Freeplay Summit Wind-up Radio Full Review
Posted: 08 April 2008 by Chris Haslam
Right from the box you know the Freeplay Summit radio is a good bit of kit. The rubberised edging makes it feel solid without being overly chunky and the stable base means it's perfectly balanced wherever you leave it.
But does it perform? Well, the radio comes equipped with an internal battery that can be charged from the mains, a winder for dynamo charging and a small solar panel on the back for top-up charging in the sun. Unlike many non-eco radios out there, it also comes with SW and LW as well as the standard FM/MW bands, so no matter where you are you're bound to pick up some stations. You also get auto scan digital tuning, five preset buttons (30 presents in total), a headphone socket, a clear LCD display and an alarm clock.
Freeplay reckons 30 seconds of winding will give around 30 minutes of power, and in our tests this was just about spot on -- although the faster you wind the more power you can get. That's a pretty standard ratio for wind-ups, though the Eton FR350 yields twice the playing time for the same wind. The winder itself is by far the most robust we've tested and you can really give it some welly without fear of snapping or damaging anything. The charge-indicator light actually glows brighter the quicker you wind, which is kind of neat.
In operation the radio's simple to use. The auto-scan picks up plenty of channels and it sounds pretty good for a non-digital radio. We took it to the allotment (the ultimate green testing ground) and could easily hear it when left in the shed -- although the louder the volume the more often we had to wind.
As for the solar panel, we couldn't really gauge how well it worked as there's no indicator light to tell you it's charging. It also only charges when the radio is switched off, which isn't the most convenient. We did notice the battery lasting a little longer after leaving it out in the sun, however, so we're sure it's doing something -- but it's really just a back-up and shouldn't be relied on.
Manufacturing information for the Summit, as always with a piece of consumer electronics, was hard to come by. But we're pretty happy with Freeplay Energy as a company, so we haven't scored the Summit down too harshly there, all things considered. Freeplay formed the Freeplay Foundation and, from the beginning, has been committed to supporting developing communities and educational programmes in Africa.
We've also reviewed Freeplay's Devo wind-up radio, so you can read more about the company there.
It must be said that the Summit's main green selling point is the fact that you can charge it without plugging it in. This go-anywhere, great quality radio gets another nod for its solar panel, even if it doesn't work all that well.
Quality
Value
Ethics
Green
