Rating: Summary: Nice Radio - AM reception issues Review: I purchased this radio so I could listen to AM radio on my ride into San Francisco on BART. The first thing I discovered was that the BART trains must create too much interference for the radio to pick up any AM radio stations, FM stations come in pretty clear however. My second disappointment is that I can not get any AM signal in my office building in the financial district either. I think the little radio just doesn't have enough resources in the AM radio side of it to do what I would like. I might be asking too much of it. I like the digital tuner and the interface is quite nice. It just isn't doing the job I would like. I will go back to my MP3 player with digital FM tuner. I hope this helps.
Rating: Summary: Pretty good radio... Review: I purchased this radio to mostly listen to FM radio at work. After a shipping snafu that Amazon made right, I was able to try it out and compare it to my Sony radio that was integrated with an old Minidisc player.
Reception is somewhat better than the Sony, though of course, AM takes a nosedive near the interference from a computer.
The overall sound quality is better than the Sony though, due to the DBB. I replaced the crappy earbuds that came with this radio with Sony EX-71s and the sound quality was fully realized. (ugh, how do people even use the earbuds that come with most players? You guys are cheating yourselves out of a ton of audio quality)
I thought about the DT-200V due to the AA batteries, and the DT-300 due to the weatherband, but I thought the bass boost was more important than either, and I think I made the right choice. DBB makes music sound a lot better, but then, I like my bass.
I gave this unit 4 stars and not 5, because there are some issues I have with it.
First, the interface. As many others have said, the temporary recall toggle tuning method is really inconvienient. Also, I noted the absence of a DX/local switch. I thought the belt clip was unusually large and unweildly, and didn't seem particularily secure.
The speaker seems largely useless. Due to the size, it is not really suited to be used outside of an extremely quiet environment, and even then, sound quality is pretty bad due to the size.
For a future product, I would suggest making the controls more like the DT-200V in terms of functionality and layout, and probably removing the speaker. I think you need a somewhat larger unit in order to have a properly usable speaker.
But, the unit does have very good reception and audio quality (especially with the DBB) when paired with a good pair of headphones. Just don't use the included ones, they are, as to be expected, quite terrible.
Rating: Summary: Great reception, slightly annoying controls Review: I walk a lot in an urban setting, and like to spend the time listening to the radio, including some weak FM stations. All of the radios I've tried had difficulty getting the weak stations. Setting the DX/Local switch to local helped, but there were parts of my walk where I just couldn't get the stations I want. This radio has solved that problem. The reception is rock-solid on both AM and FM (even without a DX/local switch). It's much better than the four or five other radios that I've tried. (I can actually get some AM stations inside a public bus in an underground station! Beat that!) I took away one star because the controls could be better designed. The volume control knob is too small, making it overly sensitive and hard to work with gloves on. And to use preset stations, you have to push a button before you can browse through the presets. After a short time, it resets to manual, so you have to push the button again to change stations again. It's annoying for station-flippers. Despite these minor annoyances, I heartily recommend this radio to anyone looking for really good reception in an urban area. I haven't used it to get weak signals out in the boondocks, but I bet it would be good at that too.
Rating: Summary: better than the DT 200V Review: I've had a Sangean 200V for a couple years and it finally started showing its age (shutting off unexpectedly, refusing to turn on, etc.) but it had decent reception so I decided to try the 210V. Using it as I used its predecessor, I would say it has better reception (I listen to weak FM public radio stations primarily), has a better button/control layout than the 200V, and is lighter (uses two AAA vs 200V's AA batteries). I also have the Sony radio mentioned as an "instead of" for this product and, while it is a fine radio, its reception power can't compete with the Sangeans.
Rating: Summary: Great little performer Review: I've had a Sangean DT-110 radio for the past year (under the Radio Shack brand) which I thought was very good, except I wanted one w/a speaker, and wanted to try and get better AM reception (since I'd heard so much about the DT200). I ended up getting the DT210 which I'm quite happy with. I love listening to distant AM stations and in actuality this one isn't that much different on AM than the 110 is (but is still far better than any other pocket radio). I also wanted better FM reception, b/c the 110 has TERRIBLE station separation and bleed-through (strong stations are picked up on weaker frequencies all over the dial). Well, the DT210 is only SLIGHTLY better with that. What should be noted, is regarding the presets. You can preset 10 (count `em.. 10) AM - FM and TV stations. The box says 15 for FM, but that's NOT for THIS model!!!! (go figure) I like the quality of the radio, it's slim design and it's speaker. It has the same features as the DT110 and the belt clip is great too. Overall, a very good unit.
Rating: Summary: Finally, a pocket radio I could live with. Review: If stable, clear reception on all bands while on the move is the main consideration, I'd call this a very successful product. (I use in NYC, a strong-signal environment.) Lightweight and carries easily in a shirt pocket. Built in speaker very convenient too. On/off switch seems to be a bit frail. All told, I like very much. A little more expensive than some other pocket radios, but I'd say it's worth it.
Rating: Summary: Great radio - Short life Review: It's hard to find a small radio with great sound and a speaker that really works. Loved the radio through Hurricane Charlie, but it lost its ability to produce sound a few days thereafter --- 11 months old with little use --- headed for the dump. I may have just received one made on a bad day --- otherwise, it is a really slick unit, though not long lived.
Rating: Summary: A pretty face Review: Looks great, feels great, but couldn't pull in FM public radio stations from my workplace or home in Seattle. Reception in Seattle can be tough and reading other reviews I thought this radio could do it. Wrong. I couldn't tell that it could pull in stations any better than any small portable radio. But it sure is good looking!
Rating: Summary: Have to wait and see Review: My radio arrived and seemed to work right out of the box, but within a couple hours it basically quit working. It powers on and the display shows the stations but there is no sound through the speaker or earphones. It seems like a nice unit but I guess I'm going to have to return it for warranty service. Kind of a bummer.
Rating: Summary: Great Service Review: ONE Star is for the dumba** that reviewed this for Amazon ... I couldn't give it NO STARS ... as far as for the radio its self ... that will have to wait ... I need to go shopping for batteries!! I know the difference between AAA & AA batteries!! Amazon says it takes AA ... which was a big reason I purchased this radio. I have a lot of those batteries because a lot of things I have use that size. THIS RADIO TAKES AAA BATTERIES ... as far as how this radio works ... no clue I don't have that SIZE of BATTERIES! What the hell else uses these small batteries?? Leave it to some engineer type ...at least it doesn't use watch batteries.
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