleon]

If the communications infrastructure goes down, being friends with a ham radio operator would be a very good idea. Hams use both short and long range radio gear, and both types of gear can operate independent of the power grid and relays/repeaters when needed. Failing that, as another commenter noted, having a battery-operated AM or shortware radio is good too. Be sure to have fresh batteries! AM travels a long way at night. Signals in a 100-200 mile radius are typically not difficult, and would be the most useful, as they would be close to home but probably outside the disaster zone.

My comments are mine alone, and do not represent the views of my employer, friends, family or cats.

Emergency item: power generator

[Rei]

When searching for info for my parents who were concerned about losing their reef tank when Rita hits and takes out the power, I ran into a page discussing how you can hook up a car battery to run an old UPS. It got me wondering - couldn't you hook up, in the same manner, a UPS to a car battery that is still hooked up inside a car, and run the car so that it's alternator basically acts like a generator and your UPS as the inverter? Sounds like it might be an easy way to make a portable generator. Aren't alternators usually capable of up to 800 watts or so?

cheaper, better hand-cranked radios

[Yrrebnarg]

Take a look at http://www.radios4you.com/ or http://www.kaitousa.com/ and invest in a radio that also does shortwave if you're looking for an emergency radio. For far less than the $50 you'd spend on the yuppie crud in TFA, you can pick up a solar/crank/charger model and a decent antenna reel, which would let you pick up broadcasts from europe, cuba, the USA, the caribbean (BBC news), or just about anywhere else. All you lose is _local_ broadcasts when the communication infrastructure takes a nose-dive.

"Hummer" flashlight

[b1t r0t]

The Hummer branding of it may be a bit cheesy, but the Hummer Shake Flashlight that you can get at Sharper Image works great. 20 years ago my mom got a flashlight which ran with a squeeze grip geared into a toy motor. Last year we got a couple of these and it is so much better.

First of all, it's a linear generator, so each time the weight inside crosses the center it makes power; second, it uses an LED which is much lower power than old incandescent bulbs; and third, it has a supercapacitor which can power the LED for a few minutes with 30 seconds of shaking. Just be sure to shake it horizontally, as the instructions warn that you might break it if the weight hits an end too hard on a vertical downstroke.

The best part is you never have to worry about the batteries running down or leaking when you don't use it, and you never have to avoid using regularly for fear of running the batteries down. It has a power switch, so you can shake it up and use it as needed, then just shake it again when it runs down.

Slashdot readers would be recommended to get the "red" model, as that is translucent and you can see the guts of it operating, for higher geek value.