WIFI RADIO?

Bill48 on 07/07/2014 - 17:47

Wifi radio seems to have died. Are there any?

I have a little Thomson Bluetooth speaker that reproduces sound from my tablet well. But it is not the same as a radio. To change station you have to search around in Chrome to locate the stream wanted. I'd much prefer a portable, rechargeable unit with station (stream) presets. And preferably also sleep and alarm functions.

I think there is a Sangean product, but it seems pretty expensive. Any feedback? If it gets glowing reports I may go for it. When in Sydney where I got good DAB, I loved my rechargeable Sangean, but now 100ks out of Sydney there is no digital radio, hick local FM and static AM from Sydney.

When at my PC I constantly stream radio from Internode Freezone radio but it is more fiddly away from the PC via my wifi tablet.

Internet

Comments

  • scrimshaw on 07/07/2014 - 18:40
    +1

    iPhone docks and bluetooth audio docks seems to be more popular than Wifi radios.

    I see a lot of wifi radios but they seem to designed for use as bedside alarm clock replacements, since they only have 1 speaker (mono sound) to reduce the size of the device so that they can fit on your nightstand.

    In short they are very niche devices, I don't think they sell as well as audio docks as people prefer to listen to their own collection of music, or prefer to stream from Spotify or Google Music using their phones and tablets. You can definitely buy them (check eBay or Kogan) but you'll have to spend $200+ to get a decent sounding unit.

  • Bill48 on 07/07/2014 - 19:59

    I must be a dinosaur, wanting to listen to ABC local radio, Classic FM, NewsRadio (or even Alan Jones!). Heaven forbid that I might want to have the BBC or a foreign language stream in my presets.

    I have been checking eBay and Kogan but there is bugger all.

    Is such a device complicated? Isn't it a limited dedicated computer accessing streaming audio through a wifi connection? I'd have thought it should be no more expensive than a digital radio. People buy digital radios where they can get reception. Outside cities (and even pockets within cities), digital radio is a non event. In these places internet streaming radio is the next best option.

    • mskeggs on 07/07/2014 - 20:38

      I have a Revo Domino D3 (actually, two of them) that does what you want pretty well. I listen to Radio 4 via the net and it does DAB+ and FM for Sydney radio stations, I'm about 100km west and they go ok. It isn't battery operated, it needs a wall cord. The interface is a bit tedious to set up, but once you know how it works it is not much different than a normal DAB radio to operate.
      I got them for about $45 last year on ebay, but there doesn't seem to be any left. The seller was these guys:
      http://www.ebay.com.au/usr/factory-outlet-sales?_trksid=p398…

      Maybe ask if they are getting any more?
      Failing that, I think the device you want is called an Internet radio, although there don't seem to be a lot of options on ebay for that either.

    • nephilim on 07/07/2014 - 21:16

      Insignia Infocast is a chumby that supports FM Radio, but its nearly imposable to find now. It was being sold for like 40bucks on amazon and best buy before it was discontinued.

  • fredblogs on 07/07/2014 - 20:05

    Rather than searching around in Chrome, why not use iinet's app, or an app like TuneIn radio?
    Also have you considered Sonos or Bose Soundtouch? The Bose has presets, the Sonos doesn't but Sonos's software is much more mature.

    • Bill48 on 07/07/2014 - 20:52

      I'll look into apps but I don't want to subscribe to a packaged provider. I want to find the urls I want or use Internode freezone radio, and store/bookmark those as my favourites/presets.

      The Bose and Sonos look a bit like overkill and overprice, where I just want a simple receiver I can carry round the house or close outside within range of my wifi. Or if such a thing as a simple portable rechargeable wireless speaker that can also allow choice of station. There has to be a market for this.

      • fredblogs on 08/07/2014 - 10:56

        iinet's app is an easy way to listen to all the freezone stations. (iinet owns internode)

  • McFly on 08/07/2014 - 00:34

    Pure? Nice but a bit pricey.
    http://www.whathifi.com/review/pure-digital-evoke-f4

    Or found this…

    • [Deactivated] on 08/07/2014 - 06:25

      I own the original Evoke Flow, which appears little different to the current model, apart from the fact that it cost me about three or four times as much as the things sell for now.

      Anyway, I was semi-happy with it originally (not alot of other choices at the time, given the features I was after), but would not recommend now.

      A number of irritations have made themselves evident over time, but on my de-lightful specimen, the OLED display has now - for all practical purposes - died and rendered the whole thing next to useless.

      I also discovered that - unlike other internet capable units - that to in any sense properly access the feature you had to register and then sign-up to an ongoing 'Pure Lounge' portal subscription.

      OP, buy one of the (highly regarded) upper-spec Sangeans. I wish I had.

  • mingofmongo on 08/07/2014 - 07:21

    Would a Logitech Squeezebox fit the bill?

    http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Logitech-Squeezebox-Radio-/231274…

    • fredblogs on 08/07/2014 - 10:55

      Keep in mind that Logitech have stopped producing these, and they require their server (or your own server) to be running. No one knows when they'll take down their server.

  • ESEMCE on 08/07/2014 - 08:20

    They're expensive.. ie at least $100
    If your happy with the current solution, apart from the changing stations, why not plump up the cash for a digital radio app like tune-in or Xiialive?
    The free version of Xiialive allows you to add stations that will qualify for Freezone stations.

    Or even cheaper, why not just put bookmarks to the streaming radio addresses on the desktop?
    When you want to change stations, just click home and then the station that you want..

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