A must have for those in the tornado areas, with it's silent monitoring. Also great for sailing in so calif waters where Santa Ana winds can occur with little specific warning.I think some of the writers did not fully explore the setup wich appers to allow you to limit the warnings to a specific part of the area covered by the broadcasts.Several times the radio has awakened after months of standby operation and in the middle of the night announced a flash flood alert for my area. It also has very significant value in providing information after a natural disaster or terrorist attack.Oregon Scientific is a great company. As for the customer who dropped his radio after three years and expected free repair or replacement, that's not the deal today with something this inexpensive.Highly recommended for what it does but the family should also have a battery operated radio for emergency use. E