UPDATE: The Best Weather Radio 2016 and all of the reasons why…
List of Top 10 best selling Weather Radios
Evaluated based on Amazon popularity (as of this writing).
Not only should the preparedness-minded person have a weather radio, but everyone should consider the value of having one, especially if you live in a severe weather prone area (thunderstorm, tornado, winter storms, coastal, hurricane, flooding, etc..). A weather radio could save your life.
‘Weather Radio’ and ‘NOAA weather radio’ are essentially referring to the same thing. ‘NOAA’ stands for ‘National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’, a U.S. government organization that manages the National Weather Service and weather radio emergency broadcast network – which transmits alerts and warnings to weather radios.
While browsing for a weather radio, you will also encounter the acronym, ‘SAME’ or ‘S.A.M.E.’. It stands for ‘Specific Area Message Encoding’. A weather radio that has S.A.M.E. technology will enable you to specifically select to receive warnings for just the county where you live, or selected ‘groups’ of counties, or any other specific county. This could be desirable if you only want to receive alerts for just your own location.
There are a variety of models and brands, and tabletop or portables to pick from. Have a look, and discover the range of styles and features that are available.
Midland WR-120-EZ Weather Radio
Sangean CL-100 Table Top Weather Radio
MIDLAND HH50 Pocket Weather Radio
Reecom R-1630 Weather Alert Radio
Midland HH54VP2 Portable Emergency Weather Radio
Alert Works EAR-10 Weather Alert All Hazard Radio (Black)
Radio Shack Hazard Alert Weather Radio
(There’s only 8 from the original list – due to discontinued models ;) )
I live in Scotland, UK, I am unsure if any of these radios will work here, does anyone know?? I would like to have one at hand. Have a ‘good prepared week’ everyone.
@tjaty2, the NOAA weather radio functionality is only in the U.S., I have not heard of a similar weather alert radio network in Europe or elsewhere. If any of our readers in Europe happen upon this question, please let us know – thanks!
I’ve become fond of the CC Observer radio, which is a wind-up AM/FM/weather radio w/flashlight. It’s an analog radio and doesn’t have the alert or SAME feature on the weather radio, but I use the weather radio several times a day. I’m usually on top of changing weather as a result. Believe it or not, it’s a good way to find out what time it is, since most radio stations are so automated they never give time or temperature. The CC Observer lasts a long time on rechargeable AA batteries. I’ve seldom used the wind-up feature.
I’d want to be sure any weather radio had good battery life, since power can’t be relied on in severe weather.
Your Weather Radio receiver will also work in Canada. The Meteorological Service of Canada, the government agency responsible for producing official forecasts there, operates a network of “Weatheradio” transmitters which generally operate on the same frequencies as the U.S. NOAA Weather Radio network.
I’ve owned and used a couple of these radios recently. Make sure they have good battery backup. I went through a couple of the First Alert units until I got one that worked (quality control issues?) (power supplies dying, locking up, failing to respond to keypress, etc.), but even the last one I got missed some alerts. I have finally replaced it with the Reecom R-1630 and that one has been rock solid performer. There should be automatic weekly tests in your area, which should register on your radio. If you haven’t got a test alert recorded in more than about 10 days, your radio may not be picking them up (serious saftey issue).
@Pharmer, Thanks for the comment. Good to know about the Reecom. The Reecom model appears to be a good one. I currently have the Midland WR300 which I do receive the weekly test signal (usually on Tuesday or Wednesday). One thing to look for is an external antenna jack, if you happen to be located further away from local transmitters, and you’re using your unit as a base station rather than portable.
Ken, bad advice recommending the Midland HH50. I have two of them: one for work and one for home. However, follow your link to the Amazon page and look at the negative reviews. These things really suck the life out of batteries. Then, when they die, there’s no indicator light to tell you to replace the batteries. If the batteries die while you have it switched to “alert” mode, you will not know it, and you will not get the NOAA warnings you need to hear. I’m still going to keep mine, but now that I’ve been warned about the batteries, I’m going to use a hand-held battery checker to monitor them more closely.