Emergency crank radios provide you with the ability to charge the power of the radio with a cranking mechanism, without depending on batteries or electric supply. This makes them very dependable devices in emergencies as you are sure of never running out of power when you need it the most. There are many models of emergency crank radios, and the Midland XT511 is a very popular model. Apart from the weather band and AM/FM channels this is a two way radio, so that it can be used as a walkie-talkie as well.

The Midland XT511 emergency crank radio has all the ten NOAA weather channels and also AM and FM. NOAA gives all hazard weather alerts and constant weather alerts, which is so necessary when you are outdoors on a trip. Now you can never miss a warning or alert with this radio, as it has a alert function which will override the channel you are listening to and play the warning broadcast. This radio is a sturdy piece of equipment built for the outdoors and all its components are of the finest quality so that it is dependable and will give problem-free performance for many years. The radio is water resistant and carries a warranty for three years.

The Midland XT511 emergency crank radio also has a two way radio with seven GMRS and FRS channels each. Altogether there are 22 UHF channels which have 121 privacy codes so that interference is reduced and there are lesser chances of eavesdropping. There are a total of five call alerts which are separate so that the caller can be easily identified. The radio also has a feature for operating it without the use of hands, by activation through voice. For this three levels of sensitivity can be selected for the e-VOX functionality. The radio has a convenient channel scan by which you can find out the channels which are active, and also a lock for the keypad so that your settings do not get changed by accident. The display is a large LCD screen which shows different status information. The power settings also can be controlled so that you can choose to transmit over a maximum distance or save on the power. This feature actually may not be so necessary as you can always power the radio with the cranking mechanism.

The cranking mechanism of the Midland XT511 is a dynamo which charges the Ni-MH batteries inside. Apart from this the radio can also be charged by AC and DC adapters which are provided and also can run on alkaline batteries. The radio provides several external jacks which can be used for attaching speakers, headset or microphone. It also comes with a USB cable to charge various types of cell phones.

The Midland XT511 is a powerful radio which is ideal for a camping expedition. This radio can also operate as a base unit as it has options to charge other Midland radios in your group. The other features of this radio are an alarm clock and a LED flashlight.