So someone has apparently done a deal with the American Red Cross folk to give their product a real seal of approval. Nice. The AXIS Emergency Radio does also apparently feature one cool thing. You get a full hour’s worth of light and radio from a single minute of handle cranking, which is pretty amazing. Mind you, if you’ve ever tried hand cranking for 60 seconds, you’ll know that it’s a lot harder to do than it sounds.
Anyhoo, it’s nice and red and white, features AM/FM, an LED flashlight and an alarm clock too, just in case you oversleep the rescue team’s arrival. Alternative power can be supplied via 3 AAA batteries. $69.95.
Analysts rapidly cranked each unit’s dynamo for one minute then ran the radio and flashlight simultaneously until power was exhausted. This radio lasted 65 minutes, far longer than models that expired in under 10 minutes. Analysts found its metal gears and 3 1/2″ long aluminum handle turned more smoothly than lesser radios with plastic gears and stubby cranks. Its digital tuner offered the clearest reception of AM, FM, and seven NOAA Weather Bands (with alerts). An LED flashlight in the handle switches to a flashing red warning beacon with a twist of a dial.
