Hands on with the Eton Scorpion


I’ve reported on Eton’s products before, such as the Solarlink FR360. We’ve also covered the Scorpion, and I got to try it hands-on.

The Scorpion is one of those gadgets that you would think would be “seen on TV”, because it comes in a small package, and it can do big things.

After all, it has an AM/FM radio, NOAA Weather band, a built-in LED flashlight, not to mention a bottle opener. Best of all, no batteries are required. The Scorpion has a a large solar panel for harnessing the power of the sun, as well as a hand-crank.

It also has a USB port for charging USB powered phones. I tried plugging my iPod Touch into it, and I couldn’t see much change on the battery indicator, even after several cranks. According to the instructions, the port is for USB-powered mobile phones, so it may not work on iPods.

In spite of that, I found that the Scorpion is probably one thing you want to have around in an emergency situation, such as a zombie attack like on The Walking Dead. The main character could strap it to its belt with the attached clip, and it is IPX-4 splash proof from all angles.

In short, you should probably keep the Scorpion in your emergency tool drawer, so head on over to the official site and lay down $50 for it.

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