Home > Consumer Reviews > Bush PSDAB2004 Personal DAB Radio

This was my first DAB radio of any description. I bought it about 3 months ago specifically to listen to while walking from a mainline London station to my office. I can't comment on the reception of many stations as I habitually listen to only a few, but I've found that there's very little signal drop-out even when walking between tall buildings/under scaffolding, etc. I don't find the supplied earphones very comfortable, and I'm going to get some others. I use NiMH rechargeable batteries (2100mAh) and they last quite well - maybe 6 hours.
I've also used the radio on buses, and in my car, connected to the car radio with a cassette adaptor (instead of the earphones). It worked perfectly well, which really surprised me as I've read that 'real' DAB car radios aren't very good.
Overall, I'm very pleased, and I would definitely recommend this model to anyone looking for a personal DAB radio.

I agree with all previous reports. My only two points are that the earphone socket could have been at the top rather than on the side. It could also do with a little carrying case to clip to your belt or to hang around your neck (as a woman do not always have a pocket to put it in). I tried various DAB radios and have 3 at home (non PS). I wanted something for work. Tried various others, but found they were no good (bad receiption, too big, etc.). After reading the reviews on this one, I had to try it. The positives out-weigh the negatives by far and therefore I gave it 5 stars!! It is excellent! I love it! Thanks Bush.

It is light, compact and fits easily into your pocket. When you switch it on it scans for stations automatically (as long as your earphones are attached, since they also act as the aerial) and thanks to a straightforward manual it is very simple to use. I use it mostly to listen to FiveLive whilst travelling through London. Signal strength is generally excellent except for the City with all its tall buildings messing up your signal - this results in 'burbling' and sometimes complete silence - but luckily the City is comparatively small. Music stations like 1Xtra sound phenomenal and you even have the choice of 6 equalizer presets. There is a message in the manual that says this pocket radio is meant specifically for use with the supplied earplugs, but they did not fit me properly. So I tried my etymotics instead and there does not seem to be a problem. In London there are more than 50 digital stations to choose from and some with unique concepts, such as Oneword which just reads out books and plays and poetry to you all day long! It is very power-hungry and needs to be fed 2 new AA batteries every 8 hours or so. Best to get yourself a couple of rechargeable NiMH batteries. You can also plug it into the mains but unfortunately the 4V DC power plug you will need is not supplied (the reason I didn't give it 5 stars).

I confidently rate this radio, having tried several other more expensive models with poor results in reception and sound quality. Yes, as D. Lambert reports, the earphones are a little large, but so what? - there are loads of alternatives to suit personal preference at little expense and it is worth it, this has reliably good DAB sound and reception at a very good price - I use it everywhere and I am difficult to please. Good value.

I bought my radio mainly to use for walking 3 miles to work (in Sheffield). I have now had it a week, over which time I have used it several times (in Sheffield, on transport and in London) and can say the following:

Sound quality is excellent.
Reception is also very good - the only times I have lost signal are on the train from Yorkshire to London and in the supermarket freezer section - mobiles do the same so I don't believe this is a flaw of the radio!
It is very user friendly - I haven't yet read the instruction manual as I haven't needed to. Find the power switch and the radio tunes itself into a long list of stations.

The radio is bulkier than I expected (think traditional bar of soap)and it isn't the prettiest gadget. It's more about function on a budget than design.

The headphones that people have commented on aren't uncomfortable to my ears, but they don't stay in as well as i-pod earphones for example, but as another review commented, the radio will operate with generic headphones.

I can't comment on how battery thirsty it is as I am still using the batteries that it came with, but I have had about 5 hours' use out of them so far and the battery indicator still shows full.

All in all I would recommend this product - it completely meets my needs and cost a fraction of other products on the market.