Midland WR100 Weather Radio
by Midland Consumer Radio
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List Price: Our Price: $26.62 You Save: $23.37 (47%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $15.97 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Midland WR100 Weather Radio
Customer Review: Disappointment Ending in Failure
Summary: 2 Stars
I bought this radio in February 2008, and by February 2010 it would no longer receive broadcasts. I guess it couldn't take Texas weather...BLOOP
Since it fritzed, I am now even more dissatisfied with it than when it was functional. Here are a couple of things you should know if you are considering this radio.BLOOP
The volume control is digital, and volume is raised or lowered by depressing an 'up' or a 'down' button on the panel. You have nine pre-set volume levels. Every time you depress a button, it makes an obnoxious, loud electronic 'BLOOP' tone. Whenever you turn on the radio to listen to a forecast, the on/off button-bar makes the same irritating, loud, electronic 'BLOOP'.
As you dial through the arthritic electronic menu to set your radio up, you will be treated to the same irritating 'BLOOP' every time you depress a button. BLOOP BLOOP BLOOP BLOOP
Some people aren't bothered by it. BLOOP
I found it obnoxious. BLOOP
And now it doesn't even receive weather broadcasts. But it still goes 'BLOOP'.
The digital revolution has brought us many wonderful and useful electronic gadgets, but there are some things that just don't need to be digital, or if they are, they should be digital imitations of functional analog technology. Volume control is one of those things. The simple thumbwheel volume control is intuitive, fast, precise, quiet, and just about perfect in every way. There is no reason one should need to depress a button nine times to turn the volume down. That one also has to listen to nine loud electronic blooping tones just to turn the volume down tells me that this radio was designed by engineers who never bothered to use it before it went to manufacture. It is beyond me why any sentient person would want a product with the sort of stupid and clumsy controls that this radio has. Of course, now I will never buy another Midland product. I did, however, buy a new weather radio, the simple, easy to use Sangean DT-400W. Notice that the compact little Sangean radio has a thumbwheel volume control. Even though it has a digital tuner, when the buttons are depressed there are no irritating noises, and that keeps me from getting depressed. Plus there is the option of listening to FM or, if you are the sort who does, AM. Nifty little radio, the Sangean!
Customer Review: Could save your life!
Summary: 5 Stars
Here in Central Florida we have some beautiful weather, but some times it is BAD.
We had several devastating tornado's on Christmas Day '06 which got people aware of the danger we all live in from bad weather and how we might prevent the needless loss of life.
One of our local TV stations has partnered with Publix grocery stores to sell the Midland WR-100B at a low price. I thought they would have done their homework and they did. My radio was easy to program (Thanks Tom Terry @ WFTV for the "How to" video online) and has a high quality audio section so you can clearly hear the NOAA synthesized computer generated weather and alerts read.
The S.A.M.E. coded system is SO much better than the old alerts for a wide area. The MR-100B only alerts for weather in MY area. Thanks NOAA!
Alerts are very loud and will WAKE you up. I chose option 2: the loud alert then a voice keeps reminding you there is an alert. A third option is a blinking light on the radio. An optional stobe light would be very useful for a deaf person living alone! Good idea Midland. External antennas are also available.
We have overlapping coverage for the Central Florida weather transmitters. Make sure you have the nearest one, so you get the best alerts. This receiver is sensitive and works everywhere inside my block and brick house. NOAA's nearest transmitter is only 15 miles away and transmits with 1000 watts so that isn't a problem. But, 2 other frequencies can be picked up here.
The multiple S.A.M.E. code option is very useful. Most of our weather comes from the west, so adding their county codes gives us the added awareness of coming weather.
Test alerts from NOAA do NOT trigger the radio to go off!
My only beef is with the confirmation beep that accompanies every key pad input. Hey Midland you could have done this better?
Customer Review: Peace of Mind, Resonable Price
Summary: 5 Stars
I like it, recommend it and am buying my second unit. It does what it's supposed to and I feel safer with it at night (I can't sleep with the tv on all night during inclement weather), but I wanted to address some cons of the unit for your consideration:
Cons - the pc jack and dc power jack are right next to each other and the dc connector fits both. Besides wearing down your battery backup, it turns out you can erase the programming by accidentally leaving the dc power connector plugged into the pc connector for "too long". At least that's the excuse Midland gave me for our unit dying 15 months after we bought it (I'm not sure I'm to blame, seeing as I had tape over the pc jack and it was working fine earlier this summer). If the pc jack is only for Midland use, and they know customers are accidentally erasing programming by plugging the power adapter into the wrong hole why do they put it right next to the power jack and make the two holes the same size? Seems like they could better user-proof the unit.
As another reviewer pointed out, you can't silence SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNINGS. Nothing like going to bed with an orange TORNADO WATCH display (just means a tornado could develop given current/anticipated storm conditions) only to be jolted awake with a SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING (same siren as a TORNADO WARNING, which means take cover NOW). Two different threats, two different levels of response needed - same piercing siren and you have to look at the tiny display to read what the warning is for.
Finally, I'm not sure why you would need an alarm clock with it, since the display is hard to read from bed but if you are hard to wake up, the piercing alarm is sure to make you jump out of bed in the morning!
Customer Review: The Silent Sentinel
Summary: 5 Stars
Depending on which part of the country you live in this product can be every bit as important as a smoke detector in watching over you and your family. Although this year has not been as stormy as years prior, I have greater peace of mind in knowing that when a storm front or thundershower is reaching a threatening point I will be informed of the danger well in advance. I programmed my Weather Alert Monitor to alarm only when my specific county is under a watch or warning and every time it has been the very first indication that danger was heading our way (well before the skies looked threatening or the TV provided its warning message). Earlier this summer a small tornado passed within 8 miles from our home and the local news reported how so many folks were unaware that this dangerous situation was upon them, however we were well aware as our weather monitor had alerted us 20 minutes prior that a severe thunder storm was moving our way. The most peace of mind comes from knowing that while we're sound asleep we will be safely awakened by the sound of a warning message rather than the sound of roaring winds and can seek shelter without the frantic heart pounding moments we have experienced in the past. I have since purchased another Midland WR-100B for my mother who is partially blind (and can't read those TV scroll warning messages!), so she also gets a loud beeping, then a voice message to tell her of the danger. Although she lives many miles from a major city, this unit gets clear reception from a NOAA weather broadcast station many miles away in the next county. She also loves to press the large and easy to find weather report button to get the latest weather report. I will be purchasing more of these as gifts in the coming months.Customer Review: Read The Instructions - It Works Great!
Summary: 4 Stars
I live in Kansas where, if you've been reading the news, you know we get more than our share of severe weather. Last month tornadoes did quite a bit of damage in a nearby area because the county didn't activate the emergency sirens quickly enough. Those with NOAA radios, like this one, already knew there was a tornado on the way, though, and more than one person credited their safety to the radio's alert.
That was enough to convince me that we needed one, too, and I'm very pleased with this well-priced unit. Contrary to what one previous reviewer wrote, it DOES NOT BEEP FOR EVERYTHING if you follow the instructions. You simply dial into the NWS and get the code for your county, then you can program the unit to alert you solely for severe weather (e.g., severe thunderstorms and tornado watches and warnings).
The reason I'm not giving it 5 stars is due to the antenna - first day out of the box my little boy had bent ours. There's a spot on the back to attach a wire one (the kind you use with some home stereos to pull in radio frequencies). Since those things are very low-cost it seems the manufacturer could have thrown one in without affecting the price much.
I do like that the unit is small and is easy to remove from the A/C adapter so we can take it to the basement when we need to go to our "safe place". The Weather/Snooze button is handy as well: I often push it just to hear the day's forecast while getting dressed rather than having to endure the "blah, blah, blah" of our local meteorologists (who seem to believe we all need to be educated about pressure systems and jet streams before we can be trusted to know what today's weather will be).
Great, economical buy.