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Revo's retro-styled Heritage radio does DAB, WiFi and casual unboxings

by Darren Murph posted Nov 8th 2009 at 5:59AM

It's fair to say that Revo has never made a "normal" looking radio in its entire life, but hey -- that's a-okay with us. The outfit's latest, which is up for pre-order right now at £229.95 ($382), is easily one of the sleekest, most vintage-looking we've ever seen it produce. The aptly-named Heritage sports a wood and aluminum motif, room for your iPod or iPhone to dock, and support for DAB, FM and WiFi radio signals. There's also an OLED display to keep you informed, support for wireless music streaming from your Mac or PC, a 3-inch neodymium speaker driver, 7-watts of power, a 3.5 millimeter headphone connector and even an iPod video output. Heck, they even throw in a multi-country power adapter as a courtesy to you yearnin' Yanks. Go on and tap that via link if you're interested in an unboxing.

[Via Stuff]

PURE's Elan II does DAB time-shifting on the go

by Tim Stevens posted Oct 15th 2009 at 7:51AM

Pure Digital's Elan II does DAB time-shifting on the go

Okay, yes, we know that domestic radio is a bit passe these days, but DAB is still kicking strong, and everybody likes portable tuners that can pause and rewind. Such is PURE's Elan II, which isn't quite as lovingly styled as the EVOKE-1S or as feature-packed as the Sensia, but it provides a cheeky '80s look and offers the company's ReVu technology, allowing 15 minutes of pausing, rewinding, and fast-forwarding of live radio. It'll do FM too, naturally has a line-in for your choice of PMP, and will rock out plug-free for an impressive 35 hours when you fit an optional battery pack, which looks to cost about £25. The radio itself is £99.99, and since we get no DAB love here in the States we won't bother converting those numbers into their dollar equivalents.

[Via Shiny Shiny]

Pure Sensia DAB / WiFi radio gains touchscreen, streaming and Facebook

by Darren Murph posted Sep 20th 2009 at 5:37PM

Ah, convergence. Pure Digital -- DAB and WiFi radio extraordinaire -- has just made live a product portal for its forthcoming Sensia, which looks to be a serious leap forward in terms of features and design. For starters, this product ditches the typical retro vibe and goes for something entirely more Jetsons-esque, and while many of Pure's past radios have had some sort of display, the 5.7-inch touchscreen (640 x 480) is certainly a first. Boasting DAB and FM tuners, this device is also equipped with an 802.11g module that lets it pull down radio streams from the web as well as stream other media from networked PCs / storage. Other specs include twin 3-inch full-range drivers, an RF remote, optional rechargeable battery and a 3.5 millimeter socket for connecting those "other sources." Moreover, users will be able to tap into a variety of applications, from weather to news to Picasa to social networking. If all goes well, it'll ship before the holidays for £249.99 ($406).

[Via Macworld, thanks Ian]

Gallery: Pure Sensia DAB / WiFi radio gains touchscreen, streaming and Facebook

Monitor Audio Airstream 10 WiFi radio gets the hands on treatment

by Donald Melanson posted May 11th 2009 at 4:14PM

While Monitor Audio's new Airstream 10 WiFi / DAB radio unfortunately isn't a radio inspired by a vintage Airstream trailer, it is nonetheless pretty eye catching in its own right, and fairly full featured as far as WiFi radios go. Apparently, the radio can either be stood upright or placed on its side, and it'll let you listen to some standard FM or DAB radio, or hop onto a network via WiFi or Ethernet to either stream some tunes off your Mac or PC or tune into some internet radio stations. What's more, while Stuff.tv is apparently reserving final judgment for its full review, it does say that the sound quality doesn't disappoint, and it packs the usual 3.5mm jack to round out its options. Still no word on a DAB-less version for these parts, sadly, but those in the UK should be able to pick this one up starting in June.

[Via SlashGear]

Cambridge Audio reveals iPod-lovin' Sonata / Fusion audio systems

by Darren Murph posted Sep 20th 2008 at 8:02AM

Not content with sneaking a dedicated Blu-ray player into CEDIA, Cambridge Audio has just taken the plastic off of two new HiFi systems in Milan. The Sonata, aimed squarely at audio junkies, consists of a 2.1-channel DAB receiver (£299; $547), which offers 40-watts of amplification per channel and your choice of an upscaling 1080p DVD player or a Wolfson-DAC-loaded CD unit for another £179 ($327). The all-in-one Fusion (£300; $549) includes 30-watts per channel, an integrated CD player, DAB / FM tuner, USB port, an SD slot and a customized iPod dock (which is also bundled with the aforementioned Sonata). Both units are slated to hit the UK in silver and black, though the November-bound Fusion will get a jump on the Sonata, which hits in February 2009.

Cowon's S9 rocking retail next month

by Thomas Ricker posted Sep 3rd 2008 at 2:26AM

We tried and we tried but we just couldn't get COWON to show us its new S9 Curve at IFA -- they weren't meeting with the press, only business partners. At least we have a ship date and full specs in consolation. Germany at least will get its hands on the 3.3-inch, 480 x 272-pixel, 16 million color, capacitive touchscreen, AMOLED player at the end of October. The 57.08 x 105.75 x 12.7-mm player (a bit shorter and narrower than the 8-mm thick iPod touch with 4.3-inch display) will initially ship with 8GB / 16GB of storage before getting bumped to 32GB sometime down the road. A 3.5-hour charge off the mains (5.5-hours off USB) will deliver up to 8-hours of video (MPEG-4 SP, WMV9 SP, H.264 BP codecs) or 40 hours of audio (MP3, WMA, OGG, FLAC, WAV formats). Integrated Bluetooth is of the more power hungry 2.0 (not 2.1) variety with support for A2DP stereo and AVRCP remote control profiles. The S9 for Europe supports FM recording and dictation buts lacks the integrated DMB television tuner of its Korean cousin. Line-in recording and DAB radio is also in the works.

[Thanks, Vesal]

iriver's gramophone speaker, UNIT2-S, and R1 concepts do impress

by Thomas Ricker posted Aug 29th 2008 at 6:01AM

iriver came to IFA with the usual collection of concept gear we crave. Unlike other manufacturers, iriver usually brings its prototypes to market, eventually, so you'll want to pay attention. First up is a concept horn speaker (pictured top) attached to an iriver SPINN. The device plugs into the existing headphone jack bringing a sense of gramophone nostalgia to this most-modern device.

Next up is iriver's latest take on the Unit2, the UNIT2-S, a simpler multimedia communications device for the home. Remember, it's just a concept, but as envisioned, the working prototype functions as a video phone, digital photo frame, web browser, FM radio, flash gaming rig, SMS/MMS receiver, and audio / video player with DMB television tuner. The specs list a 4.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen display, 30GB hard drive and 2GB of flash (presumably in the base unit and handset, respectively), mic, stereo speaker, and Li-Polymer battery all packed into a 185.4 x 117 x 19.8-mm tower.

Last up is the R1 DAB radio concept (pictured bottom). Again, the prototype is fully functional and capable of playing back internet, DAB, and FM radio or audio streaming from PC or local storage through a pair of 2W stereo speakers. They also included an alarm clock to remind you that these concepts are just part of an iriver dream -- for now.

Gallery: iriver's gramophone speaker, UNIT2-S, and R1 concepts do impress

Pure gets with the internet radio game, debuts EVOKE Flow

by Darren Murph posted Aug 22nd 2008 at 9:43AM

Man, talk about quick reflexes. Not even a fortnight after Radiopaq announced its WiFi radio-enabled Rp5, along comes Pure Digital to keep things competitive. The stylish-in-its-own-way EVOKE Flow not only taps into the intarwebz for streaming music, but it also includes FM / DAB tuners and support for DAB+. Expect it to hit British tables next month for £150 ($279).

[Thanks, Joe]

Revo's new PICO hybrid radio pairs DAB and WiFi with great success

by Paul Miller posted Aug 14th 2008 at 1:04PM

DAB... DAB... that's that digital radio thing, right? But it's not from a satellite, huh? Well, whatever. Revo's new PICO hybrid radio packs some internet radio over WiFi, so you don't have to move to some crummy country like the UK just to listen to predictably-programmed 80's music and cloying chatter. Revo's little unit is portable, gets 12 hours to a charge, and works with DAB, DAB+, FM and WiFi. It'll be available in September for £169.95 (about $3,180,000 USD).

Radiopaq Rp5 does DAB, FM and internet radio

by Darren Murph posted Aug 14th 2008 at 9:58AM

Look out, Pure Digital -- you've got a new rival in town. Radiopaq, best known for bringing thousands of internet radio stations and podcasts to listeners via the web, has decided to hop into the hardware game. The Rp5 tabletop radio features a five-way speaker system, digital / analog processors, a headphone jack, remote control and a rather stylish design. There's also an integrated WiFi module for tuning into the outfit's website and even sucking down news, weather and traffic information. Of course, the more traditional FM / DAB tuners are there as well, making this one quite the multifaceted box. Word on the British streets has this one pegged for a September launch at £250 ($468).

[Via Pocket-lint]

Pure debuts ONE Elite DAB / FM radio

by Donald Melanson posted Jul 30th 2008 at 3:02PM

There are few more prolific DAB proponents out there than the folks at Pure, and it looks like the company isn't showing any signs of letting up, with it now introducing the ONE Elite radio to fill in its lower-end offerings. True to that status, this one keeps its features as basic as its appearance, with just DAB and FM radio and none of that fancy internet radio on offer, but you will get a line-in jack to accommodate the audio device of your choice, and even a USB port, although that's apparently only used to provide updates to the radio itself. Like its other recent radios, this one is also manufactured to Pure's own EcoPlus standards, and it's available in your choice of black or white, each of which will set you back £70 (or $140).

[Via Tech Digest]

iriver's Spinn hits the FCC, means nothing

by Thomas Ricker posted Jul 25th 2008 at 4:09PM

Sure, it doesn't look like much thanks to the FCC's staunch aversion to photo glam, but that's iriver's Spinn PMP, a product which had us at a full, rigid swoon back at CES. While this would generally be good news, the model approved features a DAB radio and DMB television tuner -- in other words, it's not intended for US consumption. The user manual also confirms a FM radio, Mini SD slot, Bluetooth, D-Click System interface, 27 hours of audio and 5 hours of video, and support for SWF (Flash), TXT, MP3, WMA, OGG, JPG, AVI, MWV file formats. With FCC approval out of the way, the rumored UK August release date is presumably in the bag.

Roberts releases solarDAB: world's first solar-powered DAB radio

by Darren Murph posted Jul 1st 2008 at 12:35PM

Roberts may get ridiculed for its design cues, but one thing's for sure: it sticks to its guns. The latest patently ugly (but sort of cute) DAB radio to emerge from its lair is the solarDAB, which predictably gets energized by the sun. The unit packs a top-mounted solar panel along with a "level indicator on the display screen that shows the strength of the solar level being absorbed." Once the rechargeable batteries are fully juiced, said radio will blast out tunes for a whopping 27 hours. You should be able to secure one in a variety of colors here soon for £79.99 ($158).

[Via TechDigest]

UK group wants FM turned off in favor of DAB by 2012

by Nilay Patel posted Jun 25th 2008 at 1:05AM

We've seen some pretty hot DAB radios make the scene, but consumers just haven't greeted the tech with any kind of enthusiasm -- which is why the UK's Digital Radio Working Group recently suggested that FM services be shut off starting in 2012, with complete shut-off to occur by 2020. According to the group's report, only 17.8 percent of radio listening is digital, and the chances of finding a DAB radio in a car (where 20 percent of all UK radio listening is done) is less than 1 in 200. The DRWG says that the switchover to DAB will take three steps: first, a commitment to the tech by the government and industry, with radios being made multiplatform and able to receive all the flavors of DAB; second, a massive promotional campaign; and third, switchoff of FM, which is optimistically scheduled to begin in 2012. That's certainly one way to get people to buy new radios -- but unlike the switch to digital TV, we don't see anyone being too put out by having to listen to their MP3 players in the car instead of FM radio.

Vita Audio adds a splash of luxury to R4 iPod / DAB radio

by Darren Murph posted May 12th 2008 at 6:09PM

Nothing says sexy like a sleek wood trim, wouldn't you wholeheartedly agree? Vita Audio obviously does, as it's £499.99 ($980) R4 integrated music system just screams lavish. The all-in-one unit packs an iPod dock, slot-loading CD / MP3 / WMA-music disc player, USB port, DAB and FM tuner with RDS, front and rear auxiliary ports, built-in display, alarm clock function and the firm's detachable RotoDial remote. For those not feeling the rich walnut veneer, there's also a high-gloss white (surprised?) version available for £50 ($97) more. Sadly, the "coming soon" tidbit leaves us clueless as to how long you actually have left to save up for either of the pricey systems.

[Via ShinyShiny]