Features:

  • MULTIPLE POWER SOURCES - The ER310 features 3 sustainable power sources to recharge your radio: Solar Panel, Hand Crank, & Rechargeable 2600 mAh Battery. SOLAR PANEL - Simply recharge the internal lithium ion battery with direct sunlight. HAND CRANK - Recharge the radio during a power outage or anytime away from a power source. RECHARGEABLE 2600 mAh BATTERY - The rechargeable & replaceable long life battery provides up to 32 hours of radio operation. The ER310 can also be powered by 6 “AA” Batteries (Not Included) as a backup power solution.
  • EMERGENCY FLASHLIGHT - The SOS FLASHLIGHT BEACON flashes Morse code in an emergency scenario and the Bright CREE LED (130 Lumens) can be used to signal for help. Select the Low brightness setting to conserve battery life or the High brightness setting for maximum illumination.
  • NOAA WEATHER SCAN + ALERT - NOAA Weather Scan will automatically scan through 7 available weather (WX) band channels and locks onto the strongest weather channel to alert you of severe weather updates. NOAA Weather Alert will sound an alarm indicating that there is a risk of severe weather in your area. AM/FM radio is also available.
  • CHARGE EXTERNAL DEVICES - Quickly charge your portable devices (cell phones, tablets, etc.) using the USB charging cable (included).
  • ULTRASONIC DOG WHISTLE - Use the dog whistle to assist search and rescue teams in locating individuals during an emergency situation.
An essential tool for power outages

I purchased this radio to provide news and weather reports during a power outage. With most radios, you might expect them to be powered just by batteries. Not so much with this radio. It can use FIVE possible power sources: a rechargeable battery, standard batteries, solar power, a hand crank, and standard AC power. Such flexibility during a power outage is pretty amazing. The radio itself is very easy to operate. The buttons are large. The LCD panel is easy to read and has a backlight so you can read the panel in the dark. You get AM, FM, and weather channels as well as a WXAlert feature that I'm still learning about. It has a standard radio antenna that you can extend. There is a flashlight and a dog whistle feature! That dog whistle can be used when search dogs are looking for you in the event of a building collapse, buried under snow, etc. Finally, this radio can provide power for a mobile device (phone, tablet, etc.) in a pinch. I'm The bright red color makes this radio easy to locate. I'm very happy with this radio and would recommend it to friends and family.

Worth every penny

Midland has an excellent reputation for a good reason. Their radios are as solid as it comes! I live in hurricane central and last year, when we got hit by Irma, all we had was a cheap freebie my mother in law received for her job. After spending days endlessly cranking cheap broken plastic (though I am still grateful we had it), I vowed to find a proper emergency radio. I finally settled on This one and I couldn’t be happier. The crank is incredibly sturdy and I like the various power options. Some people have complained about the USB charging format and lack of an included plug. While I do agree that the inclusion of a plug would be nice, the lack of does not even come close to being a dealbreaker. The addition of a dog whistle is surprisingly well thought out. In a nutshell, this is a strong piece that should last a lifetime.

Best radio ever

This is one of the best hand crank radio out there Pros: The price is very inexpensive It comes with many features Battery size is good You got different ways to power the radio Solar is an great addition The house is solid. It sure will survive drops Sound quality is good Cons: Weight can be small problem if you wanna take it on a backpacking/hiking trip Final thoughts:Just buy it.

A Good Emergency Radio

My preferences of a good emergency radio are: -digital station finder -crank, USB, & battery power source -FM/AM/NOAA -battery life indicator -alert capabilities -ear bud jack for private listening -battery capacity to charge a smart phone (at least 2000 mAh) This radio has every on my ideal list. This Midland ER310 doesn’t technically have a memory settings feature. However, there is one button that switches quickly between NOAA, FM, and AM. As long as the battery doesn’t die, it will stay on the last station I was on in each of the three bands. For example, I can toggle between three set stations of my choosing as long as they are on the three different bands (NOAA 162.550, FM 101.1, AM 590). It took 6 hours to charge connecting the radio using a USB to my computer. It also takes 6 hours using the solar to charge. The radio and flashlight can be used at the same time which is nice.

Radio reception was good and clear

I wanted to condition the Lithium Ion battery so I left the light on to drain it. The battery kept the light lit for 1.5 days. NOAA emergency broadcast alert loud and gets your attention, we had one issued locally and it was so loud I shot right out of my chair. Radio reception was good and clear.

Worked Perfectly once setup

Like the multiple ways you can charge, including the Crank Handle, perfect for emergencies. I will be travelling (driving), in areas where the weather can get mean quick, and wanted a dependable Weather alert system with me, with the multiple charging options, I ordered separately, a car lighter USB plugin that came with a much longer cable, to charge while driving. Assembling was easy, operating it is also easy. Came with the Lithium Battery, I also installed 6 AA batteries, as backup, there is a switch where the Mic/USB's In & Out connections are located, switch is set automatically for the Lithium battery, flip it, and you are now using the AA batteries. One complaint, I have big fingers, installing the Lithium battery, that has two wires attached to one end to lineup and insert into a compartment with two metal prongs, proved to be a major deal, small fingers no problem, if you have larger fingers good luck, took me about 15 minutes to get the lithium wires connected into the device, I am sure they can correct this, make sure your inserting it correctly, or you might bend the prongs. One Push button, on the left controls switches from Weather Alerts, to FM to AM, what is neat, you can hit the WX button next to the channel button, and WX will appear blinking on FM and AM, meaning, if you have this turned on, will break in on your listening of Music etc, and give you the alert. I know this because I leave in an area that has and is having severe today, when I had music on FM, with the WX flashing at top, I got a series of alerts and weather reports for a wide area. Evening though I have a Weather alert device in home, it would not serve me well, on the road, plus it has to be program for specific areas. This Midland devices request no programming, if your in a area that NOAA covers, you'll get alerts. Sirius Radio no longer has a National Weather Channel, making this device all the more important. Once you get it setup, charge it for 5 hours and until the charge light changes. However, mine had two bars of charge out of the box.

Works pretty darn good so far but remember to......

Just got this unit and so far it seems to work pretty good. However it is pretty weak on the AM reception but FM and Weather Alert channels work well. Ultrsonic dog siren seemed to get my dogs attention, or it could have been the cold pizza I was having for breakfast, guess we won't know for sure until the SHTF! Flashlight works; 3 modes, low, high & SOS. Crank is super easy to turn and locks away securely. Oh, there's a sticker on the solar panel that says something like "Plug in Li-ion battery before using the radio". But the instructions & Quick Start Guide say to plug in the radio to a USB outlet before using the radio.....well for the life of me I couldn't get the radio to work unless it was plugged in. And when it was plugged in the red led 'charging' light came on indicating it was charging but the battery icon indicated a full charge. However if I unplugged it the radio would not turn on?!? Sooo, I called Midland and a very nice lady walked me thru opening the battery door and, yep, plugging in the Li-Ion battery! ugh. She said usually they put a note on the solar panel to do this. My silence must have been deafening cause she laughed and said, "Don't worry, it happens all the time...."

THE BEST portable emergency radio, IMO

After several other previous radios tested, and several other days of researching, I think this one is the BEST so far in achieving the most important things needed in various emergencies. In short, the combination of the 3 key most-important attributes that make this the best all-in-one: 1) Efficient dynamo crank to charge; apparently a 1-to-9 minute ratio for radio usage, so thats relatively good 2) Large 2600 milliAmp-hours (mAh) rechargeable batt. The iPhone5 contains ~1570, which is the target device! 3) Digital radio = background monitoring of weather alerts possible, even when listening to AM/FM, or silent. I think #3 is most important, because it would be ineffective to miss weather/emergency alerts while you were scanning the FM/AM radio. This automatic monitoring and swith-over is essential. I love this radio, and trust Midland products.

Make sure the Lithium battery is plugged in

I almost returned this because the Lithium battery wouldn't charge. I opened the compartment in which you can insert 6 AA batteries to find that the Lithium battery was not plugged in. I just hadn't thought about checking this because I have never bought any device that didn't have the battery connected. Once connected, it charged and everything works well. I searched and read many reviews before I bought this, so I am thankful that it all works! It's a great all-in-one device.

A Quality Product

We purchased this radio for use in our RV as we travel across country. Considered other units with S.A.M.E. code technology, but considering that we wouldn't always know the correct county codes to use during our travels, we decide on a radio with the standard warning alert function. It simply was hard to justify the additional cost for something we probably would not use. The unit is a little bigger than we wanted but the overall design, ease of use, and multiple power sources and functions more than make up for any short coming. Glad the digital display has 3 backlight options; OFF, ON, or on for 5 seconds. Helps eliminate any unnecessary light in our RV when we're trying to sleep yet makes radio easy to operate in the dark, when needed. PROS-- Very rugged case and antenna design Easy to operate Good reception Good size 2600 mAh rechargeable (and replaceable) lithium-ion battery that works great for charging our cell phones. CONS-- No S.A.M.E. Code Technology -- Knew this when purchasing the unit so it's not really a CON. Included this comment in the review for those who are considering this radio. If you want S.A.M.E. code capability, this is not the radio for you. Small AA/Li-ion Switch -- Midland must expect users to operate the unit on the rechargeable lithium-ion battery more than anything else. The switch used to switch the radio between the internal AA batteries and the lithium-ion battery (AA/Li-ion) is so small you almost have to use a pen to operate the switch. Tight Battery Fit -- very tight fit for the lithium-ion battery connector and the battery in the small compartment, but it works! PRODUCT IMPROVEMENT WISH LIST-- Radio station preset Ability to rechargeable lithium-ion battery from solar while operating on AA batteries. Maybe someone can correct me, but it doesn't appear that you can operate the unit on the AA batteries and charge the lithium-ion battery at the same time. Larger (AA/Li-ion) switch. The Midland ER-310 is a quality product. Recommend this for anyone looking for a solid radio with basic warning capabilities, good reception, good sound quality, ease of operation, and multiple power sources and with easy recharging. UPDATE - this update has nothing to do with the reliability of the product. The radio continues to operate perfectly. Great addition to the RV. The update is a rant about Amazon's pricing policies. Less than 36 hours after we purchased the radio the price dropped by almost $13. Amazon would not refund the difference or even offer an Amazon gift card. Keep in mind, the radio was purchased from Amazon LLC and distributed by Amazon. No other company involved, so a refund would have been simple and effective. We've been loyal customers since 1999 and Amazon Prime; made no difference. Just a terrible policy by Amazon!

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