June 3rd 05, 05:05 AM
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In article ,
(Michael Black) wrote:
running dogg ) writes:
I recieved something that I ordered over the net from C. Crane, and
was flipping through the catalog they included when I noticed, on
page 25, a Freeplay Lifeline radio. It says that this radio is made
for humanitarian projects in the third world and is sold to
Americans exclusively by C. Crane. It appears to be a four band
radio, with FM, AM, and two SW bands covering 3.5-10 and 10-18 Mhz.
The ad has a picture of an African boy working in a field while
listening to this radio, but that radio appears to be different-it
has a red and white dial instead of a blue and white dial. I was
wondering if anybody owns a Freeplay Lifeline and can comment on
it. I assume that the SW bands are good only for regional
reception, so in the US you'd only hear bible thumpers. At $99.95
it's quite expensive, I don't see how they can afford to give them
away to people in Africa. Page 78 of the catalog shows a Rwandan
girl with a Lifeline, and it IS different-the dial is marked with
the Voice of America logo.
I have no idea, but when the Baygen first came out, much was said
about how it was invented for the African market, and the radios were
then also sold to Europe and North America at a greater price to help
fund the African project. It's expensive here, given the relatively
crummy radio (the real hook is the windup generator) because the
profits are paying for the production of the radios for the intended
end users, the Africans.
Don't miss the point that even in NA that radio will work without
batteries when the power goes out. It a good emergency radio, which is
how they are marketed here.
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Telamon
Ventura, California
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