Mesqool 5000mAh Emergency DAB+/FM Radio with Rechargeable Battery, Solar Wind Up Charging, Torch, Reading Light & USB Power Bank, Portable for Camping, Hiking & Outdoor

The included hand-crank like in any product is meant only to supply light and SOS (it'd be foolish to think a battery bar would appear on 5k mAh hehe).It's got an astonishing HD Sound which via DRC (compression rate) can be enhanced slightly.The main thing is, it's got USB-C and not micro-usb luckily! USB-C is so much more lasting and easier to use as well as universal now.I'd have liked it if there was a third option of the reading light, as the reading light is quite strong still on the lowest setting, however the far-light torches are perfectly fine (though beware they use more energy).The strap is a bit fiddly and short, however due to the robust manufacturing quality, it can be replaced by your own, even a shoulder strap if you like, though a good enough carabiner is included.The SOS includes red light and siren sound, though to my liking not nearly loud enough to blast through say Russian shelling.As with any good Emergency Radio, this one has a very realistic balanced bass, however the treble is kept very volatile and shrill on purpose, as it needs to carry the clear voices over distant and rocky terrain.Sadly in order to achieve a better IPX rating, I'd say the silicone port cover is a 2.5/5 at best, it buoys out because for one there is no plug for the headphone jack, and for another there USB-C is melded with the outer rectangle and has nigh nil depth, though realistically like any emergency radio, it wouldn't survive a torrent anyway.What I also love is it's ruggedness overall, I mean you could really hold this thing very well in hand while hand-cranking for LEDs or SOS, as it ridges angles and a solid base. And the most important on ruggedness over all is, it's buttons are recessed silicone push-buttons, so nothing sticking out that could get caught or broken off or even rust. I really like that nice touch as well with the reading light being slightly looser yet still sturdy, such that in emergencies a kid could operate the light. Judging by the screws and holes on it, I'd imagine quite a moderate repairability.This leads me into the absolute main banger point on this device, the ability for it to be run on AAA batteries, as these I'd imagine in a European catastrophe will be more in supply than custom chargers or custom batteries, and even more useful should say a certain dust-cloud make an appearance, blocking all sunlight.Speaking of which, I was not yet able to test the solar panel, however I had some experience with a similar, albeit FM radio, manufacturer, and as the manual states it should generate 30 mAh per hour of sunlight vs. 300 mAh handcranked (BUT for an entire hour!), and to put this into perspective, a usual singular AAA battery usual holds the exact same amount, and you'd need 3x of these to power this radio. Hence 10h in direct sunlight charges the radio 1/2 way (as it's internal rechargeable battery is 6000 mAh). Now the consumption itself isn't bad, at full volume on DAB+ with adjusting settings and playing around with the lights a mid amount, it used up 3 out of 10 full battery BARS per 3.5h continuously running operation, quite a respect-worthy outcome I must say.Now to an even better contribution of my keen eye, the antenna is in fact even so repairable, that it can simply be replaced with a generic one by screwing the axle out with a Philips screwdriver. The antenna itself is quite sturdy though. Actually the entire metal pipe, even down to into the device, can be screwed open and taken apart for replacement, so really even if it had rusted / broken that far down. The AAA battery compartment contacts can also easily be shifted up and outwards and easily replaced in case of rust. The LCD screen and light covers are all of sturdy plastic, so no worries about shattering, however the solar panel strip is obviously glass, but it looks and feel very very solid, plus it's protected by the strap itself from shattering.Key buttons are labelled, however my colour-way of black, is less readable on the LED switches nor on the reading light compartment, however there is indented symbols / writing on each respectively. If it were to be pitch-black, you can feel all the indentations on every single button easily (even the battery compartment), so it's good enough for blind people too, for operability especially considering that the entire controller side is framed entirely by very distinctly feelable ridges. In fact, the carabiner loops perfectly through the sturdy rail loops, so you could hang it on the ceiling / higher point and let it dangle with the cone of light for map reading or such, if you were to be caved in somewhere.Speaking of antenna and its reception, it is conal I think, meaning the angle to the outside (be it through a kitchen or bedroom window vs object blocking or other wireless signals e.g. your phone or WiFi), is the key.The overall construction seems sturdy enough to withstand quite high and frequent falls. In terms of accessibility I have also tested hand-cranking it pressed to the ground cranking with one hand, and it worked well. With fast running I could not discern any rattling, and everything is flush enough to be packed away neatly.For me personally this was an absolutely solid choice, I feel well taken care of and am assured enough to feel protected.

Starting with the negs... Colour, nasty, off putting green. Really ugly. Did I say ugly? The strap, too little but very easy to replace. It also has a personal alarm with a red light, pointless. The presets for radio stations, still only managed one, hard hell to do. Too much pressing one button.The positives.... masses.... Charge, from USB... It was charged a couple of weeks back, used it around 3..4 hours a day over a week and half, using DAB signal only. Reception, scanned channels and it picked up masses. We are 80 miles from home now and have not had to re- scan. In fact, not had to extend the areal since new at any point.It has solar power which shows as charging, even on a very cloudy day but not sure if its very good. I can say, it also winds up and that does indeed work. One one min winding has left it going half hour now and it's still going. Also uses battery's... not put any in.Torch and led lights, both work even if radio off, quite good for tent etc...It has USB to charge phone, works very well.Volume.... quite good, loud enough for normal use in kitchen on walks etc, has ear phone plug.Very good kit but lord it is ugly.

The radio sound is clear and okay; The LED reading and torch light are very bright; The SOS alert alarm is very loud; The usb charging connection is pretty fast; The rechargeable battery indicator is good; The wind up function may take a while if you are charging the battery from nearly empty, but this could apply to any radio crank function.Some DAB radio stations need the radio to face in a particular direction to get a continuous clear broadcast.The clock is a useful extra.It takes a while to learn the functions for selecting, storing, and navigating in and out of menus.You can chose a radio station and overwrite a memory slot that you previously saved to.I believe you can purge an obsolete station from your scan list, and there are one or two other functions that are useful when tuning to a station.Oh yes, you can also tune to FM stations.The solar function will be hand to replenish the fixed rechargeable battery during the day.I'm pleased with what I've purchased.

Been using the radio for a few weeks. I like the sound quality, well good enough for me. I’ve mainly been using DAB rather than FM. Connects well provided signal is good enough.I appreciate its chunky, solid construction but the radio is not too big (as I wanted). Useful carrying handle. The light & ‘reading lamp’ work fine but are more for use when other systems/kit not available, as I intended.I’m not as young as I was so the clarity/size of station identification is helpful & easy to read. The ‘press button’ controls are a nice size work well. I hope they maintain their robustness for if anything these could be the weakest link.Battery life I think is acceptable but certainly supplement with conventional batteries too. Recharge time perhaps a bit slow but I tend to charge overnight so no drama.Took a bit of time getting use to the operation, so the instructions are very useful. Quickly becomes intuitive for the processes one does most often e.g. changing to different stored stations. Guess I’ll need to refer back to instructions to remind myself of how to use other functions.Very pleased with the purchase.

My new favourite thing! Arrived quickly, already mostly charged and worked straight from box. I listen to radio all the time, in the garden, the workshop, camping etc so will take the pressure off my phone. Love that it can be charged by solar as well as windup, and usb and batteries. So hopefully will mainly keep charged up while gardening.

Fully charged in sunlight min 12hr per day for 3 days. Played radio for 5-6min then went dead. Cranked wind up charge for about 10min and barely got light to work. Ended up buying batteries which defeated purpose of buying this. Returning for refund