{"id":34740,"date":"2018-11-06T08:15:13","date_gmt":"2018-11-06T12:15:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=34740"},"modified":"2018-11-06T08:15:13","modified_gmt":"2018-11-06T12:15:13","slug":"midland-wr120-review-aaron-says-weather-radios-like-smoke-detectors-are-something-we-all-need","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/11\/midland-wr120-review-aaron-says-weather-radios-like-smoke-detectors-are-something-we-all-need\/","title":{"rendered":"Midland WR120 Review: Aaron says weather radios, like smoke detectors, are something we all need"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Storm<\/a>Many thanks to SWLing Post<\/em> contributor, Aaron Kuhn<\/a>, who writes:<\/p>\n

\u201cWeather radio? I\u2019ll just use my cellphone for alerts.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve ever uttered or thought the above words \u2013 take heed.<\/p>\n

Late last week I awoke at around 12:30 AM to the sound of some incredibly strong winds outdoors. Glancing down at my completely muted phone, I opened up my text messages to reveal a Tornado Warning. In a panic, I threw on some clothes, gathered a dog harness and leash and made my way the pantry closest for shelter.<\/p>\n

Then I checked my phone again \u2013 and realized that tornado warning was from 30 minutes ago and already expired. Crap. That was too close for comfort. I promptly went on to Amazon and ordered the Midland WR120.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I unboxed and set the radio up yesterday and I\u2019m quite happy with it.<\/p>\n

The first thing I suggest doing after initial setup is turning off the button beeps which are incredibly annoying. Past that, I\u2019ve found the radio perfect for my needs of setting it on a window sill and (hopefully) forgetting about it until it alerts me to any nearby danger.<\/p>\n

Since SAME Alerts work on a county basis, I was very happy to discover this radio allows you to disable certain kinds of alerts that may not be relevant to you.<\/p>\n

One thing that I think Midland should include in the box printed (instead of ads for weather apps they don\u2019t publish anymore!) is the \u201cEditable Events list:
\nhttp:\/\/midlandusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/Editable-Events.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n

By default, the radio doesn\u2019t allow you to turn off 30 some events, including Tornado Warnings among them \u2013 this is a good thing in my opinion! However, it is a bit concerning when you first go to setup the radio and realized Tornado Warning is missing in the alert list. The reason for this is because this is one of the 30 some alerts you can\u2019t disable.<\/p>\n

Overall I\u2019m happy with the radio, and hoping it\u2019ll never fire off in the middle of the night on me any time soon \u2013 but I know it\u2019ll be a lot more reliable than my cellphone prone to being muted.<\/p>\n

I view weather radios like smoke alarms now, it\u2019s stupid for you to not have one. I wasn\u2019t expecting Tornadoes in November in Southeastern Pennsylvania, but apparently nature is one to surprise us continuously.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Thank you so much for sharing your story and your WR120 review, Aaron.<\/p>\n

I love this quote: “I view weather radios like smoke alarms now, it\u2019s stupid for you to not have one.”<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0I agree completely!<\/p>\n

A few weeks ago, there was an alert sent to every phone in the US all at the same time. I received my alert nearly 30 minutes late<\/em>. Mobile phones and their networks are pretty amazing technology, but they’re not flawless.<\/p>\n

We are so lucky to have a robust weather radio broadcasting infrastructure here in the US and Canada. An inexpensive radio like the WR120 will deliver weather alerts reliably and give you a preparedness edge.<\/p>\n

And thank you for mentioning the number of events you can edit out of the alert system. No sense in receiving alerts you don’t need.<\/p>\n

In addition, some weather alert radios default to receive alerts from counties and regions surrounding your own. I would suggest turning those off–limiting the alert area to your own county–else you could get a lot of alerts that don’t pertain to your location. Using the smoke detector analogy, receiving alerts from surrounding counties is much like putting a smoke detector directly over your stove! You’re just asking for false alarms. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Thanks again, Aaron, for the important PSA!<\/p>\n

Keep in mind as the holiday season approaches: weather radios make for life-saving, affordable gifts.<\/p>\n

Click here check out the Midland WR120 ($26.56 shipped) on Amazon.com (affiliate link).<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Post<\/em> readers: Do you have any other weather alert radio suggestions?\u00a0 Please comment with your suggestions and experience.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Aaron Kuhn, who writes: \u201cWeather radio? I\u2019ll just use my cellphone for alerts.\u201d If you\u2019ve ever uttered or thought the above words \u2013 take heed. Late last week I awoke at around 12:30 AM to the sound of some incredibly strong winds outdoors. Glancing down at my completely muted […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,553,26,6578],"tags":[5367,6575,6580,595,3463,6581],"class_list":["post-34740","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-preparedness","category-radios","category-weather-radio","tag-aaron-kuhn","tag-midland-wr120","tag-midland-wr120-review","tag-noaa-weather-radio","tag-weather-radio","tag-weather-radio-review"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-92k","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":34794,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/11\/radio-deal-midland-wr120-weather-radios-on-clearance-at-walgreens\/","url_meta":{"origin":34740,"position":0},"title":"Radio Deal: Midland WR120 weather radios on clearance at Walgreens","author":"Thomas","date":"November 10, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Last week, we posted an article about weather radios and Aaron's assessment of the Midland WR120. 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AM\/FM\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Midland-WR-120-Weather-Radio.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":51938,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/02\/jock-shares-a-bit-more-about-noaa-weather-radio\/","url_meta":{"origin":34740,"position":2},"title":"Jock shares: “A bit more about NOAA Weather Radio”","author":"Thomas","date":"February 20, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor,\u00a0Jock Elliott, who shares the following guest post: A bit more about NOAA Weather Radio By Jock Elliott, KB2GOM Okay, I\u2019ll admit it: I\u2019m a fan, an advocate, an evangelist for NOAA Weather Radio (NWR). Why? Because, quite simply, if you live in the United States, it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Guest Posts"","block_context":{"text":"Guest Posts","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/guest-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Weather-Clouds.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Weather-Clouds.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Weather-Clouds.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Weather-Clouds.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":53621,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/08\/noaa-weather-radio-needs-some-serious-upgrades\/","url_meta":{"origin":34740,"position":3},"title":"NOAA weather radio “needs some serious upgrades”","author":"Thomas","date":"August 6, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dennis Dura, who shares the following article from Slate: The Radio System That Keeps Us Safe From Extreme Weather Is Under Threat NOAA Weather Radio needs some serious upgrades. 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