Internet radio/DAB or what??

[mistressploppy]

I was all set to go off and buy a digital radio. I thought I knew what I wanted - to get lots of channels without fiddling around with knobs and putting up with crap reception, and to be able to plug my ipod into it as well.

After a quick browse, I see there now exists an INTERNET radio, which can wirelessly connect to your pc or mac and play all your itunes, as well as all the billions of radio stations on the net.

I'm not techy and all I really want is to be able to listen to nice mumsy music/chat/radio 4 in the kitchen while wearing my apron, my hair in rollers and baking cakes

Any advice on what to buy?

Stick with DAB, it's reasonably simple and has a decent range of stations.

A lot depends on your budget, and how good coverage is where you are.

Without wishing to put you off, am far from sure that you'd need DAB let alone an internet radio, given the type of listening you want.

FiveLive in good quality, along with 6 Music and Radio 7, from the BBC, are perhaps the main benefits, while the 'commercial' choices will probably consist of 10 to 20 pop stations, plus (perhaps) Smooth radio and Jazz FM (which AFAIK is not on FM in most of the UK!)

If you go for DAB + FM + iPod dock then John Lewis has their own (with 3 year guarantee) for 40 pounds, while Amazon and Tesco are selling FM + iPod dock either as "regular" radio styles, or mini 'ghetto blaster' style units, at 29-35 pounds.

www.amazon.co.uk/Kitsound-XDOCK-Clock-Radio-iPhone/dp/B00427T68E/ref=pd_cp_ce_1

Check the Kitsound clock/radio on Amazon (or search for "dab iPod" - nb 500 results)

Tesco has Technika CR-109IDAB (item 205-0143 ) at 32 pounds (+5 delivery) in their clearance sale, and other radi/iPod units at higher prices.

Of course (will be obvious, but worth checking) look out for them having a mains adaptor or being mains powered not battery, but also worth remembering that in some cases there are restrictions on which iPods they are compatible with.

Have you got an iPhone/iPod or an android phone? I always listen to radio using the tune in radio app now - much better quality where we live than either DAB or FM

Good thinking RB - is iPlayer supported (or some other App for listening to BBC?) Must remember 'lag' (delay) can happen so don't rely on the pips being the correct time!

if you have an internet provider who doesnt cap your usuage and you usually have your pc on then you could maybe get some wireless speakers and use internet radio on your pc? (its an option I've been considering)

Yes, there's an iplayer app for iPhone/iPad - the BBc have a non flash version specially for it.

OYBBK has a good point about the usage - tune in radio uses about 60 MB/hour for a 128 kbps stream. So, if you don't have an unlimited data plan, you need to keep an eye on it. I usually have it on wifi at home and 3G outside, which spreads the load and I can also have it on the iPad, which never uses its 1gb a month allowance anyway. But I try to make sure that if I want to fall asleep to Birdsong Radio I have the sleep timer on!

Lingodab.co.uk is launching / has launched a DAB/FM/Internet radio (and battery pack I think) to fit the iPod/ iPhone 4 but website gives no real info, just e-mail address and (Leeds) phone number.

Ummm, iPod Touch perhaps but possibly none of the other iPods would be suitable for that Lingo accessory.

Meant to add that some internet radios cover more audio encoding methods. BBC no longer forces people to use RealPlayer but only some of the internet radios offer playback of that format.

I did see a small comparison of a few radios, so will try to find it (just in case someone else comes across the thread).

NB Despite the .co.uk www.Lingodab.co.uk uses and the Leeds number, the domain is registered to Lingo limited in Taiwan (and hoted there)

No.39, Shifang St., North Dist., Hsinchu City 300, Taiwan
Hsinchu
Taiwan

Relevant dates:
Registered on: 01-Mar-2010
Renewal date: 01-Mar-2012
Last updated: 01-Mar-2010

FWIW, I would be suspicious about buying if it was in China with a .co.uk but Taiwan is definitely a capitalist country and has been involved in making electronics for years!

please ignore all about Lingo - this item is only for the iPhone 4 where earlier items included iPod. Very sorry (not an owner of either iPod Touch or iPhone or iPad so peripheral interest really (radio is a primary interest, whether UK or USA or World Radio Network {www.wrn.org} stations).

Wow, thanks folks. I've been and bought a bog-standard Pure Evoke and an attachment for my iPod (Touch) and the initial fiddle is looking promising

I will check out Rusty's suggestion of the app.

Cheers all!

What model did you get ? Some of the Evoke models only have one speaker so trust you don't have to pay extra for a second one (sorry, should have posted earlier about Pure...)

Yes, it's just the teeny one-speaker version, I might buy the extra speaker if I feel the need.

Am trying to keep the kitchen radio pretty basic, as DH has a pricey B&O habit which has taken over the rest of the house....

Personally I'd avoid DAB...

DAB take up in this country has been very slow and has been hampered by the adoption of a poor technical standard and dubious sales techniques.

The FM Switch Off is far from certain, even with increasingly desperate attempts to fiddle the figures to make the take up look better (when 50% of sales are DAB the FM switch off date can be discussed) it still hasn't topped 30% of new sales.

Internet radio might, for the moment, be a better option. You can buy ones that connect straight to a wireless router and don't need a computer to talk to.

Too late, Badger

Actually, the 50% measurement is of use of 'digital' takeup, not DAB, so when they include 7 (?) million Sky households, those using FreeSat, and then potentially everyone (one the change to scrap switch all analogue TV services is complete), it will be far easier to provide figures suggesting how popular digital is over FM.

Unfortunately, as you say, we will be left as one of only 2 (or a dubious 3) countries using DAB rather than DAB+ which is already in use, and for which all new models would be designed to handle.

I understand some commercial stations refused to participate in the promotion of DAB in recent months, where the BBC does its "jolly good show, chaps" method of giving away DAB sets in many and varied competitions and plays advertising jingles telling us how good DAB would be, following on from their so-called 'Radio Amnesty' where people taking working FM radios into some retailers in the summer would get a discount on a new DAB set.

The stations which didn't participate are concerned about whether there is any finance left to pay for additional transmitters, given they have just had many months of poor advertising income, and are expecting it to carry on in much the same way, for a while.

"Actually, the 50% measurement is of use of 'digital' takeup, not DAB"

Fair point, I did mess that bit up.

However the Digital Radio people are still manipulating the figures to make the uptake look better than it is.

I would not mind, so much, if the broadcasters went to DAB+ and we stopped selling DAB radios for (say) 5 years, while everything geared up to a switch to DAB+ (as longer term would mean we were not left in some DAB "cul-de-sac" with no further development of new radio kit).

Also, how many new mobile phones still have an FM radio as standard. Pretty large selection from what I have found. Destined after the switch to have XYZ Community Radio with some guy impersonating Tony Blackburn's voice ...

It would also make more sense to get people to link their satellite boxes to stereo amps, so they could have radio on without the TV being on too. (Dentist near me has a 32" TV showing the BBC Radio 1 details, presumably they use the TV tuned to that channel for entertaining waiting patients - could have set up a 15 quid Freeview box at home, taken it to work, and it can play Radio 1 all day without any costly TV needed [even if a TV Licence is still, stupidly, required])