I am glad this thread got bumped up again; it is a favorite of mine and worth reading again.

Another +1 on the crank radio/flashlight. Eton makes one now (FR150) that runs on USB cable, crank, and solar, and has a replaceable battery. It is actually small and shaped like a flashlight (instead of a large radio with a light on it). It has AM/FM/NOAA bands on the radio. You can use it to crank-charge a cell phone, but you don't get much talk time for your effort (I have a phone charger that takes AA's instead). At about $30, it was cheap enough for me to get one to live in my EDC bag.
Eton Microlink FR150

Disclaimer: No affiliation to Eton, just a fan.