I purchased this radio for use in the bedroom. I required a compact DAB radio that would sit comfortably on a small bedside cabinet. Its dimensions fitted the bill to a tee. I also needed DAB access without having to switch the (Freeview) tv on.
The initial set-up and controls are simplicity itself and most appreciated by someone who wishes to 'plug-in and play' without a detailed cover to cover study of the manual. Controls are simple and effective, aerial rotates, rotary volume control is super-smooth, accurate and progressive; another 'plus' for a 'bedroom' radio.
Whilst our tv/fm reception is strong our digital signals are 'not as', furthermore I have heard that the north east is notorious for weak digital signals with North Yorkshire also being the last county in the country to go fully digital?? Our new-ish mini hi-fi in the kitchen can only receive 'talksport' on DAB so I was rather concerned about this signal reception aspect. I need not have been. Yes, positioning of the aerial is critical but once you have spent a bit of time sussing it out it's in our experience perfectly fine. BBC Radio 6, 7 (now 4-Extra) and World Service the main stations we listen to on DAB are fine as are the usual 'strong' fm ones. Obviously signal reception is entirely down to your exact location and the radios capabilities which in out instance were more than up-to the job.
The tone of the radio whilst slightly varying staion-to-station (because of the various microphones used?) is good. I expected a Roberts radio to provide a 'neutral' mellow and refined sound biased towards speech given such a 'smaller' radio. The RD-45 certainly achieves this whilst also coping surprisingly well with higher (not high!) volumes of music too. Considering its modest size and thus limited parameters its balance is spot-on.
It has a recessed carry 'grip' at the rear in addition to the battery compartment which I guess I will never open and the usual phones and line out jacks.
The design and gentle curvatured shape is pleasing to the eye whilst at the same time being suitably restrained though strongly and wrongly it must be said suggesting a twin speaker radio. I wonder how many will fall for that 'suggested' assumption?
To sum up; this is a pleasing DAB radio in a traditional vein being presented in a stylish yet consevative modern case. Its absolutely ideal for Question Time, The Moral Maze, Money Box, The Comedy Controller, Pick Of The Week et'al but also puts in a most respectable performance when listening to music be it your local MOR BBC station, in my instance 'York/North Yorkshire', BBC Radio 2 Classic FM or Desert Island Discs and so forth. It is a little expensive for what you get but as with all quality items in life its perhaps best to pay that little bit more for something that 'little bit better'?