Roberts Splash DAB/FM RDS Digital All Weather Radio

only had this a few days but very pleased with it. it is nice & heavy & well built was going to get just the FM version but decided to pay a bit more & try my 1st DAB/FM & initial impressions appear to be promising. this radio gets a good signal & not bad sound throu the single speaker. it does seem to be splashproof & all controls appeared to have sealing it is a wee bit on the large side but i dont think this is an issue unless you have limited space available. the only minus in my own opinion is the aerial lead which needs to be extended for good signal it is just of the loose wire type & can be laid going up or down from the back of the radio but i think this would have been better if it were of the solid extendable type but this i think is only a minor quibble its just that it dangles about. I would highly recommend this radio & it also can be used outdoors so would be ok in the garden as its portable with D batteries (not included with product) nor is the external power adaptor so you need to factor this in as you will need to haveone or both available to power it but ofcourse dont use the extranal power source in the bathroom/shower for obvious reasons!

First things first: there is no power source in the box. No batteries (this is clear in the description) and no adapter/transformer. So as you buy this ensure you get a power source – which will add to the cost. You need either a 5V DC 600mA central pin +ve adapter (say £15) and/or two D size batteries. If you want to use it safely in a bathroom you must get batteries. The batteries would cost a bit more than £2 for the two, for disposables. Or if you get NiMH rechargeables I recommend you get the seriously large capacity ones (8000 mAhr or so – try Battery Logic) which would cost about £15 for the two. If you have lots of AA NiMH and you don’t mind changing the batteries much more often, then consider getting a couple of AA to D converters (about £4 for the two, plus you need a good supply of AA NiMH).PROS: Not a bad sound – either quality or quantity for a modest size unit. Intuitively easy to use: single button press for 4 DAB or 4 FM presets. It’s easy to set up the presets as well. Pulls in a signal about as well as any portable. Nice display. Good fixing bracket for the bathroom wall. Signal strength indication allows you to fiddle with aerial to get best reception. Manual was written by someone with good English and is available online as a PDF from the Roberts site so you can have a look before you buy. Roberts helpline is excellent - although I have not had to use it for this item. Towards the top of the quality range. Out of the box it scanned and gets the time – all ready to go. Looks and feels splashproof (NOT tested). Default settings it comes with seem fairly sensible for the average user. You can do manual tune, alter scan sensitivity, or invoke DRC if you want. It has a sleep function and a countdown timer (up to 99 minutes – time to get out of the bath!)CONS (all minor issues): only the rather small thin wire dangling aerial – you can’t use another aerial; so if you’re in a poor reception area (and especially if you’re aiming to use this inside a bathroom with less good reception) this might be a problem - test first with any other radio you have. The little aerial wire doesn’t have much at the top (like a lug and hole) to help hold it up vertically. The soft cap (necessary for splash-proofing) on the DC-in socket does not stay in place on mine. The radio has a ‘poolside alarm button’ which I’m worried about pressing by mistake. Towards the top of the price range. Not a lightweight to carry round - with a spare set of batteries. Not waterproof. Takes a little while to tune (possibly just a tad longer than other similar Roberts or Pure radios). Time does not stay displayed – but perks up again if any button is pressed. No sort of tone adjustment (a speech / classic / rock option for instance).Note sure about: Swivel handle – which does pack away into the body. It includes a torch light. The carrying strap went out of fashion in the mid 1970s. No DAB radio I’ve found (including this one) seems to be able to store Radio 5 Live Sports Extra (for TMS) because it’s a secondary service, so that’s not really a mark against this model.From the foregoing it should be obvious who this is for (or not). Overall the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages and I didn't spot anything else that might be better within this sort of funtionality and price range.So far so good and if that changes I’ll add a comment later (and report back on the battery life)…

The Splash radio is well designed and tactile with buttons on the front of the unit which makes it ideal for the bathroom shelve or on top of the cabinet. So many other radios have the controls on the top, making it hard to view the buttons when reaching up to change the station or to switch on. .However, the sound quality is very poor. This unit has one speaker so it is mono but mono sound can still sound rich. The poor quality was noticeable instantly when I tuned into a stereo DAB broadcast. It was an old song and all I heard was the backing singers and drums...on further investigation, it turns out I was listening to one channel of a stereo broadcast! It is akin to listening to only one speaker of a stereo unit or turning the balance all the way to one speaker on a Hi-Fi. On a mono radio...surely the sound outputted should be...both channels of the track in mono? So listening to a stereo broadcast, such as Jazz FM Stereo on DAB, was an odd experience and not really what I expected. But even FM and mono broadcast stations sound poor when compared to my Sony bedside DAB radio.I believe this to be typical of every unit and unless you notice the stereo/mono issue, you may never know. This is a very disappointing product made by a manufacturer who has always produced quality items.

Didn't get as far as actually using the radio. The aerial is some plastic-coated wire which needs to be physically stretched and held 6" above or below the radio to secure a good signal reception. Way too much aggravation when all you want to do is switch on the radio and listen in. So returned it and replaced with a radio with metal antenna.