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Freeplay Ranger Radio | 
 enlarge | Brand: Freeplay
Category: CE
Buy New: £21.41
New (5) Used (1) from £20.99
Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 8369
Media: Electronics
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.3
Dimensions (in): 9.5 x 8 x 3.2
MPN: BB-024-AUK-00-BM
Model: RANGER
UPC: 614672003513
EAN: 0614672003513
ASIN: B0006FL6DY
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Electronics: Wind-up devices: Radios | | • | BB-024-AUK-00-BM |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Ideal for outdoor enthusiasts, the Freeplay Ranger is a self sufficient AM/FM Radio that promises assured listening, anytime, anywhere with unparalleled sound quality, playtime performance, dependability, and durability.
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| Customer Reviews:
 A good piece of kit September 19, 2007
Stephen Hunt (Herts, UK)
14 out of 14 found this review helpful
I've had a Freeplay Ranger for several years. My initial reactions to it were "it's quite heavy for a portable" and "it's a bit difficult to wind up". However, I've really come to appreciate its rugged construction and the freedom that comes from not having to use batteries.
Yes, the tuning and volume knobs are recessed, but I find that I _can_ adjust them one-handed. Winding the radio can be a bit of a challenge sometimes (hence the four star rating), but there is a knack to it that can be mastered. If you want a wind-up radio and you don't have reasonably strong wrists this one probably isn't for you ... except that it also has facilities for charging the batteries both from the mains and from the built-in solar cell.
Mains use and charging is not unusual in wind-up radios, and is not really why people buy them, even though it is far more environmentally friendly than using disposable batteries. However, the real bonus with the Ranger is the solar panel. I keep my Ranger on the window-sill where it gets sunshine for much of the day (when the sun is actually shining), and I almost never have to wind it up during the spring and summer months, and only occasionally during the autumn. Obviously things are not quite as rosy during the winter but if, like me, you use the radio for an hour or so each day and keep it in a well-lit place, you should be able to get by with either a full charge off the mains once every three or four weeks, or between 30 seconds and a minute of winding every day or two.
Rugged? Well, let's just say that it has taken more - and harder - knocks and bumps than I had any right to expect, and it's still working.
When (if) this one finally gives up the ghost I'll be off to buy another one.
 Demented design June 24, 2007
A Humanist (British Library)
4 out of 11 found this review helpful
The volume and tuning knobs are recessed and awfully difficult to turn. You've got to use two hands (the other hand holding down the unit firmly), which is a nuisance. Further, the buttons get loose because they're not robust. And winding it for power isn't easy due to it's lack of really flat surfaces. Someday a stongly built, easy to use, self-powered radio will be in the shops but this certainly isn't it.
 Superb September 28, 2006
K. Davidson (Argyll, Scotland)
25 out of 25 found this review helpful
Offering both wind-up and solar powered means of energy consumption, this robust radio is eco friendly, efficient and cost effective. I've bought two of these radios now, and I'm more than happy with them. Highly recommended.
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