Digital radios: Compare features & prices

Side-by-side comparison

Model type
Table-top digital radios are designed for home use, while personal digital radios are designed to be used with headphones while out of the home. In-car models broadcast the signal via FM to your car stereo.

Aerial type
What type of aerial the radio has. Telescopic aerials are generally easier to position and better for reception than wire ones.

Mains supply
Would you like your digital radio to have a mains power supply?

Battery operable
Would you like your digital radio to have power supplied by batteries?

Batteries
Type or size of batteries that can be used. Lithium-ion means that a rechargable battery is supplied. ChargePak is a Pure rechargable battery pack.

Recharge in radio
Whether rechargeable batteries can be recharged in the radio (when it's running off the mains).

Battery running time
Battery running time listening to DAB radio

Battery life (hours)
How long each radio lasted on a fully-charged set of batteries, listening to DAB broadcasts. Based on our tests, not manufacturers' claims and rounded down to the nearest hour.

FM Reception
Would you like your digital radio to have FM as well as digital reception?

Internet radio
Would you like your radio to be able to stream music from the internet? For this you will need broadband and WiFi.

Future proofed for DAB+
Whether the manufacturer states that the radio is DAB+ compatible (or potentially upgradable in the future to work with DAB+).

iPod dock
Does the radio have an iPod dock?

3.5mm auxiliary input
A 3.5mm auxiliary input is handy if you want to hook up an MP3 player to the radio

Bass and treble controls
Radios that include controls so you can adjust the bass and treble

EPG
Do you want your radio to have an EPG (Electronic Programme Guide)? This function lets you view radio programme schedules on the screen. They are rare and usually only available on radios with a programmable record function.

Pause and rewind
Whether the radio has memory that allows it to pause and rewind live digital broadcasts.

Presets
Can you save stations you like as presets (accessible using preset buttons or by scrolling through a list of presets)?

Preset button/s
Does the radio have at least one dedicated button that can be used to store a preset station?

Number of direct access presets
Total number of presets on FM, DAB and internet combined that can be accessed with the push of only one or two buttons (without having to scroll through a menu)

Direct access FM presets
The number of FM presets (and favourites where applicable) that you can access by pressing just one or two buttons (eg one button and a 'shift' function). Doesn't include presets for which you have to scroll through a few to access the one you want.

Direct access DAB presets
The number of DAB presets (and favourites where applicable) that you can access by pressing just one or two buttons (eg one button and a 'shift' function). Doesn't include presets for which you have to scroll through a few to access the one you want.

Direct access Internet presets
The number of Internet presets that you can access by pressing just one or two buttons (eg one button and a 'shift' function). Doesn't include presets for which you have to scroll through a few to access the one you want.

Number of alarms
The number of different alarm times you can programme

Overall sound quality
The overall verdict from our expert listening tests.

Speech sound quality
Verdict on sound quality of speech, not music, in our expert listening tests.

Classical music sound quality
Verdict on sound quality of classical music, in our listening tests

Pop music sound quality
Verdict on sound quality of pop music, in our listening tests

Jazz music sound quality
Verdict on sound quality of jazz music, in our listening tests

Internet sound quality
Verdict on sound quality of streamed audio files for internet capable models only in our expert listening tests.

Power use
Includes power use measurements when on, in standby and using batteries where applicable

Sensitivity
We gradually reduce the DAB signal to find out which radios are most sensitive to picking up weaker signals. A high score here will not guarantee DAB reception as there is not currently full UK DAB coverage, but the best models stand a better chance of being able to pick up slightly weaker DAB signals.

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