Intempo PG-02 digital DAB radio review

Can this DAB radio woo the crowds?

21 March 2007 0:00 GMT / By Stuart Miles

If you think you've seen this model before, then chances are you are right as the PG-02 is a revamped recoloured version of the company's PG-01 launched last year. However as we hadn't seen the PG-01 we though it a good time to look at Intempo's challenger to the Pure Digital Evoke series.

Large and bulky, but in a good way, the Intempo PG-02 offers a DAB radio and FM receiver with four programmable presets on each.

Control buttons are spead across the top of the face of the radio with an overly large volume knob taking centre stage.

Other features include an alarm clock with sleep and snooze functions, as well as eight preset buttons.

Overall the performance of the radio is very good. Signal pick up via the unit's aerial was great and from turning on to listening to a DAB channel was seconds rather than minutes. As for sound, as long as you've got a good DAB signal it is excellent, especially spoken word channels such as BBC 5Live and Radio Four.

One catch is that there is no battery option for this unit so you'll always have be near a power plug rather than on a picnic.

Another is that the bright blue light not only makes it hard to read the channel you've selected, but also lights up a dark room, not so great if you are using it as an alarm clock. Unfortunately you can't dim the light, a problem that affected the PG-01 and now it seems this model as well.

Verdict

Aside from the colour, there is little change from the PG-01 to the PG-02. It's a case of whether you are a wood veneer kind of person or a silver plastic kind of person will determine which model you go for as they both carry the same pros and cons.

That said, the performance of the imtempo PG-02 is very good and for £60 you can't go wrong, just make sure you are in a good DAB area before buying.

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Review Recap

Made by: Intempo
Price as reviewed: £60
The good: Easy to tune in, sounds good, well built
The bad: No battery option, display hard to read, too bright at night
Quick verdict: The performance of the imtempo PG-02 is very good and for £60 you can't go wrong
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