Kaito KA500IP-BLK Voyager Solar/Dynamo AM/FM/SW NOAA Weather Radio with Alert and Cell Phone Charger, Black

I spent over $100 on the ka900 model with the fancy Bluetooth and digital tuning and tf card reader for mp3 playback. Now it's around $75. My opinion it sucks. AM reception stunk, digital tuning stinks. Only thing great was the tf card reader for mp3 playback. This model? KA500IP rocks! I get my AM stations! I didn't with the ka900. KA500IP let's you put in 3 rechargeable aa batteries as a backup. Awesome! Ka900 nope. Only 1 battery. Unless you love spending more money on fancy things like Bluetooth capabilities. A must for emergencies! 😆 buy the ka900! If you want a kick booty no nonsense emergency/prepper/basic without the unnecessary extras, the KA500IP is perfect. Nothing beats the old school tuning knob. Works for me! 5 stars for a decent radio that gets my AM stations!!!! Just my opinion. 😁

Works great

I have 4 of these Kaito portable radios, in 4 different colors and these are great portable radios. It has multiple power sources.....hand cranking, solar paneled, 3 AA batteries, AC power [AC cord is optional] and finally the built-in rechargable battery. Only issue I have is why no AC power cord included? I just use the 3 AA batteries for this radio and keep the internal rechargable battery full charged. Hand cranking for power takes a lot of effort for several minutes of power. It has AM, FM, SW1, SW2 and Weather Band. Slide rule analog tuning dial also, not digital....which is fine for me. Also, the tuning dial can be lit to see it in darker conditions. This Kaito radio works for me quite well. It has a built-in LED light, comes with a decent carrying handle and really seems to cover it all. Radio reception on AM and FM seems pretty good for local stations. Not sure about picking up more distant AM radio stations though. 4 stars for a decent portable radio that looks good, sounds pretty good too and really covers the basics here.

Purchased this as an emergency radio. It has everything I need. Sounds great and has great reception. I also purchased the optional wire antenna for the short wave.

This emergency radio worked right out of the box, no muss, no fuss. A quick perusing of the instructions and enjoy. I had another recently that was a very nice radio but was overly complicated. In a real emergency I want something that responds quickly in the dark, in inclement weather, in the aftermath of the bad event. This has AM, FM, SW, NOAA . You can plug it in, use batteries, crank or take advantage of the sun with a solar panel. The instructions are the absolute BEST of any electronic gadget I've had in many years. Now children, I'm an old lady and it's not that I'm not able to read schematics or understand technical jargon, I worked for an engineering firm, but in the area of instruction manuals I want it simple. Granny is loving on this radio.

I bought this radio as a replacement for another radio that had seen better days. After reading about the features, I was sold. The radio arrived in good condition. I also bought the charger and immediately charged it for 6 hours as recommended. I use the radio in my office every day and I must say, I am surprised. I never put batteries in the radio, I simply raised the solar panel and and it powers the radio perfectly. I leave it raised so it charges even when not using the radio. I listen for about 3 hours each day. All the features work as claimed.Now for the bad part: The radio does not have the range of the one I replaced. This is disappointing. I expected it would at least match the small radio I used before, but it doesn't. That is the reason for the 3 stars. I can listen to quite a few stations, but not the ones I used to listen to.Updated review:I have owned this radio for 3 years now. In that time I have purchased a new battery pack for the rechargeable function, and the wire antenna. My radio has a rubberized coating on it and it was very nice for quite a while. Now the coating has deteriorated to the point that I can't handle it without the rubbery coat coming off on my fingers. It is very sticky. I contacted Kaito about it and the person I spoke to stated that this radio carries a one year warranty. On the finish? He said that this only happens when the radio is exposed to heat. It is a solar powered radio! It has to be in a window or outdoors in the sun to function! Sun = heat. I paid $10.00 more than it is selling for now. My advice is to consider carefully buying this model. If used in the sun the coating will be affected.

I've used this for a month. I'm pleased with the features. It recharges well in the sun. You have to use the crank much longer to charge it up than I did with my old hand crank weather radio. But that's not too much of a headache. This radio sounds really good though, a nice audio. Total analog, not a stereo sound or anything like it. But still much better than any of the other radios of this type I've had.

Purchased this emergency radio for our motor home RV. Peace of mind knowing we will be alerted of severe weather. Good sound and like the volume and tuning controls. Great radio.