Quick Review: Eton Scorpion II is a rugged solar electronic survival kit for $50

I’ve been using the Eton Scorpion II Model NSP101WXGR Rugged for over a month now. Eton specializes in making durable emergency weather radios and this is their new “everything portable model”. In the small package, it contains:

  • A STRONG.5W LED flashlight. Lots of USB batteries contain LED flashlights now. This one is brighter than all of the others’ put together. It is a real flashlight as opposed to a pen/key light.
  • Receives AM/FM/NOAA Weatherband radio. The radio is great with the antenna pulled out pulling in many stations. I don’t like the design of the buttons (would almost be impossible to navigate in the dark) and the speaker isn’t great. Overall a win though because you are trying not to die not hear the “midtones and lows”.
  • The digital Tuner also has a clock which turns on any time you hit a button.
  • It is super small, portable and rugged with a cool green tone design. I love the design and it is totally droppable and water resistant.
  • 5V 1A USB output charges smartphones with a 800 mAh lithium battery. This isn’t huge but will give you a few hours in a crunch. Even more impressive, there are 3 ways to charge the battery: hand crank, Solar and MicroUSB. The solar isn’t going to keep your iPhone charged, but it will keep the device ready for when you need it in a window. The hand crank will charge your phone. Like a fishing reel, about 20 cranks will add a bar of battery to the device. I think you could probably operate the emergency radio on solar alone. 
  • Bottle opener – because just because the lights are out doesn’t mean you should stop the party.

So I see two use cases for this device. One is an emergency device that you keep at home in a window solar charged for when your power goes out. That’s where I used it.

However, with the carabiner and the ruggedness, I think i this is geared toward campers and cars where it can clip to your backpack and provide you with lights, radio and extra power (bottle opener) when you need it.

At $50, it seems like a very worthy investment for me.

FTC: Electronicsforward is reader supported, we may earn income on affiliate links


Subscribe to the Electronicsforward YouTube Channel for all of the latest videos, reviews, and more!

Load more...
Show More Comments