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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.'"
Fire extinguisher. You know, for when the servers catch fire during the slashdotting.
It doesn't have a handcrank but it has a pump and a trigger.
Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
After thirty seconds of cranking I'm usually asleep for thirty-five minutes!
;)
Sorry, I couldn't resist
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.
The war with islam is a war on the beast
The war on terror is a war for peace
Compact Power Systems also introduced a product called the iRecharge, a rechargeable portable battery that fits snugly around your iPod, iPod mini or iPod shuffle giving the iPod and iPod mini 12 hours of extra play time and the iPod shuffle 40 extra hours.
I mean, in an emergency, I want my iPod recharged!
Anyone have a hand-crankable EMP?
The $50 radio that picks up TV audio will be useless when the mandatory switch to digital OTA broadcasts occurs. (Unless something interesting will be broadcast on those frequencies after that point.)
If you're charging your iPod you aren't having a fucking emergency.
A radio could be quite useful, but not nearly as useful as a couple of cases of bottled water.
-Peter
A hand-cranked device that could produce 3-5 days of food and water would probably be popular.
[...]these gadgets could be rendered useless 'should the communications infrastructure itself go down.'
If you can no longer get shortwave signals on your radio because the communications infrastructure itself went down, listening to the latest news is the least of your problems. You should be looking for the stone ax and the closest cave to move into.
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...
Sweet, now I can listen to the Playboy channel when the Apocalypse comes. Nothin better than a little porn to calm those nerves.
Compact Power Systems also introduced a product called the iRecharge, a rechargeable portable battery that fits snugly around your iPod, iPod mini or iPod shuffle giving the iPod and iPod mini 12 hours of extra play time and the iPod shuffle 40 extra hours. It has an on/off switch, so you can charge your iPod as needed, as well as a charge-level indicator that glows to tell you how much juice is left.
My house is destroyed, I have no food and water, but thank god I can still listen to U2 - Vertigo!
I can get 35 minutes of pleasure from a 30 second crank.
While there may be value to hearing whats going on in an emergency, I'd be able to actually call for help should I need it.
A technicians-class FCC license is very easy to get, and small handheld tranceivers are not very expensive.
Thats MUCH more useful in an emergency than a TV. I can hear the weater broadcasts, radio, and emergency bands and much more usefully, I can actually transmit.
That is why I have a CB with sideband. Even if everything else goes down, I can still talk to others who have CBs and find out some info. I can broadcast and receive from my truck. I always keep one of my fuel tanks on my truck full, and don't usually let the other go below half.
Also, shortwave is always a good bet. And finding a way to listen the Hams is always good, even when you aren't in an emergency.
And All I Ask is a Tall Ship And a Star to Steer Her By
They review two crank radios and then extra battery cells for your cell phone and iPod? How 'bout an actual review of several hand crank radios. At the local Radio Shack they had three different ones, as does Sharper Image and other stores. Just because it says "Wall Street Journal" doesn't mean its useful.
If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
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:
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.
"Can of worms? The can is open... the worms are everywhere."
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.
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.
--
"Open source is good." - Steve Jobs
"Open source is evil." - Microsoft