January 18, 2008 10:22 AM PST

U.K. digital radio bridges retro with future

by Mike Yamamoto
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(Credit: Roberts Radio)

Talk about deja vu. Witnessing the evolution of DAB products in Europe is like watching a PBS documentary on a history of the analog radio. Some of today's digital versions are starting to look like the first portable AM/FM radios of the '60s.

At first glance the MP-Sound 41 from U.K.-based Roberts Radio looked like a shiny silver Sony transistor from the days of yore. Until you see the digital screen on top, that is, which is used for something unimaginable back then: an electronic programming guide that can schedule the recording of a show up to a week ahead of time, according to Pocket-lint. In fact, it can record up to 12 of them at a time and store up to 8 hours on an SD card.

All of which sounds very nifty, but there's one feature that leaves us cold--a "clock function with up to 12 alarms." That's the last thing we need.

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