I just love my new digital radio. It's hot, it's pink, and it rocks! (it even has a pink box!) Now come on, don't let that put you off reading the rest of this review... It is also available in black or white and looks very sleek in those colours. As Pure tells you on the box, it's "the radio for everyone".

A vast array of digital radios to choose from in good old John Lewis. Some reduced in price, but bulky looking, some pretty and retro looking but still quite expensive, and this little shiny pink beauty before me giving me a girly wink. Ooooooh, look husband, a pink one!!! I had a good look at all the others, but got drawn back to the fuschia pink Pure ONE for my taste. It sounded clear, it had 20 station presets, was nice and compact, and most of all was the least expensive on the shelf. Oh, and it was pink. The black or white option didn't do it for me!

Ease of use

What does it look like?

In the box:

The Pure ONE is a portable digital/FM radio. Switching on is a doddle, and the volume is self explanitory. If you press the 'stations' button, then the volume knob can be turned to scroll along the available stations. Press the centre knob and Hey Presto, your station is there. That's what I call simple to use. If you want your favourite stations in an instant, then you can preset up to 20 stations.

Kitchen Timer. Ooh, I haven't tried it. I'll have a go now.......ok, set for one minute (easy to do)...... Well, I was prepared for a peircing beep , but in fact it's a mellow little 'beepity-beep, beepity-beep'. The radio cuts out and you get the soft beeping with the display screen flashing. A nice touch if you remember this facility exists. I'll probably stick to the timer on my cooker. A useful little facility though. You can also set a sleep timer where your radio can switch itself into standby mode.

The screen is 5.3cm x 1.7cm. Small, but easy enough to read when you need to. Icons show volume, signal strength, timer alert, battery, and the time which is from the DAB signal. (It's a grey screen with black writing and there is a backlight when you press any button.You can chose to have the backlight on,off or timed.) The radio station is always shown and the scrolling text is at the bottom of the screen.

There is a socket for headphones if desired.
You can use batteries and full instructions for use are in the manual. I choose to use the mains. If you want portability, there's "Around 20 hours of portable DAB listening from the optional, rechargeable ChargePAK; around 35 hours from six C size batteries; or connect to the mains for home listening".

The sound quality and range of features:

......................Suitability for your needs...........................

Pictures of Pure Digital ONE

the black ONE

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Even if you don't know much about digital radio, I thoroughly recommend it. Forget your fuzzy old AM/FMs. Find out what's availible in your area through the website and inputting your postcode.

..........................A little about digital radio in general:

"DAB digital radio is different because, instead of being made up of analogue waves, the radio signal is transmitted digitally, as a series of 'zeros and ones'. You don't need a satellite dish to receive digital radio, just an aerial positioned in the correct place. Traditional FM analogue radio waves are sensitive to noise or distortion from electrical equipment or the atmosphere. The waves can bounce off tall buildings and hills and become interrupted or distorted.
As DAB digital radio uses digital signals, with plenty of extra information transmitted to allow the tuner to fill in any missing bits, the DAB signal does not suffer from the same problems as the FM signal. If you live in a weak signal area, you'll find that, even with all that extra information, the sound sometimes breaks up. If you live in a strong signal area, you'll find you have uninterrupted listening without 'drop-outs'.
DAB digital radio was developed by a consortium of 12 partners, known as EUREKA-147 - the system was originally called Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) and this is still used to distinguish a true DAB receiver from all other radio receivers. In 1994, Eureka-147 was adopted as a world standard and, today, most of the world has either implemented the standard or is currently testing it. The exceptions are the United States, which has embraced both satellite digital radio and High Definition radio, and Japan where cable is the chosen method of delivery for new radio formats. " Phew! Well, there you are then!

Recommendation